“A woman’s creative ability is her most valuable asset, for it gives outwardly and it feeds her inwardly at every level: psychic, spiritual, mental, emotive, and economic.”
In celebration of International Women’s Day! I’d like to introduce you to the musical woman of the Fairmount String Quartet…Beth Dzwil, Leah Kyoungwoon Kim, Rachel Segal, and Mimi Morris-Kim!
I had the honor of having my art displayed at their performances this past February.
I have zero musical abilities and honestly always felt a little intimidated by classical music. Silly! I know! I think it’s because I had never been to a classical concert. I’ve so enjoyed listening to and watching these musicians play together. There is something meditative about sitting down and just listening.
Beth Dzwil says she formed the group because “I wanted to spend my life's work doing what I loved.” Below is a short interview in which she shares more of her passion.
What do you love about performing together?
The mutual love, respect, support, and trust we have for each other as musicians - and as people - make it easy to work together to develop our interpretation of a work. It creates a safe place for us to be vulnerable musically and that's when the magic happens.
What’s one thing you want people who aren’t familiar with classical music to know about it?
Like all music, classical music speaks to our common humanity. The emotions, joys, and struggles that existed hundreds of years ago are the same as today.
Classical music isn't all old. Classical genre music being written today uses a fascinating, wide palette of sounds and harmonic colors. You don't need to "know" anything about classical music for it to speak to you. Have no fear!
Any fun/interesting facts about Haydn, Schubert or Caroline Shaw that you would like to share?
Haydn is considered the father of the string quartet. The Haydn quartet we are playing on this program, written in 1799, was the inspiration for the Shaw work that was written in 2011. Schubert was already suffering the effects of syphilis that would take his life four years later (at age 31) when he wrote "Death and the Maiden". It is based on a song he wrote about 10 years previously. The lyrics are a conversation as Death bids the dying maiden to come rest in his arms. It is a riveting and passionate work and is considered one of the masterpieces of the string quartet literature.
What is your favorite venue for a performance?
We have been enjoying the Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields in the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia. The sound is beautiful and so are the surroundings!
When is your next album being released?
We are hoping for a late summer/early fall release. It has been a challenge to fit recording sessions around our performance schedules. Our previous album, "Spoken with Strings", was all pop music which was great fun! This album is more classical with flavors of different cultures. It will likely be titled "Not From Here".
Happy International Women’s Day!
more info at The Fairmount String Quartet
Cosmic Lace: Serenity, oil on canvas, will be on view for the April performances