We have recently and belatedly come across this photo (left) of a part of the alto section of the Aderly Edge Community Orchestra, UK. Information is sketchy, but from what we know both of these alto violins on the Hutchins model were built by the musicians who play them. We believe the photo was taken in 2008. It is rare to find an alto violin in an orchestra (Patrick Tobin plays alto in the Ithaca Community Orchestra (USA)), but it is even rarer to find two altos. The only orchestra to use more is the New Violin Family Orchestra, also located in Ithaca, NY, but that organization uses New Family instruments entirely.
The chamber bass, also known as the "bassetto," the newest instrument in the family, was introduced at the November convention of the Violin Society of America (VSA) in Atlantic City. Robert Spear, designer and maker of the bass, reports that he has had several inquiries from bassists who have seen the instrument in the YouTube videos. Plans to put the bass in limited production are currently under consideration.
Spear also took part as a panel member during a presentation on the work of Carleen Hutchins. VSA Vice-President Fan Tao chaired the session, which, although it was held at an unusual time, drew a substantial audience. Other panelists were A. Thomas King, who served for a number of years as editor of the CAS Journal, and Norman Pickering, an electrical engineer and a long-time friend of Hutchins. A transcript of the session and the questions and answer period that followed will be published in the next edition of the VSA Journal in early 2010.
A new three-part video entitled "Introduction to the New Violin Family" is now available on YouTube.
http://youtube.com/
watch?v=IGZl3BN3aZo
The unscripted introduction is taken from videos of a live concert in August and includes all instruments except the treble violin. Luthier Robert J. Spear is the host for the 20-minute presentation. Well worth seeing if you are new to the concept of The New Family.
October 22, 2009
District Supervisors form Northern Dan Diego and Soutwest Riverside (Ca.) Counties have announced $76,000 in grants from their discretionary fund accounts.Each supervisor has up to $2 million annually to fund various groups and projects in their districts, with higher priority given to requests for capital projects or one-time expenses.The largest award was a $50,000 grant for the San Diego Opera to assist with contractors, rentals, marketing and related services for the March performance of "Romeo and Juliet" at the San Diego Civic Theatre.Among the grants were $3,500 to the Hutchins Consort to assist with artist and equipment fees for nine free family concerts at the Encinitas Library from November through June. The Hutchins Consort is the only professional consort playing on the eight instruments of the New Violin Family
Mezzo violinists William Hurley and Carrie Reuning Hummel performed a benefit concert for the Community School of Music and Arts in Ithaca, NY. The intrepid duo played Bartok's 44 Duets in their entirety before an audience of over 60 people in the third-floor performance space of the school. Since the elevator was out of service, one has to admire the determination of the audience. Reports reached us that one ninety-year-old woman arrived a full hour early to allow herself enough time to negotiate three long flights of stairs. The performance was well-received, and video clips will be posted on YouTube shortly. Please check back for more information.
The first of many videos to come has been posted on YouTube and in the embedded player on the left. The video is of the Archus String Trio in live performance.
The 2009 Summer String Orchestra concluded its activities for the summer with two concerts in the Central New York region. The first, at St. Luke Lutheran Church in Ithaca, was given on August 1 for the benefit of Loaves & Fishes, a local food pantry. The second, at Trinity Episcopal Church in Fayetteville (a suburb of Syracuse), was presented for the benefit of the Fayeteeville-Manlius Food Pantry. About 150 people attended the concerts, and the group raised hundreds of dollars for a good cause.
Carleen M. Hutchins
It is with the most profound regret that we learned that Carleen M. Hutchins passed away this morning at her home in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire at the age of 98. It would be a daunting task to list all of her accomplishments, let alone the impact she has had on the world of violin making, but we will try in the next edition of the shop NewsDigest. We will also be posting some other information on this site in the near future.
It has been an incredibly busy period for R. J. Spear of the Singing Woods Violin Shop, beginning with an exhibition at the New Directions Cello Festival at Ithaca College in Ithaca, NY during the first week of June, followed by an exciting three days at the International Society of Bassists Convention at Penn State, State College, PA immediately afterward. Spear's new chamber bass (the "bassetto") made its formal debut at the convention in a bass quartet accompanying Diana Gannet. Both the instrument and the players were very well received.
Upon Spear's return, he plunged immediately into rehearsals for the 2009 Summer String Orchesta. This group, now in its second year, gave a concert in Ithaca on August 1 for the benefit of Loaves & Fishes, a local food bank. About 100 people attended this event. From the comments Spear received afterward, most people were amazed at the sounds coming from just 15 string players.
A great amount of audio, video, and still frames were gathered from all these events. It is going to take months to edit it, but they will be posted on the web as they are ready. Spear is creating a sister site, Octavivo.org exclusively for the promotion of groups perfroming on New family Violins. Read more about it here.
A new, 16-page color document describing the Enhanced Violin Family is now availale for free download from this site. Called "Meet the Family," it contains much basic and useful information for musicians and composers about the octet instruments past, present, and future. To download your copy, click here.
Archus Trio Debuts. A new group dedicated to promoting the less-well-known repertoire for a string trio consisting of two mezzos and a baritone gave its debut performances on May 13 and May 17. The group decided to perform entirely on instruments of the New Family when luthier Robert Spear made them available for long-term use. The Archus Trio performed a dress rehearsal debut at Kendal of Ithaca (NY) on May 13, and then presented their formal concert debut on May 17 at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Slaterville Springs, NY. About 40 people attended each concert. The trio will play again as part of the 2nd Annual Summer Strings concert in Ithaca on August 1, and will perform a new program in the fall in several venues in Tompkins County.
Baritone player Elisa Evett has been playing the instrument since 2003 when it was new, and she was a founding member of the old Albert Consort. Hurely has been playing mezzo since 2005 when he, too, joined the Albert Consort for its final concert at the close of Octet 2005, a convention for members of the old New Violin Family Association. Miller, normally a violist, was a classmate of Hurley's at Ithaca College, and has recently begun playing mezzo.
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