A table, a chair, a bowl of fruit and a violin; what else does a man need to be happy?
~Albert Einstein
Good ol’ uncle Albert had many a thought-provoking idea and I would be hesitant to argue with him on most points. Theory of General Relativity? I’m right there behind you Al! Theory of Special Relativity? You go Al! I’ll even grant you that the above equation for happiness is almost correct…however, in response to your query ‘what else does a man need to be happy?’ I would have to answer this: A Woman! And if the violin in said quote is actually played by the fairer sex, happiness is a forgone conclusion!
What is it about women and the violin? In Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing the character Benedick makes the observation “Now, divine air! now is his soul ravished! Is it not strange that sheeps’ guts should hale souls out of men’s bodies?” I’ve loved the violin since I can remember making a conscious choice on the matter. Whether played in true classical fashion, as a down-home fiddle, or somewhere in between my soul is indeed haled by the violin. There is something so inherently sexy about a woman playing a violin. I love my wife exactly as she is….but if the science behind the Matrix were real I would insist that she download a violin virtuoso program immediately. If the Matrix technology was real I would also download a program into my own noodle that would keep me from saying anything along the line of “I wouldn’t change anything about my wife except…” This post then is a celebration of the women whose violin/fiddle playing I adore!
Ireland is one of those places that I long to visit and its music is magical. Sharon Corr has helped bring Irish music to the pop culuture scene.
The Corrs are one of my favorite bands. I enjoy Irish music and The Corrs melodic, up-beat tunes as well as the more melancholic ballads are flavored with traditional Irish folk sound. They harmonize together so beautifully and Sharon’s violin, along with Andrea’s tin whistle, infuses their music with the history of Ireland. This brother-sister team is considered “Irish pop culture’s first sex symbols” and its easy to see why as they are all attractive.
Their parents must have amazing genes! I own the Best of the Corrs DVD and watch it frequently. You can watch 3 of their latest videos in the “The Music” section on their website. Click on “TV Videos” in the upper right of that section to find them. Several videos can also be seen on Launch.
While on the Irish theme I bring you Mairead Nesbitt.
Mairead is part of the touring group Celtic Woman and is a marvelous little powerhouse on the violin. On the recommendation of a friend (Thanks Pat!) I recently purchased the Celtic Women DVD and was blown away! The production was beautiful and the performances were incredible. On the Celtic Woman website you can click on the manhattan records player, found here which will launch a viewing window. When it loads click on Watch Videos in the lower left hand corner and the select “The Contradicion”. It is a two-part violin piece that starts with a beautifully melodic tune and ends with a jaunty Irish jig. If you don’t watch anything else linked to in this post, watch this one because she is incredible. I love how Mairead skips around on stage, flipping her hair as she plays. Her bright green eyes and infectious smile make her a joy to watch.
The European phenomenon Bond literally personifies the idea of Sex and Violins,
an idea that is explored in this article which shares the title of my post. (I knew my title wasn’t an original idea but didn’t think I’d find something of the same name while researching this post!) Their music is unique and entertaining and they play some of the coolest looking stringed instruments that I’ve ever seen. I own two of their CD’s and really enjoy them both. Their lastest video can be found on the main page of their website. While obviously cashing in on their sex appeal these four women are extremely talented and they’ve done wonders in bringing classical music to a younger generation. Their passion and skill is evident when you watch them play. Bond has recently released their latest album, Classified.
A little bit closer to home is Alison Krauss and her band Union Station.
Alison Krauss is simply amazing. I had a chance to see Alison Krauss and Union Station performing this concert on PBS a year or so ago and I was mesmerized. I had heard Alison Krauss before but never really listened and while watching this I was drawn in by both her voice and her violin. That DVD really showcases her bluegrass sound. Several videos can be seen on her website however I think she truly shines in the live performances where you can actually watch her play.
Staying in the country vein brings us to Martie Maguire.
