Caroline Goulding is 18, yet the gifted violinist has it all. As featured soloist with the National Symphony Orchestra’s Tcheers for Tchaikovsky! concert at Wolf Trap, she will perform the composer’s Violin Concerto. It is only fitting that the orchestra will be led by Finnish conductor/violinist Pietari Inkinen, who shares her identity as a child prodigy. “I just love this concerto,” Goulding said. “It’s such a massive piece and so very athletic that you have to build endurance enough to play it. Tchaikovsky dedicated it to violinist Leopold Auer, who said it was unplayable, but it quickly became a great favorite of violinists. The virtuosity it requires is immediately evident in the first movement, which lasts 18 out of the entire 45 minutes. I especially love the third movement because, when you get there, you’re almost done and are about to play the exciting grand finale.”
Goulding grew up in a family of music lovers. After taking up instruments in their school programs, her brothers convinced their parents to let their little sister have music lessons. She chose violin, soon surpassing all expectations. Her teacher’s recommendation of advanced studies with Paul Kantor at the Cleveland Institute of Music meant that the family had to relocate from their home in Michigan. Fortunately, both parents were teachers and able to find positions in Cleveland schools, so the family was not separated.
| ONSTAGE |
| Tcheers for Tchaikovsky |
| » Where: Wolf Trap Filene Center |
| » When: 8:15 p.m. Thursday |
| » Info: $35 to $52 in-house, $20 lawn; 877-965-8727; wolftrap.org |
“None of this could have come about if I hadn’t gone to Cleveland,” Goulding said. “The move was more of a sacrifice for my parents than for me, and I’m so thankful they did that for me. Along with my family, I’ve been supported by my classmates and friends in youth orchestras and chamber music groups. I’m very social. At the school I attended, I was one of the students, not Caroline with the violin.”
As recipient of First Prize in the Young Concert Artists International Auditions, as well as the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant, she has avoided the exposure and financial problems most young musicians face. Her self-titled debut album received a 2009 Grammy nomination.
“It was wonderful being part of the YCA community for a year,” she said. “In November, I signed with Opus 3. They’ve provided many performance experiences and wisdom about my career.”
