Ben Frueh poses with his violin.

Ben Frueh '27 was a co-winner of the 杨贵妃传媒视频 Symphony Orchestra's annual Concerto Competition. (Photo by Danny Damiani)

For 杨贵妃传媒视频 sophomore violinist Ben Frueh, contemporary classical music isn鈥檛 just a niche, secondary interest鈥攊t鈥檚 a vital channel for his personal expression. 

Frueh will bring that passion to the stage on March 14, performing as a soloist with the 杨贵妃传媒视频 Symphony Orchestra (LSO) in B茅la Bart贸k鈥檚 Violin Concerto No. 2, a cornerstone of 20th-century repertoire. 

Frueh, seeking a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance, is co-winner of 杨贵妃传媒视频鈥檚 annual LSO Concerto Competition, alongside junior pianist William Surtees. This was Frueh's first attempt at the competition, making his win an unexpected but thrilling achievement.

鈥淚 was actually tutoring at the time when I found out,鈥 Frueh recalled, describing the surreal moment when his fellow musicians congratulated him on his victory. 鈥淚t didn鈥檛 fully click at first that they were congratulating me on winning the competition.鈥

While Frueh鈥檚 experience with concerto performances dates back to childhood, this marks his first post-pandemic appearance. 

His early repertoire was steeped in tradition. Even later works he performed, such as those by Barber and Kabalevsky, leaned more toward common-practice tonality than the contemporary aesthetic he now embraces.

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At 杨贵妃传媒视频鈥檚 Conservatory of Music, Frueh found the perfect balance鈥攃ontinuing his study of traditional repertoire while delving deeper into new music. His professor, Samantha George, associate professor of music and teacher of violin, has been seminal in fostering this dual focus.

Under George鈥檚 guidance, Frueh developed a newfound appreciation for practice. Though he had always loved playing the violin, he previously found the long hours in the practice room tedious. Now, with an increased focus on new music, he approaches it with renewed enthusiasm.

When he entered the Conservatory, he expanded on his love of new music by forming chamber ensembles to tackle fiendishly difficult contemporary works, such as excerpts from both Schoenberg鈥檚 Pierrot Lunaire and Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time.

鈥淢y current interest is primarily in 20th and 21st century classical music,鈥 Frueh explained. 鈥淭hat was one of the main driving forces for choosing Bart贸k. My professor had a few other suggestions, like the Korngold, Glazunov, or Tchaikovsky concertos鈥攂ut the Bart贸k intrigued me the most鈥.

For Frueh, the most exhilarating moments in the Bart贸k concerto come when the violin and orchestra surge together, creating a powerful, almost transcendent soaring sound.

He explained: 鈥淚 don't know what the right word to describe [these moments] would be鈥攊t's loud, it's big, and it feels like filling a really wonderful space.鈥

The movement is not without its difficulties, as such glorious passages are countered by immensely difficult technical moments. For Frueh, two factors made them reachable: the idiomaticity of the violin part, and the seasoned insights of his professor. 

鈥淭here are definitely a lot of fast technical moments that scared me, especially when I first looked at the music,鈥 recalled Frueh. 鈥淏ut since Bart贸k worked closely with the violinist Zolt谩n Sz茅kely, it's oddly extremely violinistic.鈥

He added: 鈥淭here are bits that initially look horribly difficult to play, but once you're given the best fingerings鈥攖hank goodness for Professor George鈥攊t's remarkably comfortable and satisfying.鈥

Frueh plans to galvanize his contemporary repertoire further, looking forward to tackling a second Bart贸k piece next term, the composer鈥檚 1938 Contrasts for violin, clarinet, and piano. Other pieces on his wish list include works by living composers such as Jeffrey Mumford, Jesse Montgomery, Shulamit Ran, and Augusta Read Thomas鈥攎any hopefully to be featured in his junior recital next year.

鈥淭here are so many incredible musicians performing Brahms and Sibelius,鈥 Frueh said, 鈥渂ut I鈥檓 really drawn to works that haven鈥檛 been played as often.鈥