Feature Article by Robert Maxham
Shannon Lee: Speaking the Language of the Violin

Delphin Alard, violinist son-in-law of luthier Jean Baptiste Vuillaume, once remarked that, since Luigi Tarisio continually deferred bringing the great violin he promised to Paris, that violin was like the Messiah—everyone talked about it, it didn’t come. Similarly, Paul Stoeving wrote about the angel of the violin looking over an infant in a crib and whispering that one day it would be the Chopin of the violin. The Messiah Strad finally came into Vuillaume’s possession, but the Chopin of the violin? Well, at least in so far as performance goes, she too may have arrived.

Shannon Lee turned 16 on June 30, 2008, but she made her premiere recording for Telarc when she hadn’t yet reached the age of 15. She’s studied for a long time with Jan Mark Sloman, principal associate concertmaster of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, and although he modestly scales back the kind of hyperbole that I can more freely indulge, he’s heard similar opinions from others. And at the session itself, after the recording of Salut d’amour, a significant delay ensued, after which Robert Woods came back and said, “You know, Shannon, I thought that I could live a happy life without ever hearing that piece again, but I gotta tell you, kid, you kicked my butt.” Sloman adds, “What you heard is what’s there. The hallmark of her playing is that there’s not a note she plays that’s not Shannon. That’s the way she plays; that’s who she is. She doesn’t play like a faux 25-year-old.” (In her interview, Shannon herself identified sincerity as one of the compelling qualities of the violinists of the earlier generation.)

Sloman’s been her teacher for about eight years. “Her mom brought her to me from the Suzuki program. She had very good early training, but I had no idea that this was what I was going to get. She was awfully good and worked hard; my wife points out that from the first time she showed up, she had a sound that would make your head snap back—and this was a kid playing on a quarter-size violin. And it’s obviously gotten just better and better and better. She’s been through pretty much the kind of system that my teacher, Mr. Galamian, used.”

Sloman attended Meadowmount for the first time when he was 11, studied with an assistant, Sally Thomas for quite a long time, then with Galamian himself. Then he spent a couple of years at Princeton, during which he continued to study with Galamian; after that he went to Curtis, and worked again with Galamian and with Jaime Laredo, during that violinist’s first year at Curtis. He’s now in his 31st season in Dallas, although he’s done stints as guest concertmaster in Florence, Melbourne, and Pittsburgh. After teaching professionals and adults, he began, about 20 years ago, to teach younger students.

“I took a systematic approach with Shannon. She went through the familiar étude series: Kreutzer, Fiorillo, Rode, Gaviniès, Dont, and Paganini—structural things that I think are tremendously important. She’s not as rigorous a scale practicer as some, but she does practice them. We’ve gone through all Bach’s sonatas and partitas; and she obviously has a pretty large repertoire of short works like the ones she recorded. At this point, I’ve kept her from some of the physically large things: we’ve worked on Brahms’s Concerto, for example, only relatively recently. I wanted to build the strength beforehand. But she’s played most of the major concertos. Right now we’re working on Bartók’s Second; and this January, she learned the Shostakovich First in about three weeks. She’s very, very quick. I looked back through my notes the other day, and found that she’d learned Wieniawski’s First Concerto in about three weeks too. When I start that piece with students, I note it in the front of the music; and three weeks after starting it, she performed it from memory. The next things we’re planning (we talk about the things she does—I don’t simply tell her what we’re going to do): Berg and Stravinsky, and Elgar and Walton. Those things are out there. She’s got a lot of performing obligations, and we want to make sure that those are well prepared. She’s playing Barber’s Concerto a couple of times in the summer (she’s played that before), and this fall she’s playing her first Beethoven and her first Tchaikovsky with community orchestras here in Texas, but they’re about a week apart, so we have to get ready for both. She’s played Sibelius several times. In fact, she played it for her European debut last November and will play her first Paganini Concerto in April 2009. (When she was 12, she won a local competition with it.) Once we get everything learned to a certain point, she’ll be able to play lots and lots of different kinds of things on very short notice—very important for a young artist. That’s one kind of thing on which I’ve worked with her. The other is the physical and mental endurance required. In her recitals I have her play her concerto and maybe some Bach (physically and mentally challenging) or maybe a couple of caprices at the end to try to extend her concentration. It’s always been quite good, but now it’s iron. The conductor in Germany, Christoph Perrick, asked me, ‘Do you think she’s strong enough to play through the piece twice?’ I don’t think endurance is an issue. She’s a tremendously strong fiddle-player. But, as you can tell in her playing, she also has a deep affection for the violin.”

