It would have so easy for Beethoven to be discouraged; he can’t even hear the thing he loves most. But he actually accelerated, he pushed himself even harder, he absolutely redefined what music can do. That’s what we’re going to try to do with the Heifetz Virtual Institute this summer. As Beethoven himself remarked, “The barriers are not erected which can say to aspiring talents and industry, ʻThus far, and no farther.” The barriers ahead are indeed great, but we shall strive to go farther, as Beethoven would insist. Our students, our teachers, our audiences, and you deserve nothing less than our fullest, best, effort.
– Heifetz Institute Artistic Director Nicholas Kitchen
Our Video of the Week is a performance that truly captures the spirit and potential of the Heifetz Virtual Institute was that of cellist Boubacar Diallo and pianist Yoon Lee, who collaborated to perform in the expansive first movement of Beethoven’s Cello Sonata No. 2 in G minor. During a year in which celebrations of Beethoven’s 250th birthday were set to reverberate through concert halls worldwide (including ours), his determination, spirit, and of course artistry, continue to serve as a guiding light for our summer program, as Artistic Director Nicholas Kitchen noted above in our initial announcements regarding the Virtual Institute.
Like Beethoven, we continue to make music in uncertain times and perform against unprecedented odds. Boubacar and Yoon Lee performed the sonata masterfully despite being separated by a great distance (though both in New York State, Rochester and NYC are 300+ miles apart) and having to record their parts through a demanding layered approach that our Artistic Team has helped to pioneer. This performance displays exemplary musicianship as they mirror one another’s dynamics, phrasing, and tempo-changes as if they were performing in Francis Auditorium! Virtual collaboration is the new normal, and it is performances like Boubacar’s and Yoon’s that make us excited for the musical possibilities that lie ahead.
Jean-Pierre Duport (1741-1818), first cellist of the Court Orchestra of Friedrich Wilhelm II, King of Prussia (and Wilhelm’s cello teacher), for whom Beethoven composed the two Op. 5 cello sonatas.