Martie is, of course, one third of the Dixie Chicks. I’ve always enjoyed the Chicks’ brand of country music and especially enjoy Martie’s playing. The fiddle portion of Cowboy Take Me Away is one of my favorites as is the foot stompin’ tune Sin Wagon. I’ve always suspected that watching the Chicks live would yield some amazing fiddle artistry.
A few years ago I discovered Lili Haydn.
Rolling Stone called Lili’s music “an impassioned mix of classical, pop, rock and funk” and is a very good description of her sound. Lili both sings and plays the violin to create a truly unique musical experience. Lili Haydn is likely one of the best violinists that you may have never seen…or at least don’t think you’ve seen. She has played the violin with Sting, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, and Tupac. Lili Haydn played the violin on Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring in Josh Groban’s recent PBS concert. The way they shot her playing was amazing as was their interpretation of this beautiful song. More recently Lili can be seen playing the violin in a Folger’s commercial. You can hear a sample of Lili’s haunting voice and incredible violin skills when you open her website as her song Unfolding Grace begins playing automatically.
And last but certainly not least is Lucia Micarelli.
I came across Lucia’s music last year when searching the internet. Lucia Mircarelli has also performed with Josh Groban. Touring with Josh as part of his music ensemble has resulted in standing ovations and an ever-growing fan following. Lucia began learning the violin at age 3 and it is obvious that she has had years of training when you hear her play. You can hear songs from her debut album on her website (click play in upper right hand corner) and can view a video collage shown to the tune Nocturne here. Nocturne is a hauntingly beautiful song and is the first thing I ever heard Lucia perform.
And that’s the tour of the violinist vixens whose music captures my soul. There really is nothing as beautiful as a well played violin. And despite the fact that my wife doesn’t play violin I do love her dearly because:
Love is not the dying moan of a distant violin – it’s the triumphant twang of a bedspring.
~S. J. Perelman
Its a fun quote…I had to put it in somewhere!!!
bond is hot.
if you are moved by violins (er, & sex) check out The Red Violin.
it’s amazing.
Yes, yes, yes! Red Violin is extremely good. One of my favorite films. The soundtrack is some amazing solo work by Joshua Bell.
I actually had the very good fortune to see him play the entire theme at the Dallas symphony a couple years ago. Wow, talk about goose bumps.
Violin has always made me emotional. Such a moving instrument.
I will check out Red Violin, thanks for the recommendation! I’ll also have to google Joshua Bell and check out his work.
There is also a Canadian violinist, Lara St. John, who is evidently very good but since she is not someone I’ve listened to previously I didn’t include her in this post.
I would really love to see any of these women/groups in concert…I’m sure it would be a goose bump experience! I get goose bumps just watching the Celtic Women DVD as they are all amazing.
Incidentally that’s a picture of Lara St. John’s violin that I combined with the fruit pics at the start of this post.
Loved your whole intro bit.
Being more of a cello/bass/double bass fan myself (without any of the related culture though, so no point in trying to get any info out of me!), I’ll not comment on the rest… 🙂
Anne, I actually enjoy all stringed instruments. I think that’s why Bond is so great as its a quartet of stringed instruments that they make their amazing music with!!!
And thanks for the compliment about the intro. That part was really fun to write. It kind of gets repetitive and falls apart afterwards but I didn’t want to leave out any of these artists that I enjoy.
Battle of the bands, Bond vs. Corrs. Who would win? My bet is on those brunette hotties. Man, good genes in that family!
I don’t know but that would be a memorable double bill concert!
I’ll learn the violin if it will make me sexy.
Oh baby…you would be sooooo hot if you learned the violin! I’ll even pay for the lessons! 😉
I see no mention of Michael Flatley’s “Lord of the Dance” for the sequence with two violinists…based on your criteria it might make you happy to watch it!
Carl, I hope you have some big theater sound at your place, because when you watch Red Violin, you have to turn it up loud!
Mr. Bell plays on the famous Huberman-Gibson Stradivarius. There’s a fascinating story behind it on Bell’s site. (LINK).
