Timothy Judd

A native of Upstate New York, Timothy Judd has been a member of the Richmond Symphony violin section since 2001. He is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music where he earned the degrees Bachelor of Music and Master of Music, studying with world renowned Ukrainian-American violinist Oleh Krysa. The son of public school music educators, Timothy Judd began violin lessons at the age of four through Eastman’s Community Education Division. He was a student of Anastasia Jempelis, one of the earliest champions of the Suzuki method in the United States. A passionate teacher, Mr. Judd has maintained a private violin studio in the Richmond area since 2002 and has been active coaching chamber music and numerous youth orchestra sectionals. In his free time, Timothy Judd enjoys working out with Richmond’s popular SEAL Team Physical Training program.

Remembering Joan Lippincott

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Joan Lippincott, the American organist and esteemed teacher, passed away last Saturday, May 31 in Newtown, Pennsylvania. She was 89. For nearly four decades, Lippincott served as Professor of Organ and Head of the Organ Department at Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey. A recent statement released by the College honors her contribution: With an unerring ear, a fierce dedication to musical integrity, and deep personal kindness, she was both a …

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John Adams’ “Harmonium”: A Choral Symphony on Donne and Dickinson

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Harmonium, a towering choral symphony set in three movements, is one of the earliest major works of American composer John Adams (b. 1947). It was composed in 1980 for the opening season of Davies Symphony Hall, the home of the San Francisco Symphony. Following such pieces as Common Tones in Simple Time and Phrygian Gates, it is music which expands on the pulse-and-pattern Minimalism of Steve Reich.’ The titles of the three poems …

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Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in C-Sharp Minor, BWV 849: “Holy of Holies”

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The 19th century commentator, Hugo Riemann, described Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp minor, BWV 849 as the “holy of holies.” The phrase, found in the Hebrew Bible, refers to the inner sanctuary of the Tabernacle, where the Shekhinah (God’s presence) appeared. The fourth piece from Book 1 of Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier, BWV 849 is solemn, meditative music filled with wrenching melancholy. The Prelude is a loure, a French Baroque dance which resembles …

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Remembering Per Nørgård

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Per Nørgård, who was widely regarded as the most prominent Danish composer since Nielsen, passed away last Wednesday, May 28 in Copenhagen. He was 92. Nørgård left behind a catalogue of music which includes eight symphonies, six operas, and numerous chamber and concertante works. He said that his music resides within “the universe of the Nordic mind.” In his youth, he corresponded with Jean Sibelius. Beginning in the 1960s, Nørgård developed a …

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Copland’s Piano Variations/Orchestral Variations: Unrelentingly Organic

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Unlike the traditional “theme and variations,” Aaron Copland’s Piano Variations do not unfold as a frolicking and far-reaching episodic journey. Instead, they are unrelenting, declamatory, and haunting. The seven-note theme, equally reminiscent of Arnold Schoenberg’s tone rows and Bach’s C-sharp minor Fugue from Book 1 of the Well-Tempered Clavier (BWV 849), permeates the entire work in a way which makes it feel severely organic. While Beethoven and Schubert improvised variations on a theme as a …

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Ives’ “Tom Sails Away”: Childhood Memories from Wartime

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In 1917, Charles Ives composed a series of songs in response to the entrance of the United States, that year, into the First World War. The final song, Tom Sails Away, involves a dreamy childhood memory, experienced as a vivid hallucination. The text, written by Ives, begins with images of a springtime sunset over a New England mill town. The hustle and bustle of the day has faded. The final haunting moments …

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Charles Strouse Performs “Once Upon a Time”

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In 1962, following the success of Bye Bye Birdie, composer Charles Strouse and lyricist Lee Adams teamed up with book writer Mel Brooks (largely unknown at the time) to create a new Broadway musical called All American. The show, which starred Ray Bolger, closed after 80 performances, and quickly faded from memory. But one song endured and became a standard, performed by the likes of Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, Tony Bennett, and …

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