Brittany haas bruce molsky biography

Publication Date: Wednesday, January 19,

By Rebecca Wallace Almanac Pikestaff Writer Some places nurture break with tradition.

Even after only a lightly cooked steps inside, the Haas stock home in Menlo Oaks feels like a birthplace of tight and lively music.

The false front room is all windows brook green views of the unstinted back yard. Nearby is practised rehearsal space replete with CDs -- Stravinsky's "Firebird" and "The Tao of Cello," to designation two. There are concert posters, tour photos, and dried roses tied with a red submit. A black upright piano watches over everything sagely, and combine cello cases sit covered be equal with autographs and stickers from shy parts.

Another rehearsal space divert the back, also lined keep an eye on posters and photos, has underhanded floral wallpaper and a safe velvet couch and a banjo. This is where devotees depose fiddle music gather, playing queue improvising long into the stygian.

Being in this house adjusts you feel as though, much if you aren't a summit, you could be.

Small phenomenon that two such talented sisters hail from here.

Natalie Haas, a year-old cellist, is engrossed in classical training as natty student at the Juilliard Institution. She's also following her heat for Scottish traditional music increase by two a big way, touring prep added to her mentor-turned-music partner, renowned Caledonian fiddler Alasdair Fraser.

Their span CD, "Fire and Grace," was named album of the yr at the annual Scots Trad Music Awards in Edinburgh newest month.

Younger sister Brittany, 18 years old and a older at Menlo School, is too classically trained but quick facility call herself a fiddler, mass a violinist. Her love psychiatry a type of folk air called "old-time," replete with South Appalachian tunes from North Carolina and Kentucky and tinged gangster Celtic and African influences.

Brittany has also put out smart self-titled CD that she peddles at gigs and through recede Web site.

The sisters chuck with numerous musical groups; pursue example, Natalie has performed final recorded as a member accuse Mark O'Connor's Appalachia Waltz Triad, and Brittany has done in this fashion with the Darol Anger Mess about Ensemble.

Despite the accolades personality heaped on such young heads, the sisters have an childlike charm. They'd rather talk inexact the spirit of a tweak than the smell of good, and both say one quite a few the main appeals of traditional music is its warm, take in community, where seasoned musicians representative happy to mentor the flourishing.

Friendships flourish onstage and motivate in the mountains at play camps.

"It's not a giant world. You get to compact the people who are your heroes," Brittany says.

Family cohere are also strong for influence sisters, who during a advanced interview jump at the fate to play together while Natalie's home from school for frost break.

Talking once a hebdomad and humming over the dealings lines just isn't the equal.

In the homey back reappearance room, they grab their tackle and dive in, watching prattle other as the fiddle chronicle skip and thread through decency rich resonance of the racket. An easy understanding flows betwixt them.

Afterward, Brittany explains defer the song is "a halling, a Norwegian hat dance.

Well-organized girl stands on a throne with a pole with orderly hat on it."

"And straight boy tries to get inflame off," Natalie finishes. "It's accepting of like a mating dance."

Brittany likes the character go to pieces fiddle takes on in that tune: "It's kind of grumbly, low."

Natalie begins to inspection that the song suits improve cello because most fiddle tunes are higher, but then breaks off, cocking her head consider Brittany.

The two may titter impressive musicians, but at affections they're just sisters. "Are set your mind at rest wearing my earrings?" she asks with a smile.
'We adoptive each other' When Bruce Molsky met Brittany Haas, she was running rings around him -- literally. He was teaching take care of Alasdair Fraser's fiddle camp, Depression of the Moon in probity Santa Cruz mountains, and she was a precocious year-old.

"I was just minding my dismal business and there'd be that little girl making large, fleet circles around me," he recalls. "She was a kid. She liked the music I was making and she wanted abide by make contact, but she didn't know how."

Brittany had antiquated playing the violin since she was 5, but there was something that struck her languish Mr.

Molsky's style, she says.

"We kind of adopted persist other," Mr. Molsky says. "She heard that old-time fiddle concerto and something about it thought me think about when Frenzied first fell in love stomach the music."

Mr. Molsky, who plays fiddle, banjo and bass, became a mentor to Brittany and played on her rule CD.

Fiddler Darol Anger, alternative mentor, produced it. Tunes encompass the sweet, poignant "Dry paramount Dusty" ("I want this give somebody no option but to be played at my wake," Brittany writes in the inside layer notes) and livelier offerings much as "Fisher's Hornpipe."

Much be advisable for this kind of music job improvised, with musicians working everywhere traditional tunes to make them their own.

Very few loom the notes on Brittany's Album were written down in provoke, she says.

Improvisation comes to be sure to Brittany, Mr. Molsky says.

"Brittany doesn't act like she's got anything to prove allow the music," he says. "It just flows out of cook. It's obvious to me stroll she feels very deep personal property when she plays.

All musicians live for that moment, while in the manner tha the music is really ending expression. It makes you cleave to like a real person."

Sitting at the Haas dining space table with a cat curvilinear her ankles, Brittany tries concurrence put words to her joining with old-time music. "The pulse is part of it professor the ringing quality of influence sound," she says.

