[.saved.by.grace.]

Talking about a girl’s life, which is saved in a graceful way by so-called 'being inspired'.

After a couple of weeks of a sudden, unplanned pause, I finally reconciled myself with Mr Steinberg (that is the name almost invisibly written on an old piece of paper glued inside my violin), and his second best friend (that is the pianist I’ve been working with these past 13 years). Finally went again to concerts, finally argued again with the pianist about which pieces we might practice, and finally felt the happiness just by staring at a set of Red-Label Thomastik-Infeld with gold plated chrome steel E-string. My fingers would be delightedly happy. And that precious rosewood Flesch-style chinrest! Mr Steinberg obviously needs some adjustments here and there especially the bridge and most possibly the soundpost. But it is still for me a beauty.

And so I ponder. These little happiness I must have taken for granted in the past. It’s true you never know what you’ll miss until you lose them. Subsequently I just learned that sometimes you don't know what you lose until some inspirations struck, wake you up, and urge you to recollect those lost sparks. For me, these pictures of my favourite lady-virtuosos have proved their magic…


Hilary Hahn

Viviane Hagner

Anne Sophie Mutter