Colleen Jennings Returns to Upper Valley for Masterclass and Concert

On Friday, November 1, Colleen Jennings, violin, and Sophie Lippert, piano, will present a concert program featuring classical music written by women. The program includes music by Florence Price, Jessie Montgomery, Lili Boulanger, Karen Tanaka, Ulric Cole, and Amanda Maier.

“I am very excited to share a program I curated with my collaborator, Sophie Lippert, entitled Women of Notes,” Jennings said. “Sophie and I are inspired to present programs of all female composers and we both enjoy researching and finding innovative ways to create unique programs. You will not believe that you are hearing some of these composers for the first time! The music is so rich and much of it brand new to audiences despite being around for a century or more.”

Sophie Lippert — a classical pianist, piano teacher, and founder of Connections Concert Series — is praised for her dynamism, warmth, sensitivity, and expressiveness. Notable appearances include soloist roles with the Seattle Philharmonic, Seattle Symphony, and Olympia Symphony, features at TEDxPortland and the Portland Art Museum, and on-air performances at All Classical Portland and New England Public Media. She has released two albums: Time Travel and Seaside, which are available on all streaming platforms.

Throughout her career, Colleen Jennings has made her own artistic choices and created her own programming. This has ranged from fiddle lessons with the Scottish-style fiddler Laura Risk; joining a team of nurses and bakers from Vermont traveling on a humanitarian relief trip to the Dominican Republic; and forming an ensemble that places art music side by side with Traditional European and American repertoire.

The November concert includes a return home — Jennings spent her first 13 years living in Norwich, Vermont, and studied violin with well-known local instructors Clyde Watson and Betty Clendenning. Her father, Andrew Jennings, was a founding member of Dartmouth’s Concord String Quartet.

“After completing grad school, I reestablished a connection as a professional in the area coming back each summer from as far afield as Basel, Switzerland, to play each summer with Opera North, Classicopia, and the Vermont Symphony,” Jennings said. “It was Classicopia’s Dan Weiser who encouraged me to move permanently to the area and during those years, 2005-2008, I taught violin and a fiddle class at UVMC. I was thrilled when, years later, my former string quartet, Apple Hill String Quartet, came to do a residency at Dartmouth and I was able to again collaborate with music students at UVMC in a weekend workshop.”

Audience members are invited to observe a violin masterclass before the concert. It’s a great opportunity to see master teaching in action as UVMC violin students perform and Jennings coaches them on interpretation and technique.

“UVMC is all about great teaching, and masterclasses are an opportunity to see that kind of teaching in action and the kind of impact it can have on a student. Usually two to three students or groups will perform in each class, and after each performance the guest teacher spends 10-15 minutes working with each student individually,” said Erin Jenkins Smith, Education Director at UVMC. “There’s just something magical about seeing a student learn and stretch themselves so much in that little 10-minute window.”

“It is always such a pleasure to perform in the Upper Valley,” Jennings said. “There is nothing more rewarding than seeing my mentors, former teachers, students and even neighbors show up at concerts in the Valley. It makes the connection in concert all the more special.”

The Chamber Music Masterclass and the concert will be held at the Norwich Congregational Church on 15 Church Street. The masterclass is from 4:30 to 5:30 pm and the concert is from 7 to 8:30 pm. The event is sponsored by Vermont Violins.

To reserve tickets ($20 for adults and free for age 18 and under), please go to https://uvmusic.org/event/colleen-jennings-violin-sophie-lippert-piano