Eger to play Bach, Kreisler in noon recital
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Zelie Eger's Tuesday noon recital April 11 at First Lutheran Church, Johnstown, will feature a first for her, and for the audience.
The young violinist will play publicly for the first time two movements of Bach’s Sonata I for Solo Violin. The Adagio and Fugue come from a collection of six sonatas and partitas Bach wrote for the violin. They are basic repertoire — and challenges — for violinists.
“I’ve been working on them since 2017,” Eger said. “This will be the first time I’m performing these movements. I chose to play Bach because of the beauty and complexity of the music. It is both simple and deep, and rich to the ear.”
Eger also will play two pieces by Fritz Kreisler, Liebesleid (Love’s Sorrow) and Liebesfreud (Love’s Joy).
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“I love the contrast between the two,” she said. “The first sings out an aching melody while the second is a snappy, happy dance.”
Eger has been playing the violin since she was 7. In 2012 she joined the Johnstown Symphony Youth Orchestra and was concertmaster from 2014-18. She became a member of the Johnstown Symphony in 2016. Her first teacher, Elizabeth Pile, said she is proud of Eger’s quick rise.
“She hadn’t ever been to college when she auditioned for the symphony,” Pile said. “And just like that, she was in.”
Last season the symphony featured her in a chamber concert at the Grand Halle, a reception and performance center in the Cambria City section of Johnstown. She has studied with Dr. Leonardo Perez and Dr. Colleen Ferguson at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She currently is a student of Dr. Stanley Chepaitis, director emeritus of violin studies at IUP.
A resident of Hooversville, Eger enjoys horseback riding, gardening, reading and traveling.
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Her accompanist will be Jeff Hornick, who performs with the Inclined to Sing children’s chorus and the Greater Johnstown Community Chorus.
Recital goers can meet the artists after their program at a light lunch in the church social hall. There is no charge. All costs are covered by donations.
This article originally appeared on The Daily American: Eger to play Bach, Kreisler in noon recital
