A gathering of performers, composers, former students, listeners, and friends paid honor to Ursula Mamlok last night at an event which I am privileged to host when she visits New York from Berlin where she currently lives.
It would be hard to imagine a group of more pronounced individuals unified in admiration and affection for a woman whose music and whose message has been transformative for almost everyone who has had contact with her.
As we lingered in a small circle around her the conversation was deeply personal and very candid: about playing, about the "business," about internal and external forces that shape our lives and our music-making -- the things we all most care about. It was the best kind of tribute to an extraordinary woman who has lived a remarkable life and whose music connects people to one another without the slightest trace of sentimentality.
Bravo, Ursula! and thank you.
