A new Carolyn Cameron concert
By Rossland Telegraph
The Greater Trail Hospice Society is presenting a fundraising concert on Sunday February 9th, in the Trail United Church, at 2:00 p.m. with Carolyn Cameron on violin and piano. Proceeds will benefit the Greater Trail Hospice Society. The afternoon concert has the added enticement of refreshments provided by Hooper’s Bakery.
This concert has been a yearly feature in the Trail winter months for the past 4 or 5 years. For Cameron, the collaboration has been extremely rewarding. “I wanted to do fundraising concerts for a local organization and the hospice society proved to be a perfect fit.” When Cameron’s father was in his last stages of life in 2015, it was Calgary’s hospice society that allowed him to die at home. “That really was his greatest wish in the end,” she says, “ that we were able to give this to him was probably one of his greatest gifts. The service that Hospice provides is invaluable.” She laughs and adds, “I suppose you could say that I’m investing in my future.”
The title of the concert, chosen by Cameron, is “Not Your Typical Sonata” and features Bach’s violin Sonata #3 and Beethoven’s piano Sonata Op.78.
This is the second year that Cameron has performed on both violin and piano at the same concert. “It’s a huge challenge for me because normally I neglect one of my instruments depending on what concert is coming up. You can’t do that with this one.”
The Bach Sonata #3 may be a bit less familiar to listeners. It isn’t performed as much as some of his other sonatas, possibly because of the massive 2nd movement fugue which Cameron says is quite challenging. And although the format of this sonata is not what we are familiar with today, in Bach’s time it was the typical format of a church sonata.
The Beethoven piano sonata Op. 78, on the other hand, is not a typical sonata structure because Beethoven omitted the expected middle slow movement. Interestingly, it was one of Beethoven’s favorite sonatas. “It is a very cheerful piece,” says Cameron, “written when Beethoven’s deafness had not progressed too far, and at a time when he was in love.” The piece is dedicated to the object of his affections, Thérèse von Brunswick, but the romance went nowhere in the end. “Beethoven had a tendency to fall for women who were generally unavailable either by being married, engaged or above his social class,” says Cameron. “Being available seemed to be a bit of a turn-off for him. Consequently, he remained single for life.”
Admission is by donation, with all proceeds to the Greater Trail Hospice Society.
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