Did Sloman inculcate the love for the older generation of violinists that shows itself so unmistakably in her playing? “Well, I insist that all my students listen to and watch those violinists. Of course, they can’t see it live, but they have YouTube, DVDs, CDs—they have access to so much. I remember how, when I was a kid, we passed around a reel-to-reel tape of Primrose recordings that were unavailable anywhere. It was like gold. At this point, you can probably go online and get them. The tools are out there, but students at that level really have to understand how these guys—and women—did what they did, the power of the sound they created. That’s where the power of the violin is. It’s not in the histrionics. In fact, Shannon as a live performer is very quiet. We played for a conductor here in Dallas who said that she doesn’t ‘move around enough.’ In fact, a critic mentioned it, too, and he meant it pejoratively.” But watch Heifetz and Milstein, or even the slightly more demonstrative Oistrakh! “Exactly. But then David Nadien, on seeing her videos, said, ‘She doesn’t move around.’ And he meant it just the other way. And there was an article several months ago in which Bernard Holland (in the New York Times) said that he was tired of seeing people move around. He wants to hear what’s going on rather than to see it. I’ve told Shannon that I want her to be free to move if she wants to move, but if she doesn’t want to move, she shouldn’t. She gets involved in the art of playing, and that absorbs all your energy. You don’t have a lot left to make faces and jump around, because you’re concentrating on making music and making the fiddle work. I don’t know how people can make the kinds of movements some of these players are making and still play the violin well.” That’s the way the older generation played, for the most part. “Yes. The best violin recordings are in the bargain bin. Among my recordings, I don’t have huge numbers of young players. I have the people I grew up with. That’s the gold standard, and why should I buy others? That’s what I call the priesthood, and there are about 10 or 12; and out of the hundreds of thousands that played, they’re the ones we look to. Of course, it’s hard for me as her teacher to say that she’s a member of that group at 15.” But she could be ordained to that priesthood, and others don’t seem to have much hope. “Exactly.”

Did Shannon understand the power and intensity of the older players immediately? “I don’t know. How she learns is a mysterious process. I know she’s very disciplined in how she goes about learning and how she goes about listening. She practices by herself—her parents are just a dream. But how she absorbed those sounds, that’s a mystery. She’s made them her own. I’ve told her to listen: not to copy anybody, but to understand the language. You hear people speaking all the time nowadays about ‘color and nuance.’ Listen to Heifetz playing Debussy’s La plus que lente. There’s almost nothing more that the violin can do. Shannon’s working on that piece now, and she understands the palette that’s available. People who play the fiddle have to understand what’s there. A very prominent teacher at a very prominent music school told me in horror that he had taught the first lesson with a student and had made reference to Heifetz and the student looked blankly at him and said, ‘Who’s that?’ That’s what Elmar Oliveira means when he says that the culture of the violin is gone. People aren’t aware and they’re not made aware what the thing is and how it’s supposed to work. They’ve reinvented it and what we see now is this contrivance, and it has very little to do with playing the violin.”

How does Sloman feel the recording’s engineers served Lee? “Well, in tipping my hat to Telarc, I’d say that as CDs go, the sound of the recording is just phenomenal, thanks to Bob [Woods], Tom Moore, and Robert Friedrich, who did a phenomenal job.”

