The life of a performing artist can be hectic, and not just because of a full concert schedule.
When the Deseret Morning News caught up with violinist Gil Shaham in Charlottesville, Va., last week, he was at a mall doing some last-minute shopping for his wife's birthday, which was the following day. "My wife and our 1-year-old son are traveling with me," Shaham explained, "and that makes it hard for me to get away from the hotel without her knowing why."
Shaham was in Charlottesville to kick off his new recital tour with his longtime accompanist, pianist Akira Eguchi. The tour, which continues through Nov. 18, will bring them to Salt Lake City this week. Shaham said that between now and then, he will only be able to get home to New York for about a week. which is why he wanted his wife and son to join him. "We travel together as much as we can."
For his Salt Lake recital, Shaham has planned an impressive program of music by Copland, Bach and Faure. "I'm really excited about this program."
Copland's seldom-heard Sonata in G major will open the recital. "It's a big piece that's not often played," Shaham said, "but Akira and I both think it's one of Copland's great masterpieces." Shaham added that most people know Copland only as an orchestral composer, who created large, brassy sounds. "But his chamber music is also masterful, and I think the sonata is one of his best works. We've been playing it for five or six years now, and we always enjoy it."
Bach's formidable Partita No. 2 in D minor for solo violin will close out the first half of the recital. Shaham said that this is the first year that he's performing the Partita in concert.
"I've always been afraid of it. But I'm 32 now, and I realized that I'm probably ready to perform it live." Shaham added that the D minor Partita is unquestionably one of the most difficult works for solo violin. But he also said that he's looking forward to the challenge. "The D minor Partita is as great as music gets."
The second half of the recital will be devoted to works by Faur, including his Sonata No. 1 in A major. Shaham has a genuine fondness for the French composer's music. "Every note he wrote is beautiful. His melodies are almost like Schubert's, they're so memorable."
Shaham said that 2003 has been a real Faur year. Besides playing his music in recitals, Shaham and Eguchi have recorded an all-Faur album, which is slated to be released in about a month. "This has been a dream project for Akira and myself," Shaham said. He also said that this is the first time he's produced his own CD. "This has been very exciting. It's kind of like a chef opening his own restaurant. You get to put as much chili in the jambalaya as you want."
More artists are producing their own CDs. It offers performers several benefits they don't enjoy when they're affiliated with a major record label — the musicians own the copyright on their recordings, they have complete artistic freedom and can choose what they want to record. But it can also be a tricky venture.
"I don't know if it's going to be a financial risk for me — I won't know that for about a year," Shaham said. "Today's technology lets us record incredibly inexpensively, and in the end, it's us artist nerds who will benefit the most from it."
If you go . . .
What: Violinist Gil Shaham, pianist Akira Eguchi
Where: Libby Gardner Concert Hall
When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday
How much: $25; students $10
Phone: 581-7100
E-mail: ereichel@desnews.com