Category: AMN mentors

“At every different point in your life, Bach’s music can speak to you in different ways.”

Stephen Harrison has explored the cello suites throughout his career as a solo performer, chamber musician, and teacher. He marvels at how editions of the musical score have changed with the times and how this reflects an ongoing evolution in our understanding of how to play Bach.

“When I studied the third suite with Margaret Rowell, she said, ‘You should get the latest edition’ which at that time was by Pierre Fournier. Of course it’s now not at all current performance practice.

“It’s a lot of fun to think about why editors do what they do, why cellists play as they play, and then how we can get our own individual ideas in there.”

“I tell my students, here are 10 different editions of the Bach Suites from throughout the last 100 years. Look at the variety of ways in which they’ve been approached, and think about the aesthetic that caused these editions to be written this way. And then maybe you’ll find your own way!”

Stephen and his wife and artistic partner Susan Freier are long-time faculty at the summer chamber music workshop for amateur chamber musicians at Scripps College. Working with amateur musicians inspires Stephen, and “one of the things I love is, it’s a renewal of my faith in what I’m doing. It reminds me that there’s a purity (for non-professionals) about loving the music. That is why we are in this! Bach is a great way to remind yourself of that.”

What a great thought – and a great way to end our series!

San Francisco cello legend Bonnie Hampton says her chamber music instincts evolved early: Although she began playing piano at age 4, “I wanted to play with other people so that’s why I wanted to start on the cello.” And she remembers that “it was a big thrill when I started working on that Prelude (of the first Bach suite). That was a big day in my life!”

Bonnie calls the 20^th century “the Cello Century.” That’s when the cello emerged as a solo instrument and saw a huge growth in popularity, and particularly for solo performance. She says that there’s just something about that one person on stage; the audience’s attention is naturally concentrated in a way that brings everyone deeply into the music itself.

“As a cellist,” she says, “if there’s one thing that I want to be able to achieve in my life, it’s being able to play these works as well as I can. Because they symbolize something that is so pure, musically, for the cello.

“Bach is our granddaddy! He expressed everything. It was the language of his day, but it has all of the passion, all the love, and of course the religious and spiritual side of things – just everything!”

Join Bonnie on April 5 to learn more about her passion for the cello and for Bach!

For William Skeen, it’s all about the tone quality.

As a period instrument specialist, Bill is used to having to coax the sound out of his cello. “It’s just more difficult on gut strings,” he explains. “You work on resonance, and you don’t have vibrato as an extra tool to warm up the sound, so you have to do it all yourself while working with these strings which are very temperamental.” With period-accurate equipment it’s also much harder to stay in tune. So why would someone want to make a career in period instrument performance at all?

Bill was drawn to the intimacy of the sound and performance style. “Yo-Yo Ma goes to the Hollywood Bowl and plays (the Bach suites) for 20,000 people! You have to have a certain (kind of) tone to do that. But these Baroque instruments are naturally suited to a very small room. When I play these pieces I prefer to keep them intimate and use my inside voice.”

I had the opportunity to chat with Jean-Michel by zoom to learn more about his personal relationship to this particular suite, which started in his early teens, and how it has evolved over time. We also talked about the various “breadcrumbs” that Bach leaves in his music which give us clues “about what to do,” From exploring manuscripts to studying the dance forms, Jean-Michel explains what kind of detective work he does to better understand and perform the suites.

I have seen firsthand how Jean-Michel has helped students–collegiate and pre-collegiate–navigate these suites and start their own lifelong journey with these pieces. Our conversation on Tuesday will undoubtedly help us all find more ways to look at these suites. I look forward to spending time with Jean-Michel and Lolly at the Bowes Center for Performing Arts at SFCM to take a deep dive into the second suite. I hope that you will join us!