Immanuel Abraham: Violinist, Composer and his Inspiring Personal Journey
Conversations with Musicians, with Leah Roseman
05/12/23
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My guest today is Immanuel Abraham, a very special musican, who is an inspiring violinist, educator and composer. His phenomenal talent, discipline and creativity is even more inspiring since he didn’t have an opportunity to learn a musical instrument until the age of 14 and 4 years later, he was auditioning for the renowned University of Michigan in violin performance, playing the same Paganini caprice he’d heard Ithak Perlman play on Shalom Sesame as a child. He speaks candidly in this interview about his perseverence in the face of very difficult challenges. More information and links below, including Timestamps!
Like all my episodes, this is also available as a video on my YouTube, and the transcript is linked here as well: https://www.leahroseman.com/episodes/immanuel-abraham
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Immanuel is well-known on social media as The Violin Doctor, which is a Dr. Who reference, but Immanuel actually is Doctor of Musical Arts, awarded from the University of Arizona. When he was a student, in an effort to learn as much as he could that was violin-related, he started The Violin Guild which is an amazingly supportive Facebook group of over 60,000 string players worldwide. Our conversation focused on different aspects of music education, personal development, and you’ll get to hear some clips of Immanuel performing some of his 24 Caprices for solo violin. Below is a link for a discount code the week this is released, and if you’re a violinist I encourage you to buy this amazing volume, which I have been learning and plan to start recording this summer. Immanuel will be releasing his complete recording of all 24 Caprices. https://www.theviolindoctor.com/24 The discount code that will be activated May 12th through May 18th is, theviolindoctor for 25% off of the 24 Caprices for Solo Violin, Second Edition. You will also find Immanuel's current projects and social links there as well.
Timestamps
(00:00) Intro
(02:25) perspectives on starting the violin at age 14, dealing with racism and growing up in the projects
(15:02) hearing Itzhak Perlman and the opportunity for free lessons through the Merit School of Music with Guillaume Combet
(21:32) inspiration for Immanuel’s 24 Caprices for Solo violin
(28:48) clip of Caprice 14
(30:00) clip of Caprice 21 in C Minor, “The Blues”
(31:43) Caprice 23, a fugue (complete)
(35:54) please support this series on Ko-fi!
(36:23) why Immanuel bought a beginner book spent his lunch money on Paganini
(41:12) Andrew Jennings University of Michigan
(47:15) giving students some choice of repertoire, keeping them motivated
(53:08) Sphinx Organization teaching kids in the inner city
(01:04:45) becoming a composer, opening for We The Kings
(01:11:11) transcribing jazz, learning by ear
(01:16:25) violin technique finger independence
(01:22:08) yoga, dealing with stress
(01:26:03) balance of composition, teaching and performing
(01:28:21) discount code for the Caprices theviolindoctor
Previous Episode
I’m so honoured that Madeline Bruser has agreed to be featured as a guest on this series. When I first read her book The Art of Practicing more than 20 years ago, it helped to transform my experience as a performer and teacher, and on many aspects of my life. Although Madeline’s teaching is aimed primarily at classical pianists and other musicians, I find that much of what she talks about will resonate for everybody trying to get in touch with their emotions, their connection to beauty and meaning, and their experience of being in their bodies. If you happen to be listening to this when it first is released, you should check out Madeline’s free interactive workshop on May 11 at 1pm Eastern. Her website is: https://artofpracticing.com/ Like all my episodes, this is also a video, and the transcript is also linked here: https://www.leahroseman.com/episodes/madeline-bruser Please help me keep this series and this channel going, with a tip or as a monthly supporter: https://ko-fi.com/leahroseman If the topics we address in this conversation are of interest to you, you’ll be interested that many of these important issues have come up with past guests and upcoming guests. Timestamps: (00:00) Intro (02:00) why Madeline wrote the book “The Art of Practicing”, Menahem Pressler, meditation (09:58) Body and Sound Awareness Technique (13:14) change from performer to teacher, big realizations, founding The Art of Practicing (19:48) intro to Madeline’s performance of Chopin Fantaisie Impromptu (20:33) Chopin Fantaise Impromptu (25:59) Rhythmic grouping, Stephen Burns, Kirk Ferguson (32:04) colour in harmony and tonal nuances (34:02) story of tape recorder, listening to ourselves and being vulnerable (39:14) parallels with actors and musicians, Performing Beyond Fear exercise (43:43) lineage (46:23) perfectionism (50:17) Madeline demonstrates common problems for pianists (58:04) dealing with injuries, mindfulness (01:01:25) dealing with stress, teaching online (01:06:56) journaling (01:08:58) student-centered teaching, “Freedom to Learn” Carl Rogers (01:12:51) stage fright and beta blockers (01:15:06) dealing with stressful or traumatic history (01:20:42) teaching constructively with kindness, and teacher training (01:24:00) dealing with feelings of overwhelm, orchestra playing (01:28:37) pianists and ensemble experience (01:31:51) upcoming workshops Mindfulness for Pianists, Freeing Your Energy for Performance
Next Episode
Martin Hayes is an internationally renowned Irish fiddler beloved for his expressive playing and his collaborations with many great musicians in different genres including Bill Frisell, Sting, Paul Simon and more recently Yo Yo Ma with the Silk Road Project. During this episode we spoke of his wonderful book Shared Notes, and he plays some beautiful music live (you can always use the timestamps if you’re curious to jump to some music right away), but I encourage you to listen through the whole episode. Martin speaks eloquently about life, culture, friendship, identity, and staying true to what you value, and I hope this episode will thrill lovers of Irish music and bring new listeners to many of Martin’s projects including The Common Ground Ensemble, The Gloaming, and many more. We talked about the loss and legacy of Dennis Cahill, how he met Thomas Bartlett, the rich depths of traditional music that Martin learned from the older generation, and the rhythm of life growing up on the farm in County Clare. Like all my episodes, this is available as both a video and a podcast on your favourite podcast platform, and the transcript is also linked:https://www.leahroseman.com/episodes/martin-hayes
Martin's website: http://www.martinhayes.com/ During the episode we talked about the tribute to Dennis Cahill, which I hoped to link directly but can't find now. It's called: Litir ó do Chara
Timestamps (00:00) Intro (02:33) “Shared Notes” book and Martin’s childhood, PJ Hayes, Paddy Canny, Tulla Ceili band and learning fiddle (09:59) the nature of memory and writing the book “Shared Notes” (13:42) fiddle: jigs by Sean Ryan (16:12) different approaches to fiddling with musical demonstrations (23:10) challenges of recording, self-consciousness (25:06) The Common Ground Ensemble (29:51) pandemic reflections, teaching, mindfulness in nature (34:15) fiddle: The Glen of Aherlow (37:28) Dennis Cahill (43:15) Irish diaspora, Irish in America, immigrant experience (48:27) communicating on stage and playing what you want to play instead of what the audience expects (52:49)story about offering money back to disruptive audience (55:35) meeting Thomas Bartlett, The Gloaming (01:02:30) harmonizing Irish music (01:05:46) The Martin Hayes Quartet, Liz Knowles viola d’amore, Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh (01:08:35) Irish language (01:11:09) Celtic culture in Spain and close cousins musically with different Celtic traditions (01:13:40) negotiating performance conditions; playing on Capitol Hill for Obama (01:16:25) traditional Irish airs (01:18:06) Fiddle: Air A Stór mo Chroí (01:19:52) the immigrant experience (01:24:19) keeping the love of music alive, performing in the moment, Mary McNamara Fleadh Cheoil (01:34:08) Fiddle: The Caolite Mountains
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