Cover Hilary Hahn (Photo: Getty Images)
Hilary Hahn (Photo: Getty Images)
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The superstar violinist discusses her one-night-only performance with the New York Philharmonic, and why choosing a musical instrument is like choosing a pet
American violinist Hilary Hahn returns to Hong Kong on July 4 for a one-night-only performance with the New York Philharmonic—the oldest symphony orchestra in the US—with the orchestra’s music director Jaap van Zweden at the helm as conductor. This is Hahn’s second visit to Hong Kong and the last destination of three for her Asia tour this summer.
In 1994, Hahn, aged 14, broke into the music scene when she delivered a pitch-perfect improvised performance, despite two violin strings breaking, while playing with the Boston Symphony.
Today, the 43-year-old is the winner of three Grammys—for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with Orchestra) category in 2003 and 2008, and Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance category in 2014—and remains a highly sought-after classical musician thanks to her technical virtuosity, expansive interpretations and emotional performances.
Hahn spoke to Tatler from Taipei in late June to share why she feels playing the violin is like playing with air, and what audiences can expect from her upcoming Hong Kong performance.
Don’t miss: Jaap van Zweden reflects on a challenging year for Hong Kong Philharmonic
Above Hilary Hahn performing with the New York Philharmonic, led by Jaap van Zweden in 2014 (Photo: Getty Images)
Hilary Hahn performing with the New York Philharmonic, led by Jaap van Zweden in 2014 (Photo: Getty Images)
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How do you feel about your upcoming visit to Hong Kong?
I was flattered that [the Hong Kong show] sold out so quickly. I’m feeling like a rockstar now. Or even Taylor Swift! I mean it’s so nice because the audience is ready and I am really excited.
Tell us about the pieces you’re playing in Hong Kong.
I’ll be playing [German composer Johannes] Brahms’ Violin Concerto in D, Op.77. It’s been played a lot [in concerts and background scores of movies]. It’s interesting to navigate a piece like this in which one has to think how to make use of the traditional elements while making it sound different, but not new. [I have tried to focus on] what’s crucial to the identity of this piece. Once you have an answer to that, you can feel freer to listen to your instinct.
Which violin will you be playing in Hong Kong?
I’m playing a Vuillaume made in 1865 [by French luthier Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume]. It’s a Stradivarius model.
Why did you choose this one?
Choosing a violin is like choosing a pet. Two people can have the same breed of dog but their relationship with their dogs will be different. For me, it’s really important that the instrument matches the player’s personality. The violin I have now is an amplification of my [musical ideas].
Above Hilary Hahn and her violin teacher Klara Berkovich (Photo: courtesy of Hilary Hahn / Facebook)
Hilary Hahn and her violin teacher Klara Berkovich (Photo: courtesy of Hilary Hahn / Facebook)
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What drew you to the violin in the first place?
It was a coincidence. When I was four, a music school near where we lived in Baltimore started a violin programme for four-year-olds, so I got enrolled there. Then when I was six or seven, I studied piano but I don’t think I was cut out to play it. The piano feels quite tactile [to me] when the keys go down and the sounds emerge. But with the violin, [I feel as if] it’s more abstract—it feels like playing with air.
At 14, you were asked to substitute for violin prodigy Midori Gotō with the New York Philharmonic. What was it like to play with such a prestigious orchestra at a young age?
I remember I was in my music theory class [at Philadelphia’s prestigious Curtis Institute of Music]. Someone called the school to ask if I might be able to perform at a concert. I said, “I have to do my homework”. But then I did play at the concert and got my first taste of the conductor-orchestra dynamic at the highest level.
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Above Hilary Hahn and pianist Cory Smythe at the 2015 Grammy Awards (Photo: Getty Images)
Hilary Hahn and pianist Cory Smythe at the 2015 Grammy Awards (Photo: Getty Images)
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Since then, you’ve gone on to win three Grammys. What advice would you give to aspiring violinists?
The things that I’ve won, I could never plan to win. It’s obviously very validating when I get an award. But a lot of people do great work throughout their whole careers, and the Grammy Awards aren’t the kind of rewards they get. Instead they get other kinds of validation.
I tell students that your goal is usually out of your control; the thing that is under your control is the persistence within yourself and how you lift yourself up in a constructive way. You don’t need external opinion to know if what you’re doing resonates with you in the right way.
How would you like to challenge yourself next?
There are always pieces that are just barely within reach. It’s immensely frustrating because I like having a certain comfort level where I can [interpret] them however I want. Then there are also pieces that someone’s composed and commissioned me to play, for which I need to find my own voice as I’ll be the first person to play them.
Zabrina is the Senior Editor, Arts and Culture of Tatler Hong Kong. She specialises in performing arts, visual art and film. Her wanderlust was first fuelled by the Mighty Rovers Antarctica Expedition 2010. Over the years, she has interviewed A-list artists and filmmakers, including Oscar winners Chlóe Zhao and Tim Yip, Golden Horse winner Sylvia Chang, In the Mood for Love cinematographer Christopher Doyle, Pachinko author Min Jin Lee, and Coachella’s first Chinese solo singer Jackson Wang. She won gold at the WAN-IFRA Asian Media Awards for her 2021 feature on the waves of hate crimes targeting Asian Americans.
