Joshua Bell

Tonight the Great Falls Symphony hosted acclaimed violinist Joshua Bell as part of their world artist series. Because I'm lucky enough to play in the symphony, I even got to be on stage with him. The world artist series here is really a phenomenal program. My sophomore year of high school I got to see Yo-Yo Ma, then senior year I got to play with Itzak Perlman. I missed Midori because I was in college, but getting to play with Joshua Bell has been the highlight so far.

His playing was absolutely magnificent. His tone is so pure and his technique is so flawless that it just amazed me. I have never seen anyone play like him before! Not only is he technically brilliant, he also plays with a wealth of feeling and emotion. His piece for tonight's performance was the Tchaikovsky violin concerto, but his encore was the world's most complex version of Yankee Doodle. I can't even describe it. The $4 million dollar Stradivarius violin wasn't bad to look at either.

One of the best things about Joshua Bell was his welcoming, open personality. We hosted an open rehearsal this afternoon, and he had a question and answer session during the break. His responses were candid and self-effacing. He was charming and humble while still commanding respect and awe from everyone in the audience. Even during rehearsal he was gracious and undemanding. He showed us how to play some of the sections and was unfailingly encouraging and kept checking to make sure he wasn't "over-stepping his bounds". I was a fan before, but my loyalty jumped a lot today. He really is a great person.

The best thing about the world artist series is how inspiring it is for my own playing. It's easy to want to give your all when playing with Joshua Bell because he gives his all every second of every rehearsal and concert. Today made me want to be more focused, more driven. Hopefully my determination to always do better lasts awhile because I know that the memories will last a lifetime.