by oldwp | Dec 7, 2010 | Uncategorized
Somewhere My Love/Lara’s Theme from Dr. Zchivago
Being a strolling violinist means that yes, I can walk and play at the same time. I just can’t chew gum while doing it…
What being a strolling violinist really means is that I have all of my music memorized and I take requests from the audience. I stopped counting just how many pieces of music I had in my repetoire when I reached 500. People ask me all the time, “How do you remember them all?” I wonder the same thing myself sometimes!
In all of my music studies, I was never forced or instructed in how to memorize. When I started strolling, I thought if I just played each song a million times, that it would do the trick. Then I realized I could memorize more songs with less time in 3 different ways: visual, aural and kinesthetic. There are times when I will use one or the other or some kind of combination. For example, visually means that sometimes I see the sheet music in my mind’s eye – when you look at a piece of music a million times, trust me you can see the music in your sleep! The phrase “playing it by ear”, means I have never laid eyes on the sheetmusic. I may have only heard it on the radio or tv. I start hearing it in my head, sort of singing along and presto! The fingers follow along.
The most challenging way to memorize a song is by touch or feel (kinesthetically). The challenging part is that once your fingers are trained to play in a certain way (some people call this muscle memory), you can never play the song in the original or transposed/different key. “Clair de Lune” was one of those songs. It was originally written for piano in a difficult key for the violin. I started by playing it a million times (visually) but unfortunately, I had never even heard (aurally) of this song before. It was taking forever to memorize this beautiful but lengthy piece. In order for me to “feel” my way through it, I changed the key so that my fingers felt comfortable on the fingerboard. I am the only strolling violinist in Chicago with this song memorized…as long as it is in the key of C!
As for the “taking requests” part of being a strolling violinist, I just hate to be stumped by the audience. On the rare occasion that there is a request for a song I don’t know, I will look it up as soon as I get home. My motivation is strictly based on having fallen in love with so many of my audience’s favorites.
My claim to fame as “Chicago’s Favorite Strolling Violinist” is supported by the fact that there are only three songs I don’t know. What are the three? If you happen to pick one of them, I’ll be sure to let you know!
by oldwp | Dec 3, 2010 | Uncategorized
This has been a year of music making like no other. Oh sure, some of the highlights include performing with the top tribute Led Zepplin band, being featured on Channel 7’s Wedding Special, pre-game entertainer for the Chicago Bulls and over 200 other engagements. What I would like to post today is about a special performance. It brings to mind the saying, “I use to think that forever was a long time and now it doesn’t seem long enough”
I was asked to perform for a Persian wedding ceremony for a young couple in love on Monday, October 11th at the Peggy Notebaert Museum. The music selection process takes place with the bride and groom at least 2-4 weeks ahead of time. This wedding was different – the groom, Nick Schmidt, was in and out of the hospital for cancer treatments, so there just wasn’t time. “Just play Behar’s Persian wedding processional, “Mobarak Baad”. Nothing else seemed to matter other than they had one more day together. Nick passed away on Wednesday, December 1st. I have performed for thousands of weddings and this one will live in my heart forever.
My wish upon this wedding is for all of us to be inspired by Behar and Nick’s beautiful love story.
by oldwp | Dec 1, 2010 | Uncategorized
The Jewel Tea Pavilion of Citizens Park in Barrington, Illinois will be the location for the Pepper Family Hospice Home and Center for Care Tree of Lights – A Remembrance Celebration on Sunday, December 5th, 2010 from 4 p.m. – 6 p.m. This special event allows those who have lost loved ones the chance to remember, honor and celebrate those who have been lights in their lives. Joining this year’s remembrance will be Chicago’s favorite strolling violinist, Jennifer Silk for a special musical program. A reflection ceremony will be followed by a fellowship gathering with refreshments. Silk will be performing “Let There Be Peace on Earth” as the candle-lighting ceremony begins outside. Bereavement counselors from Hospice & Palliative Care of Northeastern Illinois will be in attendance as well. For more information, please contact Mary Ann Green at (847) 381-5599.
The Pepper Family Hospice Home and Center for Care is an inpatient hospice unit providing care and support for patients and their families facing terminal illness as well as a care center for those seeking grief support, palliative care (pain and symptom management), and complementary therapies.
A music education graduate of Western Michigan University and Arizona State University, Jennifer Silk has been delighting audiences as a full-time professional freelance musician for the past 20 years. Members of her audience have included Hollywood celebrities, political dignitaries and even the Chicago Cubs season opener! When the opportunity to move from California to Arlington Heights, she teamed with her mentor and strolling violinist, Franz Benteler. “Wherever I play,” says Silk, “people always tell me of how much it meant to them to hear Franz play ‘Edelweiss’. My wish is to follow in his footsteps and continue providing people enjoyable memories of being serenaded.”
Having played professionally for many families grieving, Silk is no stranger to the angels that make up hospice care. On a more personal level, when Mr. Benteler passed away in March of this year, she played by his bedside his beloved “Edelweiss”. The family requested her leadership to plan and conduct his 20 piece Royal Strings Orchestra at his funeral mass. “They say that hearing is the last of our senses to leave us. Being in the hospice environment was so comforting that it took away the fear of losing someone so near and dear to me”. The experience prepared her when her own father suffered a massive stroke the following month. His hospice stay in Arizona convinced her that music truly is healing and that there are angels masquerading as hospice caregivers.