And the instrument Shannon used—a Giorgio Seraphin? “Shannon had, from her half-sized violin (a Storioni lent to her by Charles Beare) a three-quarter sized Maggini. So she had two very good small fiddles, and who knows how much of that sound came from the fiddles themselves? In any case, she had that under her ear. Her first full-sized violin was a [Guarneri] del Gesù with a newer top made by Peter Beare. Unfortunately, that had to be withdrawn in December to be sold and the recording was in April. I had a friend who offered her a del Gesù. So we flew up and brought it back. We’d had it about two weeks and a fight occurred among the partners who owned the del Gesù and they wanted it withdrawn, too, this time in January. So I got in touch with Telarc and then loaned her my fiddle. It’s a very good fiddle, though it’s not a Strad or del Gesù. And it isn’t going to get withdrawn. So we just decided to go ahead and make the recording with that. It turned out well. I think Telarc’s engineers were able to maximize it with their technology.” It’s a very intelligently engineered recording. “Yes. You know, Robert, their engineer, is a former violinist. He knew what to listen for. And Bob Woods also has a phenomenal ear.”

Shannon Lee hasn’t emerged from New York or Philadelphia or Chicago. “No, and she’s therefore had time to become herself, with no pressure to—well ‘conform’ isn’t quite the right word—but she’s grown in her own way. My duty is to inform, educate, and protect. At this point, she needs to perform, she needs to continue to read serious literature, she needs to go to art museums and to grow up as a person.

“Shannon has a three-record agreement with Telarc, and we haven’t discussed the next two. That’s going to be a decision with Shannon and Bob and Telarc—and maybe I’ll have some input. I know what I’d like, and it would be pretty much in the vein of the first recording—maybe some substantial pieces with orchestra. For this one, we discussed venues and whether it would be a solo violin recording. I didn’t think that would be a good idea. She obviously loves these pieces and has a flair for them. And the fact is that she can do it and I haven’t heard anybody who can do it for so long. Michael Rabin’s first recordings were of that kind of literature (as in ‘Magic Bow’). Anyway, we recorded at Skywalker Ranch, a phenomenal facility. And there’s no noise—totally quiet—idyllic.”

What does Sloman think of using competitions to promote Shannon’s career? “Most of the major solo careers in this country are young people who haven’t played in competitions: Hilary Hahn, Leila Josefowicz, Gil Shaham, Midori, Sarah Chang—none of those gained their career through competition. I think there are several career paths—at least two, anyway. The problem with competition winners is that the field is so crowded. And again, what kind of player is winning competitions? Is it a player who can convert winning into a career? How many winners of the Indianapolis Competition have solo careers? They all obviously had to be wonderful fiddle-players to get to that level. The Brussels competition—back in the 1960s and 1970s, when we were all younger, was a very important way to get launched. The Russians, in particular, used it—Gidon Kremer, Vladimir Spivakov, Valery Klimov—came through winning Brussels or Tchaikovsky or Montreal. And it gave them access to the first round of concerts, but after that . . . Of course, Jaime Laredo won in Brussels and has had a wonderful career, has been a real mensch through everything, and has loved the craft, loved the art. His leaving Curtis is a huge loss. But their loss is Indiana University’s gain. Anyway, it’s a mystery to me how it all works. Living so far away, I have a certain objectivity, but it’s still mysterious. On the other hand, playing in local competitions has allowed Shannon to examine how she could have done things better, to examine what she’s lacking.”

Shannon’s own discussion of the violin mirrors that of her teacher, which should hardly be surprising; what’s surprising, rather, is to hear from her an almost comparable maturity and thinking that’s fresh as well as alert and perceptive. What, then, about playing the violin gives her the greatest joy? “What I like best is the sound. It’s captivating—there’s a lot of variety, and on the whole it’s rich and full—that’s the sound I enjoy making when I’m playing. Of course, I also like the repertoire.”

