Friday, May 29, 1998
O'Connor doesn't fiddle around
MUSIC: Virtuoso enjoys bonding with audience during his solo concerts
By Kate Herold
Daily Bruin Contributor
He has fiddled for Lyle Lovett, played duets with Yo-Yo Ma and accompanied James Taylor. But this time around, Mark O'Connor embarks on a solo tour, stopping to perform in Royce Hall this Sunday.
While critics classified O'Connor's earlier works as country or folk music, his latest album falls under the classical category. His transition resulted in many people in the music industry labeling O'Connor as a "crossover" musician. However, O'Connor could not disagree more.
"What I think I'm doing is that I'm actually bringing the folk world and bringing the classical music world to a place where both of these types of influences can meet," O'Connor says. "So it's not really a crossover, it's a meeting point."
It is safe to say that O'Connor (who has performed for the president, won a Grammy and played at the Olympic Games) has accomplished a great deal in his musical career. Yet his connections with his audience and with his students are the most important things to him as a performer. Currently touring without an accompanying band, O'Connor says that this type of solo setting is ideal for maintaining a rapport with his audience.
"I like it because it's a conversation with the audience and an intimate one," O'Connor says.
Michael Blachly, director for the UCLA Center of Performing Arts, describes O'Connor's style in two words: "eclectic virtuosity," and says that O'Connor has "matured as an artist to the point where he can now do a solo work ... He has created an audience that is ready for his solo playing."
The connection that O'Connor maintains with his audiences stems partly from his love of teaching. He holds the position of adjunct professor of fiddling at Vanderbilt University, and runs an annual fiddle camp for all ages. The camp, which has participants ranging from 5 to 84 years old, provides an environment where O'Connor can pass his love for fiddling to others. By performing as a soloist, O'Connor hopes to pass on another lesson as well.
"I've been able to muster up the ability to focus and concentrate on performance," O'Connor says. "The ability to focus and concentrate for that long without distractions is something that can be applied not only to music, but different aspects of life,"
O'Connor began playing the fiddle after seeing a performance by Doug Kershaw on the Johnny Cash show. He decided that the instrument would be a perfect outlet in his life.
"I felt like it was the instrument that I could describe all my emotions with," O'Connor explains.
However, O'Connor did more than describe emotions when he began performing. Seven months after he began fiddling, he won second place in the 12 and under competition of America's most prestigious fiddling competition, the National Old Time Fiddler's contest in Weiser, Idaho.
Soon after, Benny Thomasson, known as "the king of Texas fiddlers," became his instructor. O'Connor continued on as the Country Music Association's Musician of the Year for six consecutive years and won a Grammy for his "New Nashville Cats" album.
However, it is O'Connor's love of performing that truly reaches his fans.
"I can hopefully bring the audience with me on this musical journey through which together we discover new things every time the fiddle is played."
MUSIC: Mark O'Connor will perform at Royce Hall on Sunday, May 31 at 7 p.m. A center stage lecture with O'Connor will be held at 6 p.m. Tickets are $35, $32, $28 and $13 with UCLA ID. For more information call (310) 825-2101.
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Mark O'Connor