Hilary Hahn and the Los Angeles Philharmonic -- In which I met Hilary Hahn!

Hilary Hahn, Violinist

So, this happened!

Tasha & Hilary Hahn at Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, California
Hilary's Program:  Vieuxtemps Concerto No. 4
Encore:  Bach E Major Partita's Giga
Saturday, December 12, 2015 - 8:00pm

And I can't believe I had the courage to do it!  I've seen Itzhak Perlman perform live, Anne Sophie Mutter, Midori, and several other wonderful professional performers and not once did I ever have the nerve to ask for their autograph, let alone get a photo.  I'm so glad I did this time, and based on this wonderful experience, hope to again in future.

Hilary autographs the insert of Tasha's new CD
of Hahn's Mozart & Vieuxtemps Concertos.
They chatted about Tasha also being a violinist, local teacher,
and having taught a wide age range of students.

Needless to say, her performance was outstanding.  Here's a YouTube of her performing it posted a month ago.  She's even more clear, pure, and virtuosic in person than in any of her recordings or YouTubes.  In college, both as an undergrad and graduate student, I studied all of her performances religiously.  I adore her technique (my teacher can tell you I've been jealous of her 4th finger vibrato for years), her sound, her presence, and many of her interpretations are my favorite -- especially Lark Ascending.  I set social media abuzz with our photos, and thanked her profusely for this amazing opportunity.  It was my first time hearing her play live, and I hear it's her last concert as she takes maternity leave for her baby girl, Zelda, born in August (just like me!) earlier this year.

The LA Philharmonic did not disappoint, either.  They played a newer piece I didn't recognize to open the concert, with a woman conductor (a former fellow of Dudamel's) at the podium!  You can see the program and her bio here.  The concert ended with a brilliantly tight performance of Tchaikovsky's 4th Symphony.

Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla conductor

If you're friends with me on Instagram (I'm GreytShotPhotography, but only accept requests from people I know), you'll have also seen this hilarious photo:

The photographer, Tasha's husband, Richard, said, "Now a silly one!"
This was the result.

Thanks for reading.  Let me know what you think of Hilary Hahn in the comments.  What are your favorite performances of hers?  Have you ever seen her live?  Share photos, if you have them!  She seems incredibly open to public fans, and I so appreciate her generosity with her precious time.