Joshua Bell article - with your questions answered!!

Barbara Curtin, Statesman Journal reporter, asked Joshua Bell the questions that period 6 Orchestra students submitted to me. Joshua Bell is the violinist extrodinaire who will be performing with the Oregon Symphony here in Salem on May 19 - there are 40 of us going from West that evening. It promises to be an amazing concert.

To read the SJ article with the answers to the questions on the right hand side of the page click below:

Joshua Bell Article

Here's the text from the question and answer portion:
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During his phone interview, Joshua Bell answered these questions, which were submitted by music students from West Salem High School:

QUESTION: If violins never existed, what instrument would you play?

ANSWER: I don't know ... I grew up with a piano in the house. If there weren't violins, I would have played piano … I love the violin because it's so expressive, like the human voice ... I can't imagine not playing it.

Q: What was the best city you've ever been in?

A: I would say ... oh gosh, I've been to every capital in the world ... my favorites are New York, where I choose to live, the greatest city in the world; London; Amsterdam; Tokyo; every city has something to offer.

I love variety; that's what I get with my life. ... Oregon's a beautiful part of the country, too ... I have played with the Oregon Symphony since I was 19 years old, under Maestro James dePreist.

Q: What is the funnest piece you've ever played?

A: I would say Brahms' Violin Concerto; it's fun and deeply rewarding. There are show pieces that are fun and deeply rewarding, like one I played for President Obama two months ago, "Variations on Yankee Doodle." It was a total joke piece, and he and Michelle Obama seemed to like it.

Q: How many violins have you gone through?

A: This is my third Stradivarius violin. I bought my first at 19. I had many violins before that, but I can afford only one Strad at a time.

—Barbara Curtin