British violin sensation Kennedy straddles the classics

"Structures, not strictures" is Kennedy's description of the unusual Cornell Concert Series program he will present Monday, Nov. 9, at 8 p.m. in Bailey Hall.

Juxtaposing works by Bach, Bartok and his own arrangement of songs by rock icon Jimi Hendrix, the British violinist with the single moniker will perform both as soloist and with the "Kennedy Collective," an ensemble comprising two guitarists, two cellists, double bass, flute and oboe.

"As is the case with most musicians' recitals, I have chosen works which inspire me," notes Kennedy, "and I hope, mainly through my interpretations, but also because of the context in which I have placed all these works, to be able to shed new light on them. This is, after all, surely the function of an interpreting artist."

Tickets for the concert at $25, $22, $19 and $16 for the general public and $15, $13, $11.50 and $9.50 for students and are on sale at the Lincoln Hall Box Office, 105 Lincoln Hall, 255-5144. Tickets may also be ordered via the Cornell Concert Series web site at http://www.arts.cornell.edu/ccs.

For well over a decade Nigel Kennedy, as he was first known, has been acknowledged as Britain's leading violin virtuoso whose unique talent has brought fresh perspectives and a quantum energy to both the classical and contemporary repertoire. Eighteen months ago, following a lengthy sabbatical leave, Kennedy performed in London for the first time in over five years, a return to the international concert platform that dislodged the United Kingdom general election from national newspaper front pages.

"Only one British violinist in my lifetime has produced anything as bold and exhilarating as that," said the London Times reviewer. "No other violinist on earth could manage the astonishing stylistic transition presented -- Bartok's Sonata for Solo Violin interlaced with Kennedy's own atmospheric arrangements of Hendrix."

A student of Sir Yehudi Menuhin in England and Dorothy Delay at the Juilliard School in New York City, Kennedy has straddled the classical, jazz and rock music scenes since his teen-age years. His recordings of the Elgar Violin Concerto and Vivaldi's Four Seasons (the biggest-selling classical record of all time) are benchmark recordings in the classical catalogs, but Kennedy has also recorded Duke Ellington and has performed with the great jazz violinist Stephane Grappelli.

"People can say I'm a classical violinist if they want to, but I've always viewed myself as a musician who plays music and not just a certain part of it," he says.

Six months ago, Kennedy dropped the use of his first name "Nigel." Why? No reason stated. As he says of his hugely successful career, "I leave it to instinct."