You know, Carl, I feel much the same about chick bands in general. Something about a woman singing/playing that makes the music a little more… accessible? I’m not sure what it is I feel, but there you have it. For instance:
Heather Nova
PJ Harvey
Cat Power
Ani Difranco
Innocence Mission
Breeders
Darcy Fray
Elastica
Juliana Hatfield
Liz Phair (only the old stuff)
You are a funny, complex man.
If I can wade through all the male hormones for a second here…I might find a good post. I am not sure if you saved yourself or not, Carl. You like sexy violin women, but I’m good in bed or something like that?
Seriously, I like your post, love the music, and the one male you included is very sexy (the Mr. of the Coors family). I have always enjoyed live music, but I have a very vivid memory that really hooked me on stringed instruments. For those of you who don’t know, I work for a local university that has a great music program, and many of my student assistants are music majors. One student had to stash her viola in my office one day, and she told us she would play a piece for us when she came back. My gosh, she was excellent! It was so moving to hear this beautiful music coming from this simple act that took hours and days and years to perfect. And she was young, beautiful, and very European which I am sure made the experience all the more wonderful for her male co-workers. :o)
I’m in love! 😉
Wow, lots of activity while I was off running around! Yes Rob, I agree with you totally….I much prefer female artists to male. I really like the Liz Phair song ‘Whip Smart’ by the way…and the video as well!
Suzanne, Mairead played for Michael Flately and I believe 4 out of the 5 Celtic Women have all toured with various incarnations of River Dance and Lord of the Dance. I have never seen Lord but I have to admit that I really like River Dance!
Jay, I’m confused….am I a funny, complex man or are you referring to Rob. 🙂 Since its a cool compliment I’ll send my thanks from the both of us!
Rob, I’m confused…are you in love with me or the beautiful European viola player? 😉
Mary, yes…and YES! 🙂 And shame on you, my mother reads these comments! 🙂
I hope no one sees this as a really sexist post. The idea blossomed when watching Celtic Women and then I started thinking about all the violinists that I really like and couldn’t think of anyone that I’ve listened to repeatedly except beautiful women…tis a sad tale, I know, but very much the truth. I’m sure there are great male violinists but I have to be honest in saying that I’d prefer to watch a female play, at least classical violin. In listening to a good fiddle it wouldn’t matter to me if the violinist were male or female as good fiddle music just makes me want to tap my toes and do a little River Dance myself!
This has been very illuminating…I had no idea women violinists were so mesmerizing to men! (I think I may have chosen to study the “wrong” instruments.)
Okay, so what instruments have you studied Suzanne? I find pianists fascinating as well, love the flute, the tin whistle…women drummers are pretty cool. Women guitarists, also cool, especially ones who can really play well acoustically.
Carl, no I am not in love with you. Sorry. I’m gonna take credit for Jay’s compliment, since she posted it immediately after my post.
😛
I’ll give you the compliment but I still think your love comment was meant for me! 😉
You just have to get the last word, don’t you Carl?
Mary, you’re a good woman! If James raved about talented, beautiful women it would probably hurt my feelings!
The quote at the end is a little redeeming, I guess.
Don’t attack me for saying that people. Just being honest about myself. 🙂
Sharpen your knives people….let’s attack Julie!!!!! 🙂
Was I really raving about beautiful women? I thought I was doing more raving about violin music? Ah well…it is an honest fact that while typing this I really couldn’t think of ANY male violinists that I had ever heard.
Rob…where is the love, man…Where…Is…The….Love???
Sorry Carl, the friend in me couldn’t keep my mouth shut!!
My grandmother insisted that Dominique and I learn to play piano. By the time I got to high school I was thoroughly fed up with that and bargained with my father to get out of further lessons. He agreed under the condition that I take up another instrument, but wanted it to be something “feminine” so I ended up playing flute. I found I liked that but wanted a little variety so played that in only one band, picked up piccolo for marching band, and then saxophone for jazz band (yes, I was a band “geek” but in my school it was considered cool…Dominique was in band four years later but if she hasn’t revealed her instrument of choice you won’t hear it from me).
