Word: violine
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...course, I wouldn't stay with the violin if I didn't love it," he added. Among the musicians of the Harvard community, Lefkowitz is renowned for dedication, and for his concentration. Yo-Yo Ma '76 attributes his newly-found commitment to diligent practicing to Lefkowitz's example. "Four to five hours a day--nobody around here practices like that," he says...
Lefkowitz has been playing the violin since he was seven. His father, the head of the Music History Department of Boston University, and himself a violinist, started his son's training. "Sure there was plenty of parental push," Lefkowitz said, chalking his cue. "I guess my basic nature is rather easily impressed. I'm more or less manipulatable. I didn't classically rebel, unlike my sister who quit playing the piano years ago. I guess you could say I'm repressed," and saying this he broke the rack of balls with a shattering crack...
...recently sought out Lefkowitz for an interview, and found him circling around the pool table, lips pursed in concentration, examining every angle, analyzing every prospective shot. "I approach things analytically," he said. "A question exists; you search for the answer. That's the way I approach the violin, too. If you're not getting the proper sound projecting--there are always ways of improving. It's actually very scientific...
There exists a Natural Way to play the violin. Lefkowitz believes. It's something he's working towards. "I work on technique more than anyone around here," he told me, "just so I can learn how to play the violin." The Natural Way of playing involves relaxation (for which he does yoga breathing exercises), confidence, and finding the right position. "So many people play with such awkward poses, and they end up having problems with their muscles, as well as having problems with their technique...
Lefkowitz has not always been this diligent. His attitude toward practicing and learning changed the year before he came here. He had been touring in Israel and Switzerland as a soloist with the Greater Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra. While in Switzerland he won first prize for violin soloists in the International Festival of Youth Orchestras, earning the opportunity to remain and study with Max Rostal, who has been called "the greatest violin teacher in Central Europe." Lefkowitz was 16 at the time, and living in Switzerland made him miserable. He was lonely and he's never played as poorly...