Well Boys & Girls,
I just bought a copy of the book,"Violin for Dummies", published 2008.
While leafing through it this evening I found the following, which I thought Vanessa-Mae fans would be interested in:
Chapter 18
Ten Performers - and Their Recordings
Violinists who have changed the face of musical history arrive on this planet only every now and then. In this chapter, I tell you about ten outstanding violinists who have made, or who continue to make,special and unique contributions to music. The performers are arranged in chronological order,and many have connections with one another, even if they're separated in time and place - the violin is universal and crosses all boundaries!
(I will just list the names of the first nine and not their write-ups...CX)
Niccolo Paganini (1782-1840)
Fritz Kreisler (1885-1962)
Jasha Heifetz (1899-1987)
Stephane Grappelli (1908-1997)
Yehudi Menuhin (1916-1999)
Itzak Perlman (1945)
Nigel Kennedy (1956)
Mark O'Connor (1961)
Natalie MacMaster (1973)
Vanessa-Mae (1978)
Vanessa-Mae is a violin superstar who's famous throughout the world.In April 2006, "The Sunday Times" of London ranked her as the richest young entertainer in the United Kingdom, with an estimated wealth of GBP 32 million, which currently translates into over US$60 million.
Since her teens, she's been at the forefront of the fusion between classical and pop music. It certainly helps that she's also very beautiful and glamorous, but if people didn't find her music exciting, her appearance alone wouldn't sell the CD's!
You see Vanessa is in very famous company!
May she always be in the TOP TEN!
CX
RE: In Good Company......................
Moderator: zeta
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CarrollTowerCX
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Re: RE: In Good Company......................
It's interesting to note that Vanessa-Mae has done more for classical music than most of her contemporaries, with her "crossover" career. In my personal opinion, in terms of technique, I wouldn't rank Vanessa-Mae in the top 20 best violinists.
Classical purists should take a long look and realize that the "crossover" phenomenon should be encouraged, not discouraged. The isolationist attitude that's fostered among classically-trained violinists towards other genres of music is actually DESTROYING classical music as a mainstream art. They also need to realize that raw talent for an instrument is no guarantee of commercial success and exposure. Vanessa-Mae's strength is making the violin a viable instrument outside of the traditional classical scene in terms of being a solo instrument. Furthermore, when she plays, it seems very natural and you quickly forget that this is a violinist playing.
When interviewed about this, she credits her exposure to the likes of Michael Jackson, who really is THE master of entertaining an audience. This is a concept that's foreign to classical purists. Everything must be done traditionally even though that the composers they claim to love so much often broke with tradition that was present during their lifetime.
Bottom line: ardent classical supporters must broaden their horizons and expose classically-trained musicians to different musical genres. By doing this, their talent and charm can be effectively used to lure people into listening to classical music who otherwise wouldn't. The proof is in the pudding: Vanessa-Mae's "Classical Album 1" is still the fastest-selling classical album of all time.
Classical purists should take a long look and realize that the "crossover" phenomenon should be encouraged, not discouraged. The isolationist attitude that's fostered among classically-trained violinists towards other genres of music is actually DESTROYING classical music as a mainstream art. They also need to realize that raw talent for an instrument is no guarantee of commercial success and exposure. Vanessa-Mae's strength is making the violin a viable instrument outside of the traditional classical scene in terms of being a solo instrument. Furthermore, when she plays, it seems very natural and you quickly forget that this is a violinist playing.
When interviewed about this, she credits her exposure to the likes of Michael Jackson, who really is THE master of entertaining an audience. This is a concept that's foreign to classical purists. Everything must be done traditionally even though that the composers they claim to love so much often broke with tradition that was present during their lifetime.
Bottom line: ardent classical supporters must broaden their horizons and expose classically-trained musicians to different musical genres. By doing this, their talent and charm can be effectively used to lure people into listening to classical music who otherwise wouldn't. The proof is in the pudding: Vanessa-Mae's "Classical Album 1" is still the fastest-selling classical album of all time.
Re: RE: In Good Company......................
Thanks for opinion and info.
By the way,Merry Christmas and the best wishes to Vanessa Mae and to you all !!!
By the way,Merry Christmas and the best wishes to Vanessa Mae and to you all !!!
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CarrollTowerCX
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- Joined: Wed Dec 30, 2009 4:40 am
- Location: Florida, USA
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Re: RE: In Good Company......................
Benji,
Thank you for your post. I agree with you 98%. But I am prejudiced in favor of Vanessa-Mae. I personally find her playing technique and musicianship to favor that of Jasha Heifetz in many ways. I would rank her very high on any list of Violinists.
Having said that as my own opinion, everything else you said is absolutely true. I have always loved Classical Music since I was a child, but it is slipping away. I have recently checked out several Music Stores and found most of the Classical CD's have been removed. I have spoken to several store Managers and they all say the same, Classical Music is not selling!
So all of the classical critics of Vanessa-Mae need to loosen up and praise her for what she has and still is doing in behalf of the Violin. They need to join her and praise her, not continue to condemn her.
I remain, a dedicated Vanessa-Mae Fan for life!
CX
Thank you for your post. I agree with you 98%. But I am prejudiced in favor of Vanessa-Mae. I personally find her playing technique and musicianship to favor that of Jasha Heifetz in many ways. I would rank her very high on any list of Violinists.
Having said that as my own opinion, everything else you said is absolutely true. I have always loved Classical Music since I was a child, but it is slipping away. I have recently checked out several Music Stores and found most of the Classical CD's have been removed. I have spoken to several store Managers and they all say the same, Classical Music is not selling!
So all of the classical critics of Vanessa-Mae need to loosen up and praise her for what she has and still is doing in behalf of the Violin. They need to join her and praise her, not continue to condemn her.
I remain, a dedicated Vanessa-Mae Fan for life!
CX