Tuning up with Anne Akiko Meyers
By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| Violinist Anne Akiko Meyers began a successful career early in life, playing with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and New York Philharmonic as a child, getting a management contract at age 16 and making her first recording at 19. She'll perform two concerts with the Honolulu Symphony this weekend.
Anne Akiko Meyers 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 4 p.m. Sunday Blaisdell Concert Hall $15-$55 792-2000 |
Meyers' frequent bouts of guffaws are better at rousing the medulla oblongata than a Starbucks triple espresso macchiato.
"Have you had your coffee yet?" she asked, a barely detectable hint of a scolding tone in her voice.
Hearing the expected negative reply, a long loud laugh bounded from a telephone earpiece held a good two inches from my ear.
"That sucks!" Meyers exclaimed, before her voice turned playfully soothing. "I'll be gentle, I promise." Another geyser of laughter followed.
Meyers was trying to enjoy the rarity of a full week in her Manhattan apartment before another round of touring that includes a couple of performances with the Honolulu Symphony. Still, instead of venturing outdoors for a movie, she found herself taking care of her career (which, at the moment, meant speaking with yet another writer), scrambling to file her income taxes and planning her June wedding.
Her mind was also on iconic Juilliard School violin instructor Dorothy DeLay, one of the main influences on Meyers' playing style. In 1984, DeLay offered the then-15-year-old violin prodigy a full Juilliard scholarship after watching Meyers' debuts with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and New York Philharmonic at ages 10 and 11, respectively, and growth with other instructors.
At the time of our chat, DeLay — who in her half-century of teaching counted Itzhak Perlman, Midori, Nigel Kennedy and Sarah Chang among her progeny — had passed away only four days earlier from cancer.
"At first, it was very difficult studying with her because I had been with a very hands-on teacher (Michelle Scanfeld) in L.A. who was very visual," remembered Meyers. "I would come in with Dorothy and (afterward) she would say, 'Bravo, baby! See you next week, sugarplum!' And I would be, like, 'What the hell did I do? I sound like crap! Help me!' "
Meyers chuckled heartily at the memory, before continuing.
"Her thing was she really taught you how to teach yourself," Meyers said. "You had to really analyze and kind of dissect other performers. And you really had to listen to yourself. The more you listen to your intuition and your internal drive (the more) it fuels you to be an even stronger player."
By age 16, Meyers had a contract with powerhouse talent agency ICM, and at age 19, her first recording — all before graduating from Juilliard. Peruse the lion's share of articles written about Meyers since and you'll find writers offering as much breathless praise and picking apart of her decidedly hapa looks and designer gowns as they do of her elegantly soulful Barber and Mendelssohn concertos.
"That used to bother me, but now I just don't care," said Meyers, who is of Jewish and Japanese ancestry. "I'm happy that I had exposure to two different cultures when I was growing up, and that I am different. I think I've appreciated it the older I've gotten ... that I am just completely weird, deranged and eccentric." Cue bolt of infectious chortling.
"It would be nice sometimes to have people not be so biased by what they see, but that also draws the audience in. So it's a Catch-22 because you want people to hear the music and just be touched by it."
Classical music critics have referred to Meyers' sound as rich and smooth, with technique born of natural musical instincts. On stage, Meyers is said to be as playful and naturally chatty as she seems off stage.
Writer and subject both perk up at the mention of jazz, lounge music and cheesy '80s pop, "but classical music is just so damned good," Meyers said.
"I don't understand conductors or performers who are like, 'I play classical music, so how can I listen to it?' That's like, 'Oh — my — God!', you know?"