Among the pieces in her recital, were any particularly challenging? “Technically, probably Scherzo tarantelle and Erlkönig. Erlkönig has so many weird stretches and chords, but there’s also the part in harmonics with double stops at the same time. The Scherzo tarantelle is difficult to get in tune and clean at the same time.” But she did, and how! “Those were probably the most challenging technically. Tonally, the hard thing was to get used to the recording studio. It’s so different from playing for a live audience—the room is big and empty. But I got used to it after a while. Mr. Sloman joined us in that room to turn pages occasionally, because we’d forgotten that there’d need to be a page-turner. So he volunteered. Anyway, the first piece I recorded was the Vitali, and at that time everyone was trying to make adjustments so that everything would be just right. After I recorded the Vitali, the producer, Mr. Woods, thought the sound wasn’t warm enough, so we decided to change the strings, which turned out much better. So on the third day, we recorded the Vitali again to make it match everything else. And on the third day, I felt more comfortable with the Vitali; as I said, it actually did turn out better than it did on the first day. And, I think, tonally, it went a lot better, too, maybe because I’d got used to it.”

Since the recording, now two years ago, she’s acquired the Vuillaume violin. “It’s a Maggini copy, from, I think, 1840.” And what kind of bow did she use in the recording? “I was using—I’m still using—a Vigneron.” What attracted her to the bow? “It really made my violin sound different. It was really amazing—I didn’t know a bow could have so much effect on the sound. It made the violin sound clearer, but it also felt very comfortable.”

When she began the sessions, did she think that she’d be using the original strings for the whole recording? “Actually, I’d never thought about it. It was lucky that we had some different strings. For that violin, I had chosen those original strings to increase its projection, as it would sound in a live performance. The sound really was more powerful; but I guess for the recording, with so many microphones, what matters more is the warmth, and the other worked better in that setting.”

Who selects her repertoire? “I think he [Sloman] chooses a lot of the pieces, but he gives me choices too. He might say that the next four concertos it would be good to learn next would be something, something, something, something; and then I might be able to choose which one to do first. So we both choose repertoire.”

The program notes mention pieces like Sea Shells as Rabin repertoire. Has she listened a lot to his recordings? “Yes. I have the big six-pack [“Michael Rabin, 1936–1972,” on EMI 64123, 15:5]. I have a Mac iBook and like to listen on that.” And then there’s the collection of his recordings on Columbia (Sony Masterworks Heritage 60894, 23:2), which she also knows well. What does she hear in the playing of those older violinists? “I think their sound is really special, even though they’re different. The sound is very well sustained and full and compelling and—sincere.” Is there any current violinist she likes? “Well, I have a lot of recordings of current violinists, but I don’t know which one is my favorite; I like different aspects of different ones.” And among the older group? “Probably Heifetz and Rabin, Oistrakh and Szeryng.” Why Szeryng? “Szeryng’s clean.”

In which venues does Lee like to perform? “Well, I just played a recital in Little Rock, and it’s really fun to play for a long time, even though it may sound tiring. I played a few CD pieces in that recital, and it felt really well polished because I’d recorded them. But playing with orchestra, when you have so many people behind you, makes you feel well supported.”

Did any of the pieces on the recording seem to go especially well? “I think I like listening to different ones, and it all depends. But I like the Salut d’amour.” If she could record anything, what would it be? “Probably Chausson’s Poème and Waxman’s Carmen Fantasy (there’s a good video of Kogan playing Waxman’s work, a video that, of course, Lee has seen), two of my favorite pieces, and I’d also like to record something with orchestra.” And what would she like to play in public? “I think the Glazunov Concerto. I’ve never played with orchestra before, but it’s one of my favorites.”


INTRODUCING SHANNON LEE  •  Shannon Lee (vn); Pamela Mia Paul (pn)  •  TELARC 80695 (55:20)

WIENIAWSKI Scherzo-Tarantelle. KREISLER Tambourin chinois. Recitativo and Scherzo. DEBUSSY (arr. Heifetz) Beau soir. ELGAR Salut d’amour. SCRIABIN (arr. Szigeti) Étude in Thirds, op. 8/10. BRAHMS Sonatensatz. VITALI (arr. Charlier) Chaconne. ENGEL Sea Shells. CHOPIN (ed. Milstein) Nocturne in c♯. RIMSKY-KORSAKOV (arr. Heifetz) Flight of the Bumblebee. ERNST Der Erlkönig. BAZZINI La ronde des lutins

