The Russell House welcomed cellist Fred Raimi and pianist Jane Hawkins, parents of Daniel Raimi ’04, for a musical afternoon last Saturday. The University invited the pair when Daniel Raimi informed the music faculty of his parents’ talents and proposed the idea of a visiting concert.
The program consisted of four piano and cello duets by French composers.
“There is an elegance and clarity to French music,“ Fred Raimi said. ”There’s no sentimentality, but no lack of sentiment.“
Raimi said that his affinity for French music and composers most likely stems from his own music teacher, who had lived in France for much of his life.
In addition to these duets, Raimi also performed a set of five short cello solos by Sidney Maurez Boquiren. A former student of Raimi’s. Boquiren attended the concert and briefly explained his work.
”Each [sketch deals] with a particular musical character or gesture,“ Boquiren said.
According to Boquiren, he had originally given the pieces titles, but he then decided to leave them nameless.
”If I tell you what it’s about,“ Boquiren said, ”it circumscribes your experience of it. I want to let each of you experience the music in your own ways.“
Boquiren wrote the cello solos for Raimi in 1992 while a graduate student at Duke University, where Raimi teaches.
”I always liked [this] piece,“ Raimi said. ”Every movement has a clear and distinct character… It’s a bit theatrical.“
”In the end, when you put them together, it all makes sense,“ Hawkins said of the work as a whole.
Both Raimi and Hawkins were enthusiastic about performing at the University, especially in the Russell House, not only because their son attends the school.
”[The Russell House] is where chamber music was meant to be played,“ said Raimi. ”It’s much more intimate and personal than the large concert halls.“
Hawkins also praised the Bechstein piano, which was recently donated to the University by the Marcus family.
”[It’s] a great piano,“ Hawkins said. ”You can do so much with it.“
”It was a great way to spend the afternoon,“ said Tim Eastman ’04, who attended the performance.
Raimi and Hawkins have been performing together for over 30 years, after meeting in a music hall. Raimi won the International Cello Competition in Portugal in 1972, and Hawkins has played with the Chicago Symphony Chamber Players and the Dorian Wind Quartet. Originally from Wales, she studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London.
The duo has performed extensively together, traveling across the U.S. and Europe, and they recently released a CD of piano and cello music. Hawkins currently teaches piano at Duke, while Raimi is a member of the Ciompi Quartet for strings.
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