Principal viola

Program: Elgar - Enigma Variations

Ravel - Piano concerto in G

Liszt - Totentanz

Beethoven - Leonore Overture

https://www.paducahsymphony.org/performances/enigma-variations

Performance at the International Viola Congress, Paris, France

The Voice of the Viola: Betsy Jolas’s Works for Viola

French composer Betsy Jolas (b. 1926) has written a body of captivating and beguiling works for the viola. While she once joked that she belonged to the musical movement called “marginal,” she has become one of the most important French woman composers of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. She is a trailblazing woman composer has blended Messiaen expressivity with Boulezian intricacy, while infusing her musical with a sense of lyricism. But her music defies simple classification, which adds to its intriguing appeal.

This lecture recital will illuminate her musical style through the analysis and performance of two works featuring the viola: Quatre Duos for viola and piano (1979), and Épisode Sixieme for solo viola (1984). The main themes addressed will be her dominant thread of lyricism throughout her works, her flexible and unfurling sense of rhythmic organization, and her timbral variety. I will also use the richness of her biography—her French/American duality, her early friendships with James Joyce and other modernist intellectuals, and her career as a teacher—to shed light on her music. We will also pay close attention to her work with, and pieces written for violist Serge Collot.

Each movement of the Quatre Duos is an abstract portrait of a women, but each is drawn with incisive expressive clarity. The first movement originated as the Examination piece at the Paris Conservatory in 1979, and Jolas added the three following pieces later. Over the twelve minutes of this piece, Jolas allows the viola to become a kaleidoscopic instrument. She understands it better than most, plumbing its un-explored corners for subtle and fresh sounds.

At its core, Épisode Sixieme is a vocal piece for the viola. A thread of lyricism is the dominant voice of the piece, even if at times it becomes submerged or drowned out by other music. Capricious skittering gestures, far-flung timbres, and jagged rhythms momentarily distract from this idea, but the melodic voice always re-emerges, exerting its subtle, lyrical pull on the musical narrative. Jolas carefully balances lyricism with the gestural figuration, and the metrical flow meanders along with an insouciant disposition. It has a through-composed quality, and elements rarely repeat; yet, this pervading sense of lyricism, however abstract, binds the piece together.

            By analyzing these works, performing them, and providing examples from across Jolas’s oeuvre, I will showcase Jolas’s incredible writing for our instrument. Her music is perfectly suited to the viola: lyrical, elusive, and imaginative, and her music should be included in every violist’s repertoire. It is my hope that this lecture recital will bring further and renewed attention to this trailblazing, French woman composer.

Performance with the Paducah Symphony, principal viola

Program includes Dvorak Symphony no. 9

https://www.paducahsymphony.org/performances/semiquincentennial-celebration-the-new-world

Presentation at the 2026 Suzuki Association of the Americas Conference

San Francisco, CA

February 25, 3:00pm

More from Less: Tone Production Strategies for Small String Instruments

This session will present techniques and strategies for producing a beautiful tone on small sized violins and violas. Teachers and students are torn between two competing ideas: larger instruments sound better, but students’ bodies can only fit a certain size. Sizing up is not a healthy option for improving a student’s tone, so teachers must find ways to enable a student to play with a beautiful tone on their small-sized instrument. This session will approach this topic from both a pedagogical and instrumental perspective.

The main part of the lecture will be pedagogical. I’ll provide a systematic overview of tone production principles from the beginning to upper intermediate stages. We’ll begin with setup and sizing principles and then move toward describing the physical motions of sound production (arm motions, weight and balance, harnessing natural movement, etc.). Most of the exercises and techniques I’ll share will be geared toward younger students, since they are the ones playing on small sized instruments, but they will also be applicable to all levels of string players.

I will also cover aspects of instrument and bow construction and design, as well as how to maintain a small string instrument. I’ll discuss the acoustic and physical features of the instruments, while pointing out the important the several, important features to look for in the instruments themselves that contribute to great sound.

Finally, I’ll touch on the parent-teacher-student aspect of instrument sizing. Many teachers have dealt with difficult situations in which a student/parent wants the next larger size instrument before they’re physically ready. This desire is most often motivated by the simple fact that larger instruments sound better than fractionally smaller instruments. While this topic could be a lecture itself, I’ll briefly discuss the psychological and social factors that are also at play here.

Performance with the Paducah Symphony Orchestra, principal viola

Program includes: Mahler - Symphony no. 1

https://www.paducahsymphony.org/performances/mahler-one-titan

Performance with the Paducah Symphony Orchestra, principal viola

Program includes: Wagner - Tannhauser overture; Schumann - Symphony no. 2

https://www.paducahsymphony.org/performances/choral-fantasy

Lecture Recital at the 2026 AVS Festival, James Madison University

https://www.americanviolasociety.org/avs-festival/

The Voice of the Viola: Betsy Jolas’s Works for Viola

French composer Betsy Jolas (b. 1926) has written a body of captivating and beguiling works for the viola. While she once joked that she belonged to the musical movement called “marginal,” she has become one of the most important French woman composers of our time. A trailblazing woman composer who has blended Messiaen’s expressivity with Boulezian intricacy, Jolas infuses her music with a sense of lyricism.

This lecture recital will illuminate her musical style through the analysis and performance of two works featuring the viola: Quatre Duos for viola and piano (1979), and Épisode Sixieme for solo viola (1984). I will address the dominant thread of lyricism throughout her works, her flexible rhythmic organization, and her timbral variety. I will also use the richness of her biography—her French/American duality, her early friendships with James Joyce and other modernist intellectuals, and her career as a teacher—to shed light on her music.

Each movement of the Quatre Duos is an abstract portrait of a woman. It first originated as the Examination piece at the Paris Conservatory. Jolas allows the viola to become a kaleidoscopic instrument. She understands it better than most, plumbing its un-explored corners for subtle and fresh sounds.

Épisode Sixieme is essentially a vocal piece for the viola. Lyricism is the dominant mode of the piece, even if it becomes submerged by other music. Capricious skittering gestures, far-flung timbres, and jagged rhythms momentarily distract, but the melodic voice always re-emerges, exerting its subtle pull on the narrative.

Jolas’s music is perfectly suited to the viola: lyrical, elusive, and imaginative, and her music should be included in every violist’s repertoire. I hope that this lecture recital will bring further and renewed attention to this trailblazing woman composer.