Shannon Lee is 16 years old now, but was only 14 when she recorded the recital that Telarc touts as her introduction. She has studied principally with Jan Mark Sloman of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and must have worked through a great number of virtuoso showpieces, as the recital’s makeup testifies. Each of its items has served as a vehicle for the greatest violinists of earlier generations, and many of them have been associated with particular exponents. The first number on the program, Henri Wieniawski’s Scherzo-Tarantelle, showcases surprising left-hand dexterity, a tone of searching depth yet not without grit— and, in the singing middle section, subtle and ingenious command of portamentos. Fritz Kreisler’s Tambourin chinois allows Lee to demonstrate a sharp rhythmic sense akin to the composer’s. While in the Recitativo of his Recitativo and Scherzo she wanders convincingly through slinky, Ysaÿe-inspired declamations, the Scherzo is all fireworks, and she begins slowly, accenting more strongly in patterns than I’ve heard most violinists do. Jascha Heifetz’s transcription of Debussy’s Beau soir provides an effective contrast in her performance, with seductive timbres and suggestive harmonies supporting her veiled melodic line (Lee creates a similar effect in Efrem Zimbalist’s transcription of Carl Engel’s song, Sea Shells).

In the choice of repertoire and in her manner of delivering it, it’s clear that Lee has heard great violinists. That’s specifically apparent in Salut d’amour, in which her manner, with its dynamic and tempo changes and swooping portamentos, hearkens back to an era of salon music that many violinists have unfortunately disavowed; her always judicious and deeply affecting way with this piece should remind listeners of just how much has been lost. Joseph Szigeti may seldom—at least in his maturity—have indulged in virtuosity for its own sake, but his transcription of Scriabin’s Étude, championed by the lamented Michael Rabin, though it may contain a hard kernel of musical substance, nevertheless has the effect of an exuberant technical romp. Lee’s probing musicianship (it might be tempting to call it precocious if musical talent weren’t so often just that) comes to the fore in Brahms’s Scherzo, in which she also appears to be a knowing partner of Pamela Mia Paul, who rises auspiciously in this piece from her role as accompanist to that of collaborator. If an occasional accent in Vitali’s Chaconne seems too sharp or an occasional double-stopped passage seems a bit ungainly, Lee nevertheless effectively deploys its transcription’s not-quite-Baroque arsenal of technical tricks. Milstein’s transcription of Chopin’s Nocturne in C♯ Minor, for which, incidentally, he offered violinists little guidance in fingering (perhaps because he so often improvised his own), offers a comparable variety of expressive devices, of which Lee also makes a great deal.

The last three pieces conclude the program with a traditional but still bracing display of fireworks. Ernst’s version of Schubert’s Erlkönig (not, as the notes suggest, one of the six polyphonic studies—those already add up to the required number six) may not bring out the sharpest characterization of the two voices, but Lee is still technically and accentually acute. In Bazzini’s Goblins’ Round, she may lack the young Heifetz’s sheer élan, but then she’s younger (he recorded it at 16)—and she does end in a fiery burst of energy.

What does this recital prove, besides the obvious fact that Lee plays very well for her age (or any age)? I’ve a few suggestions. First, that if you have talent you can still learn to play this well outside New York or Philadelphia. Second, that familiarity with performances by great violinists from the past (Lee, for example, knows about Rabin’s recordings) can still be an advantage in formation. Third, that it may not be critically important to play a Strad or Guarneri (Lee used the ex-Hill Georgio—not Santo—Seraphin for this recording). Fourth, that you can still tell a great deal about yourself in literature less profound (and more violinistically conceived) than Beethoven’s or Brahms’s sonatas. And, finally—have I already mentioned it?—that Shannon Lee plays both very brilliantly and very engagingly. Perhaps not yet with an immediately identifiable voice, but with a great deal of conviction and startling insight. Incidentally, Telarc’s engineers catch her close up, in a not overly reverberant setting. Urgently recommended.