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 Brian Wilson

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Brian Wilson, the legendary American musician, songwriter, singer, record producer, and co-founder of The Beach Boys, passed away last Wednesday, June 11. He was 82. As the primary songwriter for The Beach Boys, Wilson employed striking harmonic sophistication and innovative recording techniques. In 1964, he stopped touring with the band to focus on writing and recording. Meticulous in the recording studio, Wilson demanded the highest standards. In his memoir, Hallelujah Junction, composer John …

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John Adams’ “China Gates”: The Hypnotic Patter of Rain

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For American composer John Adams (b. 1947), the inspiration for the solo piano work, China Gates, came on an endlessly rainy day in San Francisco during the winter of 1977. Adams recalls the gentle, hypnotic patter of the rain hitting the roof of his cottage near the Pacific Ocean. This natural counterpoint gave rise to the repetitive patterns of China Gates, a brief companion composition to Adams’ Phrygian Gates, composed during the same period. “Gates,” …

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Wagner’s “Die Meistersinger” Overture: Giuseppe Sinopoli and the Staatskapelle Dresden

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Richard Wagner’s 1868 opera, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (“The Mastersingers of Nuremberg”), is a comic love story, set in the sixteenth century. Its plot centers around the historical Master Singers, an ancient guild of amateur poets and musicians who were primarily middle class master craftsmen of various trades. The guild’s Tabulatur, or law book, established an intricate system of rules which dictated the structure and performance of songs. The opera’s principle theme involves …

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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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