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At First

by Henry Dixon Cowell

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about

The American composer Henry Dixon Cowell (1897-1965) was a very close personal friend of violinist Anahid Ajemian and her husband, renowned record producer George Avakian. Very often after performances in 1950s Manhattan, they would enjoy receptions for musicians at one or another’s home. So it was entirely natural that in 1953 when the famed violinist gave birth to a girl Maro, named after her pianist sister, that Anahid Ajemian Avakian would be pleasantly surprised by the gift of a musical manuscript from one of America’s most prolific composers.

The score hung for decades framed behind glass in the Avakian household, and a copy was made for research purposes for Kate Stenberg. Although Ms. Ajemian did not think it suitable for public performance, the music fits into a category of occasional dedicatory pieces with a long history of later being published and played as an indication of respect for the composer’s facility and invention, condensed into the shortest possible unit. Examples are Printemps, by George Antheil, written for violinist Olga Rudge, and numerous short pieces published in periodicals in Europe as homages.

Cowell’s understanding of, and devotion to, folk tradition is evident in this miniature gem of fiddle music.
—Charles Amirkhanian

credits

released September 30, 2019
Henry Cowell - composer
Kate Stenberg - violinist
Jason O'Connell - post production
Recorded by Scott Makson at University of California, Santa Cruz
July 12th, 2019
cover art by N. Party "Trees"

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Kate Stenberg San Francisco, California

Kate Stenberg is a Bay Area based violinist with 9 commercially available CDs (New World, Sono Luminous, Other Minds, Newport Classics, Decca and New Albion). She has performed with pianist Sarah Cahill, Del Sol String Quartet (20 years), Real Vocal String Quartet, Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, San Francisco Contemporary Chamber Players, New Century Chamber Orchestra and the San Francisco Symphony. ... more

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