WETA: Rachel Barton Pine Speaks about Music by Black Composers
In 1997, I was invited to record my first concerto album. As I was quite young, I decided to wait a little longer before doing major concertos like Brahms, Mendelssohn, and Beethoven (all of which I’ve since recorded). Instead, the plan was to find some overlooked but wonderful repertoire for violin and orchestra. Thanks to the African-American conductors active in my hometown of Chicago when I was a teenager – Michael Morgan, Paul Freeman, and Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson – I was aware that there were numerous fantastic works by composers of African descent going all the way back to the 1700s. As a fan of the violin, I was really excited by the idea of introducing violin repertoire to the public which would be new discoveries for almost everyone.
During one of my excursions to a library archive, I saw a huge replica of an historic painting on the wall – a Black man in an 18th-Century wig with a sword and a violin. Whoa! Awesome album cover alert! Of course, it was Joseph Bologne, the Chevalier de Saint-Georges, and I fell in love with his music. I included his Violin Concerto in A Major on my album, Violin Concertos by Black Composers Through the Centuries, alongside works by José White and Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (and now Florence Price, in the 25th anniversary re-release).
Strings: Heavy Metal Meets Classical: Rachel Barton Pine Finds a Common Ground
Stickers for Metallica, Slayer, and Anthrax are emblazoned on the case that contains Rachel Barton Pine’s signature “ex-Bazzini, ex-Soldat” Joseph Guarneri del Gesù from 1742. The charismatic violinist doesn’t just defy categories. Her life as an artist is fueled by omnivorous curiosity, which Pine combines with searing musical intelligence and an impeccable virtuosity—all in the service of finding a deep connection to her audience.
The span of Pine’s interests reinforces the inadequacy of the catch-all label “classical music.” Her commitment to early music alone ranges from the medieval period to rediscovered gems of the Baroque. Pine, who celebrates her milestone 50th birthday later this year, has recorded acclaimed interpretations of standard classical repertoire but is also an avid champion of contemporary composers. Her prolific discography, which comprises more than 30 albums to date, additionally documents the violinist’s passion for Chicago blues, Scottish fiddling, and heavy metal.
Violinist: Rachel Barton Pine Performs Billy Childs' Violin Concerto at the Hollywood Bowl
What a pleasure to see Chicago-based violinist Rachel Barton Pine on Thursday night in her debut performance with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, which was also her first performance at the Hollywood Bowl.
It's about time!
Washington Classical Review: Pine, Fairfax Symphony give worthy advocacy to revived Price concerto
Florence Price composed her Violin Concerto No. 2 in 1952. As violinist Rachel Barton Pine remarked before performing it with the Fairfax Symphony Orchestra led by Christopher Zimmerman Saturday night, its creation seems to have been driven by a pure personal need to write a concerto. Price had not received a commission, and no one performed it before she died a year later. Price never had a publisher, a circumstance likely explained by the prejudices she had to contend with as a black woman.
This concerto was lost to history until its manuscript was found in a trunk in an abandoned house in 2009, along with many other Price compositions. It was a fortuitous discovery, as Saturday’s performance at the George Mason University’s Center for the Arts showed.
WETA: The Music of Florence Price with Rachel Barton Pine and the Fairfax Symphony
Violinist Rachel Barton Pine will be featured with the Fairfax Symphony performing Florence Price's Violin Concerto No. 2 in a concert on February 11 at the Center for the Arts at George Mason University. I reached out to her to ask about this performance and its place in the context of her career.