My opinion has to agree with Julie, Carl. As I was reading through your article, which I thoroughly enjoyed by the way, I was thinking that if I was Mary I would be simply smoldering.
My hats off to ya, Mary! You’re a good woman!
My Grandfather that passed away last year at the wonderful ripe age of 93 was a violin player. He had this beautiful red violin that he bought when he was 16. He was a farmer’s son and had won Grand Champion Pig for the state of Missouri. He took the money he won and bought himself this little gem.
(You can see a picture of him as a boy with his pig in the State Capital Museum if there is any interest. The picture is lifesize!)
He taught himself to play the violin and was never an accomplished violinist, but could hold his own at the local Blue Grass Festival or a special on Sunday Morning in Church.
I have fond memories of the sound of a melancholy violin on the front porch of a farmhouse on a warm Summer’s evening.
Nothing sexual had ever come to my mind when thinking of a violin! 🙂
Thanks Suzanne…I sometimes wish I would’ve been forced to play an instrument but I know SOOO MANY people who were and will never pick it up again because they were forced to do it as a child. I could still get off my lazy butt and learn….but I’m still holding out hope for the whole Matrix thing!
Great comments Karen. That’s cool about your grandpa and its too bad there’s no link to that pig picture but if I’m ever there I’ll definitely remember it!
(Comments edited by the canned ham)
Karen and Julie, thanks for sharing your comments as your opinions are as valuable as everyone else’s. But wouldn’t this have been a boring article if it said:
“Hey, I like violin music. Here is a list of the artists that I like…”? This was much, much more fun!
And Karen I am really jealous of your porch memories….I just have to be satisfied with nostalgia for the idea of memories like that even though I don’t have them for myself! I do like to sit out on the back deck in the spring and fall and listen to these artists and Sarah Brightman so I have warm memories of enjoying the beauty of the season accompanied by good music.
Thanks everyone! Keep talking….or typing…whatever! 🙂
And back to you Suzanne…those are all cool instruments that, rest assured, guys dig!
So…..Nick…..what kind of band geek were you???
Karen, I love you girlfriend!!! I am so glad I am in such wonderful company in the un-cool ‘wives’ club!!! We’ve been mentioned here before, and I must say that we are an awesome, now, TRIO! Admittedly, Mary is cooler than we, but she is certainly is not excluded for it. Love you girlfriends! I am once again proud to be un-cool!!! What a relief!!!
Wait a minute…the only violin music you own is of “attractive women” (don’t have a problem with that) yet you claim to be a fan of classical music. Please tell me you have Vivaldi somewhere in your collection!
Soon!!! We are about to get our bathroom finished!!! Hopefully it will be done by the end of next week.
Mary, your friends love ya!
I am lonely today. I’ve been on the computer way too much.I keep quickly working doing chores and taking care of the kiddos then checking e-mail to see if someone is writing to me. I can’t wait for James to get home so we can start our weekend. No work tommorrow!!! Not even his employees, so he won’t be on the phone a lot or running over there all the time!!! I am excited!!!
I got to drop piano lessons because they were too expensive, but I wanted to play another instrument because Suzanne did.
I did not know what instrument to choose, so Suzanne suggested the trombone. (I think it’s because she wanted to learn to play it.)
I was in the HS band for a couple of years, but she is the one in the family with musical talent–never found an instrument that she didn’t like.
I’ll let the home-improvement excuse tide me over for awhile! I passed James’ wrecked truck on the way home and waved at the worker who no doubt thought I was nuts as I’ve not met him.
