Eliesha Nelson » Recording

One Year Anniversary

Eliesha — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 20:12:17 +0000

A year ago, I was 6 months pregnant and making a music video of Blues Lointains by Quincy Porter for my upcoming album. It was a new experience for me, as well as a new relationship with the record label Dorian Sono Luminus.

This is an interview with John McLaughlin Williams, musician extraordinaire. I’m looking large with life and big hair!

Blues Lointains music video

Eliesha — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:31:52 +0000

The Blues Lointains music video is now up and running! It was shot on location at Ayreshire Farms where the studio Dorian Sono Luminus resides. I was six months pregnant, and hoping they would only video record me from the chest up! That was wishful thinking, but the videography is beautiful, and the black and white, film noir effect is quite elegant.

This is my new son William, who is 6 weeks old, in his green bassinet.

John McLaughlin Williams Interview

Eliesha — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 15:31:04 +0000

My friend and colleague John McLaughlin Williams has an interview on the AfricClassical blog about his life and his experience working on the Quincy Porter Complete Viola Works recording. He’s a fascinating man with a great interest in all things musical. I didn’t realize how many instruments he has played!

Interview on Naxos Blog

Eliesha — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 20:23:44 +0000

I’ve been quite pleased with how enthusiastic the people at Naxos have been with their interest in the Quincy Porter Complete Viola Works recording. I just completed an interview with the marketing coordinator whose shares the same name as I (Eliesha) only spelled differently (Elysha) and is also a viola player! We chatted about the album, covering topics beyond the recording. Check out the Naxos blog!

Pre-order Quincy Porter Complete Viola Works

Eliesha — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 16:27:36 +0000

I’m happy to announce that one can pre-order the Quincy Porter Complete Viola Works from a couple of online sources. Amazon.com and Naxos both carry the recording. I’ll update as more venues offer the CD.

September 29 release date

Eliesha — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 16:47:49 +0000

I am pleased that the Quincy Porter Viola Works recording will be released on September 29, 2009 on Dorian Sono Luminus! I’m happy that all my hard work, plus the work of many others, has culminated in a well thought out product. I’ll have more information later where to buy it, plus the video of Blues Lointains.

Music Video at Dorian Sono Luminus

Eliesha — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 01:30:21 +0000

I’ve never participated in a music video before, excluding being video recorded during a concert performance. A music video is different, with the music being as important as the videography and set. The piece chosen for recording was Blues Lointains by Quincy Porter, which was written in 1928. It has a dark, searching nature, so the videographers had the idea of a film noir approach. I and John McLaughlin Williams, pianist, dressed up, and I had my hair styled in a 40’s hairdo. I also wore some of my mother’s jewelry, which I’m glad she gave me since I have none. My practice of playing with the recording paid off as well as the more rigorous memory work to match all the bow changes. The sections that had a lot of rubato were tricky, but I think we got close enough, and the videographer can edit such things. The video was shot in the ballroom at the studios of Sono Luminus. It will be in black and white, but the ballroom is a gorgeous brilliant blue color.

Preparing for a Music Video

Eliesha — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 16:47:16 +0000

Vacation is definitely over as I prepare to visit the Dorian Sono Luminus studios in Virginia to make a promotional music video for my upcoming Quincy Porter Viola Works recording. Although I know this music quite well having studied and recorded it over the past two years, I find myself feeling oddly restricted. I am used to giving myself liberties during a performance of changing bowing and fingerings from time to time, so I am not a stickler when it comes to such things. However, when trying to match a recording, I find my liberties at odds with trying to match what I hear with what I’m doing. It feels eerily like my childhood Suzuki group classes where I didn’t want to be the one doing it “wrong,” but I always seemed to be on the opposite bowing as everyone else.

Happy New Year!

Eliesha — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 21:08:22 +0000

I usually don’t do new year resolutions, but this year I must aim to be a better blogger. Going for months without writing anything, especially when I’ve been asked specific questions about the Porter project and its music, is really pathetic. So I will do better… at least today!

Since it’s a new year, I’d like to begin with a shout out to my friend and colleague John McLaughlin Williams, who was nominated for his second Grammy in the category of Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with Orchestra), Category 102 for those who look on the Grammy site.

He’s a wonderful musician with a keen ear and extremely knowledgeable about anything obscure. I’ve enjoyed working with him on the Porter project, which will be out in 2009. For more about John, you can read his bio here: http://www.elieshanelson.com/porter/musicians.shtml#williams

The recording features the violin concerti of Ernest Bloch and Benjamin Lees performed by Elmar Oliveira, violin, the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine, and John McLaughlin Williams conducting.

What to Listen for While Editing

Eliesha — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 11:51:45 +0000

I received the first pass of my Quincy Porter Viola Works recording right before my departure for the Cleveland Orchestra European tour. A first pass, for those who don’t know, is similar to a first draft that one would have for writing a book. My producers act as editors putting the best tracks together of what they like, also considering the suggestions I gave them. Often several tracks can be accurate, but there might be a turn of phrase that is more compelling versus straight accuracy. When I recorded, I played large sections repeatedly, and for the shorter pieces I ran the whole thing. I like the idea of large sections because the musical goal stays intact. While recording the Porter Viola Concerto, we would have even longer takes of up to 11 minutes – the piece is 20 minutes long. I copied all 12 CD’s of all the tracks onto my laptop plus the CD of the first pass before leaving for Europe. I also brought the track notes from the producers, Victor and Marina Ledin. I must say, I was pleased listening to the first pass. It was such positive reinforcement to hear everything put together, to see that it all had a good flow and made musical sense. There are just a few small ensemble and intonation issues to clean up.

Here’s a sample of Speed Etude from the first pass.

02-speed-etude

My time in Salzburg has been spent listening to a lot of Quincy Porter, so no mountain climbing on this trip. The Cleveland Orchestra concerts were well received, and I’ve had fun practicing my German. Everywhere I go, people smile at my viola case. It looks like it came out of the Willy Wonka Chocolate Factory, but it is light and travels well.