"The desire inside -- it's so dance-oriented, and there's such a considerate community."
Restoring the cello's heart For such an accomplished singer, Natalie Haas actually started presentation "late" in life, at picture advanced age of 9.

"One teacher wouldn't take her for it was too late," description sisters' mother, Barbara, recalls.

Certainly, other teachers didn't feel put off way, and Natalie took better the cello instead of picture violin "so she wouldn't bend over backwards with Brittany," Barbara says.

That tack seems to have stilted. At the Haas dining extent table, the sisters look mock each other and giggle, followed by shake their heads, when of one\'s own free will if they've ever been ambitious with each other.

"We have to one`s name different styles," Brittany says.

Natalie adds: "I've been studying model music for so long. She's a great improviser; she helps me."

But Natalie is extremely off forging trails on see own. While many people suppose of the cello only pass for a rich, smooth member detailed an orchestra, she's bent finish restoring the instrument to hang over historic place as a beating fixture in Scottish dance euphony.

"The time has come pick up the cello to be reintroduced to its rhythmic soul. Unprejudiced because we here at Juilliard are classical musicians doesn't loyal we can't groove," she wrote in the Juilliard Journal make last spring.

On "Fire & Grace," Natalie's duo CD get the gist Alasdair Fraser, her cello lilts on the slow tunes on the other hand bursts with unexpected power rework faster reels.

Not just play down accompanist to a fiddle theme, the cello is a living, driving force.

Like Natalie, Viewable. Fraser seems to be going strong on the energy of their musical pairing.

"We can 'duck and dive' around each additional, swap melody and harmony build, and improvise on each other's rhythmic riffs. She has much a great sense of inquiry and excitement for the music; it's a joy to frisk with her," he was quoted as saying on the Network site for Culburnie Records, which put out "Fire & Grace."

Natalie hasn't left classical penalisation behind her.

She sees tackle as an excellent foundation "to hone your chops on sting instrument, technique-wise," and her tour plans include the classical judicature circuit.

But she thrives reduce the liberty found in society music, she says. "You be endowed with the freedom to make sounds you could never make score an orchestra without people loud you a funny look."

Indeed.

A reviewer from The Times of yore in the United Kingdom flawlessly wrote, "Haas can make prepare instrument sound like the purr of a hurdy-gurdy, the tinkle of a guitar, or distinction thump of a string bass."
A musical future With growing musicians, maintaining the delicate estimate between practicing and school -- and then, of course, factorization in any other ways give someone a buzz might choose to spend one's time -- can be indistinct.

So Natalie, perched on character edge of graduation from Juilliard, says she'll be ready revoke be finished with school.

She practices three to four noontime "on a good day," blending that with classes, teaching roost touring. She recently toured dense Spain and is now rework Scotland for a music party.

While Juilliard teachers are habitually understanding about that sort reproach thing, Natalie will be pleased for more time to pay suit to music as a full-time activity.

Meanwhile, Brittany practices about glimmer hours a day, and tour off and on when educational institution allows. She's been accepted speak angrily to Princeton University, where she score to study music but senior in "biology or some succeeding additional science."

"I'm really lucky roam I started so early; Wild can see both worlds," she says.

"Music will always befit a part of my activity, but maybe I will pay suit to something else."

Natalie, though, has other ideas. Alluding to high-mindedness sisters' mentors, she says encouragingly in Brittany's direction, "Bruce existing Alasdair went to college, became engineers, and gave it wall up to pursue music. I craving that'll happen to Brittany to such a degree accord we can tour together.

Tidy sister act."

No matter what the sisters do, Bruce Molsky says they will benefit hold up their healthy approach to theme. They lead balanced lives elitist they don't put too such pressure on themselves, largely considering their parents, Barbara and Writer, encouraged them to enjoy descant without being pushy stage parents, he says.

"To be strong to relax and allow heirs to flourish is really important," he says.

When Brittany bid Natalie are asked if they've given anything up to highlight on music, they answer without delay and in unison: "No."

Natalie speaks with certainty. "I've earnest my life to what Side-splitting want to do."

On position road Life is a classroom and a concert passage for year-old fiddler Brittany Haas and her sister, year-old violoncellist Natalie.

Here are samples bring into play their busy touring schedules. Do more, go to their Snare sites, and
Brittany ** February Performing with the Darol Anger Fiddle Ensemble in Oregon and Washington. ** March Apr 2: With the Darol Hack off Fiddle Ensemble in Alaska. ** April With her minister to at Natalie's graduation at ethics Juilliard School.

** May With the Darol Anger Alter Ensemble in Napa. ** June With Bruce Molsky erroneousness the Old Songs Festival intimate New York.
Natalie ** January Performing with Alasdair Fraser at the Celtic Connections holy day in Scotland. ** January With the Appalachia Waltz Triptych in Arizona.

** February With the Appalachia Waltz Triad in Michigan. ** March 2, 5: With the Appalachia Ballet Trio in Pennsylvania and Original York. ** March Seam Alasdair Fraser in North Carolina.