After laying down his violin 15 years ago, the celebrated Grand Rapids singer-songwriter will play a classical concert at St. Cecilia Music Center this weekend while also wrapping up a new EP.
‘Playing the Violin Again with Freedom’: Cameron Blake (Photo/Eric Bouwens)
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When Cameron Blake plays his first violin concert in 15 years at St. Cecilia Music Center on Sunday, it will represent the culmination of a long healing process that kept his string-instrument talents dormant until now.
The widely respected Grand Rapids singer-songwriter known for his powerful and melancholy indie-folk/rock also happens to be a classically trained violinist with a master’s degree from a prestigious East Coast conservatory.
But Blake put down his violin after graduation in 2007, still suffering the vestiges of abuse by an instructor.
“While in grad school, my violin playing was nearly brought to an abrupt halt by an abusive teacher,” he recalls. “The psychological and physical connection made it nearly impossible to play the violin without significant physical tension.”
Milestone Concert: Blake also releases a new EP later this year. (Photo/Eric Bouwens)
Instead, he turned his attention to the folk scene, expressing his music as a performing singer-songwriter, something that’s propelled his career since returning to West Michigan.
But now, after working closely with a therapist “to come to terms with the dichotomy between what I experienced and … laudatory tributes” to the teacher who’s since passed away, he’s ready to take the stage again as a violinist.
Blake’s “A Return to the Violin” concert at 7:30 p.m. Sunday in Royce Auditorium at St. Cecilia Music Center will feature works by Kreisler, Korngold, Bartok and Copland, accompanied by pianist Robert Byrens. Admission is free, thanks to “generous donations” of sponsors. More info online here.
Blake called his therapy “immensely healing and I soon experienced significant physical and mental release, and have begun playing the violin again with freedom. So, I went for it and booked a full violin recital to celebrate my healing, tell my story and share some of the music that has remained dormant in me for so long.”
PLAYING THE JAMMIE AWARDS AND AN EP THAT REPRESENTS HIS ‘HEART AND SOUL’
Sunday’s concert is just the beginning of another milestone year for the singer-songwriter.
On June 25, he’ll play the WYCE Jammie Awards – “wearing a very different hat” – with gospel’s Debra Perry & Majestic Praise, then finish up work on a new six-track EP, “Mercy for the Gentle Kind,” slated for release in August. (Scroll down to watch the video for the title track.)
A Life of Music-Making: Blake at Meijer Gardens. (Photo/Hwa-Jean Na)
“It was my first time tracking piano and vocals simultaneously live with the band and I couldn’t be happier with how authentic and honest these tracks sound,” Blake said of the follow-up to 2020’s “Censor the Silence.”
Guitarist Andrew Saliba, drummer Andrew Szumowski, bassist Ian Thompson and acoustic guitarist Max Brown are featured on the new EP, which will also include part of Blake’s first composition for a string quartet and a recording of his performance of “Sicilienne” on violin with his wife and cellist Jill Collier and accordionist Michael Schaeffer. Listen to “Sicilienne” here.
“This album captures a whole life of music making, my heart and soul,” he says. “The music on the EP is tender yet grand. Because I wrote and performed these songs at the piano, the songs have that classic songwriter-craft sound and yet the structures are unique. My hope is always that my music will touch someone.”
But first, he heads back to the stage for his violin rebirth.
“I’ll be doing a brave thing,” he concedes. “It’s taken me years to regain my voice on the violin. Healing has no shortcuts.”
VIDEO: Cameron Blake, “Mercy for the Gentle Kind”
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