Arts: Music
Cellist Daniel Lee Will Take You on a Magical Cello Adventure
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he cello is not mere ensemble furniture and you shouldn’t grow accustomed to thinking of it in that way. All too often, the first violinist of a chamber group is looked upon as the star of the show, with the second violinist, pianist, violist and yes, even the cellist, considered mere backup musicians. If this is your take on the classical ensemble experience, you must right yourself immediately, I tell you. And Augusta Symphony has a little plan to help you get over such an affliction. They are bringing in Daniel Lee, a young cellist who is going to do his best to make you see the cello as an instrument worth loving. Perhaps one of the most noted cellists is Arturo Toscanini. He was a Parma, Italyborn orchestra director, born in 1867 and living about 90 years beyond that. Both his father and an orchestra director under which he played were named Claudio, a fact that has absolutely nothing to do with anything, but which may win you a free beer sometime at a game of trivia. Lee studied for free at a violoncello school at the conservatory of Parma. Violoncello is, by the way, the proper name for the cello. So, see? There is more to the instrument than nice curves. If you go to www.cello.org, you can actually find an alphabetical database of historical cellists, many of them Italian. Some French, some German, others Russian. One of the cellists listed in this particular database is the British cellist William Pleeth, under whom Lee studied. Pleeth was one of those youthful prodigies who began showing his stripes as early as the age of 7, and became a student at the London Cello School at age 10. According to his biography at www.cello.org, Pleeth organized the Allegri String Quartet in 1952 with two violinists and a violist. According to a quote on the site, he prefered playing in an ensemble to performing solo. “In many ways, a solo career is, for me, unsatisfying. I don’t care for the solitary traveling, and like even less the isolation of being confronted with a large orchestra and an ‘eminent’ conductor.” Pleeth taught Jacqueline du Pre and, of course, Daniel Lee, a quick study in his own right. At the age of 22, Lee has already been recognized for his abilities with the cello, most notably with the Avery Fisher Award, which he won in 2001. According to the Augusta Symphony, Lee was taken on as student and protégé by Mstislav Rostropovich at the age of 11. Rostropovich said that Lee played Tchaikovsky’s “Rococo Variations” much better than he, Rostropovich, had at age 15. At the age of 14, the young cellist was signed by Decca Records. For his Augusta concert, Lee is planning to play a selection of three pieces, begin-
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ning with “Short Ride in a Fast Machine,” a relatively contemporary piece by John Adams. (No, not the president.) Next, he will perform “Cello Concerto in B minor, B. 191, Op. 104” by Dvorak. After intermission, he will return and play “Scheherazade” by Rimsky-Korsakov. John Adams, born in 1947, is perhaps the most accessible of all the composers represented in Lee’s concert, if only because he has composed a piece about an experience almost everyone has been through. “You know how it is when someone asks you to ride in a terrific sports car, and then you wish you hadn’t?” is Adams’ description of “Short Ride in a Fast Car,” according to press materials supplied by Augusta Symphony. It was presented to the world on June 13, 1986, having been written as a fanfare piece for the opening concert of the Great Woods Festival, held in Mansfield, Mass. It utilizes two synthesizers, a large percussion battery and a wood block for some “almost sadistic” (Adams’ wording), steady clacking. It is a frequently performed piece and is popular among those who program things for children for the purpose of introducing contemporary music. So hop on board for the “Short Ride...” and much more, if you dare. Lee will perform Saturday, April 26 at 8 p.m. at the Grover C. Maxwell Performing Arts Theatre on the campus of Augusta State University. There will be a free preview lecture an hour before the concert, given by ASU assistant professor Christine Crookall. Tickets run $35, $28 and $15 general admission. Students get in for $7.50 to $14. For info or to order tickets, contact the Augusta Symphony Box Office: (706) 8264705 (phone) or (706) 826-4735 (fax).
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