When I was four, I was completely obsessed with the Jedi and sword fighting. For me, the bow was some kind of sword, and I thought that if I played the violin, I’d be a knight. My family had a very small violin, and it intrigued me.
I was fascinated by Dvořák’s New World Symphony, and after that Lully’s March for the Turkish Ceremony.
Both of my parents teach singing, and when I was six or seven, I was a boy soprano in the choir that my mother conducted. My singing was not so great, but my sister’s was. I needed to find my own voice. I think the violin reached out to me through its emotional way of reproducing the human voice; I was able to sing through that.
It’s very difficult when you start playing the violin, and I was attracted to the challenge. My teacher was very, very strict. Her name was Monique Durand, and I loved her. Our relationship was built around asking for more.
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