Scott Slapin began lessons with Barbara Barstow. He studied with Emanuel Vardi at the Manhattan school of Music where he graduated at the age of eighteen. Composers Gerald Busby, Richard Lane and David Noon have written solo works for Mr. Slapin. Also a composer, Mr. Slapin made his compositional debut at age fourteen in the State Theater of New Jersey. He has since been actively composing chamber music featuring the viola, two works of which have recently been recorded on compact disc.
The son of a doublebassist and 'cellist, Scott Slapin's first lessons were at the age of six. By the age of eighteen, Mr. Slapin had graduated from the Manhattan School of Music where he was the youngest student of Emanuel Vardi. Scott Slapin made the first complete recording of J. S. Bach's Unaccompanied Sonatas and Partitas for Violin on the viola and has also recorded another two disc set of challenging virtuoso viola repertoire including solo caprices by Paganini and Ernst. Mr. Slapin's cds are currently distributed in 22 countries internationally on the Eroica Classical Recordings label and are also available directly from this website.
Myron Rosenblum, founder and first president of the American Viola Society said, "Scott Slapin is a musician of great talent and abilities. His CDs I have heard -- the complete Bach Sonatas and Partitas for viola and the 'Two Viola Recitals' reveal a violist of technical accomplishments and superior musicality. He is a violist to watch."
The world's foremost doublebass virtuoso Gary Karr said of Slapin's playing, "He has a beautiful sound with a compelling musical intensity, and he plays with a passion that demands one's attention. I especially liked his own pieces which, like his playing, are rich in emotional energy.... a very impressive display of artistry and musicality."
Mr. Slapin has given more than twenty solo recitals in the New York-New Jersey area over the past five years and has performed solo works by Paganini, Berlioz, Bloch and Bach with orchestras in both states.
Slapin's own compositions have been performed by the Philharmonic of New Jersey, the Brunswick Symphony Orchestra, the Hunterdon Symphony and by an orchestra of nearly fifty violas at the Lionel Tertis Competition in the United Kingdom. Slapin wrote his first full orchestral work at the age of thirteen which was hailed as a critical success following its 1988 premiere in the State Theater of New Jersey. In 1997 Slapin wrote and recorded his own Triptych for viola, 'cello and doublebass which he premiered in the same year at the Westminster Choir College.
Several outstanding modern composers including Gerald Busby, Richard Lane and David Noon have written solo viola works for Mr. Slapin. Scott Slapin was the on-stage solo violist in the New York City production of Busby's opera, 'Orpheus in Love' and later premiered Busby's ÅMuse for Solo Viola, in the Weill Recital Hall. In 1995 Scott Slapin premiered and later recorded Richard Lane's Nocturne for viola and piano, and Mr. Slapin is currently recording all three of Richard Lane's viola sonatas.
Mr. Slapin has toured extensively throughout Europe and the United States and has varying degrees of proficiency in eight languages. Slapin, a former public and private school teacher, has taught viola and composition privately for more than ten years. Scott Slapin is currently principal violist of the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra and the Knoxville Chamber Orchestra and will appear on a soon to be released CD of the industrial band Android Lust on the Tinman Records label.
An Interview with Scott Slapin
Eroica: How did you begin creating music?
Scott: I began playing at the age of six. My mother made me(!) My parents (and many other relatives) are musicians.
I began to compose on my own around the age of eleven or so. For me it was maybe around the age of fourteen that I didn't need to be forced to practice the viola anymore. Ever since then I haven't been able to stop.
E: What musician or musicians have inspired you the most?
S: In person and on record: Emanuel Vardi and Gary Karr. On record: Jascha Heifetz, Nathan Milstein, David Oistrakh and William Primrose. This is the abridged list, of course.
E: How about other artists or authors?
S: The list would really be too long. . . perhaps I should mention Philip Roth's novels and Don Byron playing Klezmer music.
E: What do you want your music to communicate?
S: This of course depends upon the piece....In general, though, there is always a certain mood/emotion I am trying to impart to the listener. This could be anything ranging from the very profound and spiritual (The Bach Sonatas and Partitas for example) to the dramatic and emotional (Bloch's Prayer), to the absolutely silly and ridiculous (Ernst's Last Rose Variations on viola--or my own The Hassid and The Hayseed which combines Americana and Jewish folk music.)
Regarding the Ernst Variations on the Last Rose which is one of the most difficult pieces ever written for the violin, a couple people have said to me, "You know, that piece isn't really suited to the viola."
I then respond, "That's the whole point!"
Actually, it's not really suited to the violin either, but it's definitely not suited to the viola. What's fun about it is that it is a bunch of circus-like stunts on a simple tune which should shock and astound the audience and make them laugh a bit. (I feel that way about some of the Paganini Caprices on the viola as well.) I think some don't 'get it' because they expect everything only to be serious.
Classical music can (and should) convey the same range of emotions that are present in any other genre of music--and that are present in life (including even having a sense of humor at times).
E: If you could jam with any artists, living or dead, who would they be?
S: I would wanna jam with Milstein, man....he was one hep cat. Totally funky fresh, dude.
E: What record would you rescue first from a burning house?
S: My arson record? OK. Seriously, I can't answer because my favorite record at any given time depends on my mood. Certain cds I generally love don't sound good at certain times and vice-versa.
Over the years, I have listened especially to a lot of Bach, Brahms, Shostakovich and John Adams.
E: What's the most embarrassing album in your collection--your guilty pleasure?
S: The soundtrack to the Rocky Horror Picture Show.
E: What's your favorite book?
S: Perhaps A Confederacy of Dunces (J. K. Toole). I really like Asher Lev by Potok as well, and I found Roth's Portnoy's Complaint hysterical (albeit not to be recommended for those who can't stand a lot of obscenity).
Did I mention Malamud?
I have read and enjoyed a lot of Kafka, Rand and Steinbeck in college, too. I could list on. It really depends on my mood and what I am reading at the time.
Feel free to visit my website at: www.scottslapin.com and read all about it!
Read more...