Though Lance Freiman ’19 is not currently in a part of Andover’s orchestra groups, music is stil a large part of his life.
“[The Sibelius concerto] was something that I’d actually been working on, on and off, for about a year and a half. I worked on it a lot at my time at Andover. It just meant a lot to me to perform it because so many people at Andover had helped me with that piece… I just think it’s one of the most beautiful pieces of classical music that I’ve ever heard,” said Freiman.
Along with the piece by Sibelius, Frieman also showcased Vitali’s “Chaconne in G minor” and a Beethoven sonata at his senior violin recital last Friday night at the Timken Room in Graves Hall. Freiman was accompanied on the piano by Rebecca Plummer, Instructor in Music. According to Frieman, he chose pieces that he enjoyed but was also challenged by.
“The second piece that I played, the Vitali Chaconne, was a piece that I learned a few years ago. It wasn’t technically very difficult, but it just had a melody that I really liked. And then the first piece that I played, the Beethoven sonata, was probably the most technically challenging piece on the list, at least for me. That was actually the first time I’d ever performed it,” said Freiman.
Though Freiman left Andover’s orchestra groups over a year and half ago due to other commitments such as varsity swim, he has continued to practice music on a regular basis. He recently worked on the Sibelius concerto during a workshop a few weeks ago with a violinist from Italy, according to Angelreana Choi ’19, a friend of Freiman’s. The piece began with a long drawn out note that increased intensity and gained vibrato before transitioning into the main melody.
“I think the main melodies are very simple, but they’re very technically challenging at the same time. I feel like sometimes the simplest tunes can be the hardest to play. I… understand how difficult it is to really bring that beauty out and project that beauty to an audience,” said Choi.
Additionally, Freiman’s recital was live-streamed on Facebook Live, which allowed his former violin teacher in Michigan to watch along. According to Freiman, this was significant because she has been an important figure in his life since he started playing violin.
“That means a lot, because she was the teacher whom I’ve had since I was six years old. Although she doesn’t teach me while I’m at Andover, every time I go back on break, she’s there. I have lessons with her a lot. She’s my teacher, but she’s a very meaningful mentor to me in my life. It meant a lot that she was able to watch my performance live,” said Freiman.
Riku Tanaka ’20, one of Freiman’s teammates on Andover Boys Swimming, noted that Freiman was particularly adept at channeling his strength and passion into his pieces; at the same time, however, he was able to keep everything in control.
“I think one particular thing that Lance has that many others that probably have less of is definitely that energy that he outputs through his playing. He plucks the strings really strongly, but on the other hand, he really knows how to control the volume. That contrast and that dynamic is his strength, and I really appreciated that,” said Tanaka.