Suzanne…let me clarify…I wasn’t referring to symphonies in this article which is why I didn’t mention any of those. I have Vivaldi, Bach, Beethoven, Handel, Mozart…I have a great classical mix CD that we got free from Victoria’s Secret when we were first married…(ahhhhh….so maybe that’s where the whole violin/sex thing comes from!!! 🙂 ) but it wasn’t the kind of stuff I was thinking about in referring to this. None of my CD’s really gives any kind of good info about the specific people playing, just what orchestra it was. This was more about accessible stuff. There is a kid’s movie…Little Secrets…in which the girl is practicing this piece on the violin…by Mozart I believe…and I’d love to find that music but its not on the soundtrack and there was no info on the website. I need to do some more searching and try to track that down. I really like that movie by the way…its about a young teenage girl who is a violinist. Nothing sexual about it but it still appeals to me cuz its a girl playing a violin!
Nick, I think I remember now that you told us about the trombone before. Sorry my ‘trivial pursuit’ mind didn’t remember that!
I was AWESOME on the recorder in fourth grade. That’s it. My musical resume stops there! I suppose I may have been a little cute playing it, except I think I was entering that akward looking stage!!!!
Whew! My faith in your judgement is restored.
I read something somewhere that Recorders are coming back in the schools. And on the Corrs site somewhere Andrea is doing this program where they are donating tin whistles to elementary school students and giving lessons. I took guitar lessons briefly in jr. high and played a little in church but then quit. I had an awesome new Fender acoustic guitar that I saved up for. Can’t remember who I sold it to but wish I had stuck with it.
Suzanne…I obviously have no judgement so don’t let your faith be restored too easily! 🙂
“I passed James’ wrecked truck on the way home and waved…” I crack myself up! That sounds like the truck was wrecked on the side of the rode and I nonchalantly drove past and waved! 🙂
In the interest of public safety all future posts will be about canned hams:
Does that look like a brain shaped like a canned ham to anyone else or is it just me?
How Monty Pythonish of you. :o)
Yes, well, I did notice that you’d passed James’ wreck with only a wave, but I thought I should remain quiet lest that be me next time.
It was a funny way to write that. I meant James nice new truck that was wrecked recently but that sure isn’t the way I wrote it! 🙂
Great post. I’m really hungry and in the mood for ham now and I don’t why?:)
I have to admit I haven’t listened to much classical music over the years. You definitely have given me a lot of music/bands to look into.
Ham…it does a body good!
Check out the links as each group has samples of their music and some have full songs and videos. There is a variety here, country, bluegrass, jazz, classical, Irish folk music…a little something for everyone.
Aaaaahhhh, The Corrs. Run away! Run Away!
“We’re the beautiful Corrs, so we are. We’re all beautiful. Apart from poor Jim” – Ant & Dec anyone?
And see, I think Jim is as attractive as the girls…
I followed the link from the Celtic Woman web site expecting to just see another review of them and their show. They are great on their DVD but even better in person particularly Maried’s barefooted hard dance while playing hard fiddle. Once I got here I met a wonderful performer Lucia Mircarelli via your link to her site. This girl is awesome and I will certainly be adding her to my music collection ASAP. Thanks very much to the person who posted the link at CW and thanks to you for bringing me the link to Lucia and her beautiful music.
Americans finally realize the try-before-you-buy works just as well with sex as it does with commodities. Rather than marrying and then shacking up with hot sex coming after the nuptuals, Americans are increasingly putting out before putting on the wedding rings.Women are just as likely as men to get it on before matrimony.
I think this is just the sign of the times. I mean, we like to test things, try them out, before making a purchase. Why should sex and marriage be any different? The stigma associated with pre-marital sex is dead. Long live free love!
What!… Sex and violins and no mention of Vanessa Mae? Check her out on youtube 🙂
I will, thanks Rob!
can anyone identify the PBS Nova story where the unique sounds of the Guarnere and Strad come from. Documentary told of tests of the varnish, the wood the carving, etc.
I really liked your post. I had a similar situation where I watched Celtic Woman on You tube and started watching all sorts of different female violinists. Go watch that toxicity video surging on college humor if you haven’t already. Anyway thanks for the great post. BTW I’M REALLY DIGGING BOND.
Loved your post – what a great idea getting all these wonderful musicians in one spot! And I’d like to add a fabulous Australia Group – Hat Trick – to your long list! Check them out!