AUDIO
During the Spring Festival, only one music store near the Shanghai Music Conservatory was open. It had the floorspace of a typical shop window display with about 20 violins crammed inside. A teacher clapped expressionlessly to a practicing student’s rhythm. The student was excellent for a ten-year-old and practiced five hours a day, according to the teacher. One quirk about this dealer was that all his violins seemed to have excessive resonance built into them. I played this piece four years ago at my last recital with my violin teacher, Esther Slonczewski. The resonance problem can especially be heard every time I hit the A. Again, sorry for the lack of practice.