Violinist Elizabeth Field operates in two musical worlds, the modern and the baroque. Her modern world encompasses her concertmaster position with the Bethlehem Bach Choir and as guest artist with the Washington National Opera orchestra and numerous other groups, but nothing excites her more than stepping back several centuries into the world of baroque masters.
To that end, she founded the Vivaldi Project, a premiere ensemble who perform on period instruments. This week they play all six of C.P.E. (Carl Philipp Emmanuel) Bach’s string sinfonias, a rare event. The program held at National Presbyterian Church will be conducted by Maestro John Hsu, professor emeritus of Cornell University where Field received a doctor of musical arts degree in historical performance practice.
“This is incredibly exciting because C.P.E. was far more popular than his father, Johann Sebastian Bach, when he was alive,” Field said. “Many people think his music is quirky, but he was the link between the baroque and classical eras. You can hear traces of Vivaldi in his works, along with hints of Mozart and Haydn. C.P.E. had extreme shifts in dynamics, from Vivaldilike moments that make you want to dance, to virtuosity that is pure fun.”
Field was working in New York when someone gave her a baroque violin. She became so intrigued by it that she went to Cornell where she met Hsu, a leading interpreter of baroque music, and began pursuing a doctorate. Along the way, she learned many amazing facts about baroque music and instruments, among them that the markings on the page did not mean what she once thought.
“The baroque violin is fabulous and resonant,” she said. “Stradivarius originally made a baroque violin, but in the 1800s all instruments underwent change to make them project rather than resonate. There used to be a schism between the two schools, but the young generation of professional musicians has a great deal of curiosity and is beginning to discover that baroque music comes alive and speaks best through baroque instruments.”
The 4 p.m. Sunday program will be preceded at 3:15 by a free program for D.C. schoolchildren hosted by Hsu. Field said everyone is welcome to attend, and she knows that the children and adults alike will be amazed to learn that C.P.E. Bach, the most popular composer of his time, would have been on everyone’s play list had the iPod been available in those days.
When she is not performing as a soloist, collaborating with her colleagues in chamber groups or playing with modern orchestras, Field is promoting the Vivaldi Project. In March, the ensemble will perform at the National Gallery to accompany an exhibit of Italian art.
“Hearing baroque music live is a very special event,” she said. “I want our audiences to discover the pure joy of listening to music that was never meant to be recorded.”
