Arts & Culture
Renowned Violinist Erika Raum returns to Winnipeg for Rosamunde Festival
Erika Raum blends teaching, performance, and family connections at the Rosamunde Summer String Academy. .embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; } Strings take centre stage at Canadian Mennonite University Since Wednesday, August 13, the halls of Canadian Mennonite University have been alive with music as the Rosamunde Summer String Academy welcomes students of all ages and skill levels. Participants are learning from some of the country’s top string instructors through private lessons, master classes, and ensemble work. Among this year’s distinguished guest artists is celebrated Canadian violinist Erika Raum, who began performing professionally at age 12 and went on to earn first prize at the 1992 Joseph Szigeti International Violin Competition in Budapest, along with the award for Best Interpretation of a Mozart Concerto. Her career has taken her across Europe and around the world, performing with ensembles such as the Budapest Radio Orchestra, the Austro-Hungarian Orchestra, and the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra. On top of teaching at the Academy, Raum is performing a special concert titled Raum² on Tuesday evening [August 19] at CMU’s Laudamus Auditorium, featuring music by Kelly-Marie Murphy, Mendelssohn, and her mother, Canadian composer Elizabeth Raum. A longtime friendship with Rosamunde’s artistic director Raum’s connection to Rosamunde goes back years, starting with her friendship with artistic director Elation Pauls. “Well, yeah, we, I mean, we've been friends a long time, but before that I was her teacher, if you can believe it,” said Raum. “She was a very mature student. Let's say she was a master's student and she already knew exactly what she was doing. She didn't need a lot of input from me. She was that kind of… she's always been focused. And just super smart. And, you know, she just takes anything on.” Raum last came to Rosamunde about eight years ago, and she’s delighted to be back. Teaching at all levels Asked about her experience teaching in Winnipeg this week, Raum praised the ambition and variety of the program. “It's fantastic! It's lots of different levels. Different ages. Right from the very top—in fact, one of the students is a student of mine at U of T… really advanced... they have the adults sort of enthusiasts in the evening,” she said. “It's incredible. It's really pretty ambitious I have to say.” Raum explained how the teaching is structured: private lessons, technique classes tailored to different levels, and master classes designed to share lessons that “can be applied to more than just that 3 bars and more than just that student.” “Throughout the day we have… it's great. It's chockablock. You're running from one venue to another and some of it's rehearsal, some of it's teaching. It's a real jigsaw puzzle,” she said. Passing on more than technique As a longtime faculty member at the Glenn Gould School and University of Toronto, Raum brings deep experience to her teaching. She sees her role as going beyond just preparing students for auditions. “They're going to take away more than just either tips about the instrument, you know, tricks of the trade or trivia about Beethoven,” she explained. “They're going to take away a whole kind of a worldview. In other words, your priorities become their priorities. It's similar to if you have children, you know, you kind of set a tone.” She believes live music will remain essential even in a world increasingly shaped by technology. “Honestly with AI, I start to think that we're the best thing going right now because it cannot replace live music. And when I sit there and I listen to a Blues band… this will never not be from a person who's like standing 12 feet away from me. This is the greatest experience ever.” Growing up in a musical household Raum’s path to the violin was shaped early on by her parents—her mother, Elizabeth, an oboist and composer, and her father, a trombonist. Being raised in Regina meant her musical upbringing looked quite different from what her own children experience today in Toronto, a city with far greater access to conservatories and professional ensembles. “Ohh yeah, I mean obviously yeah. Especially cause I grew up in Regina. So it's not like I grew up in a place with a big Conservatory, like my kids in Toronto for instance… But so for me it's smaller. You still have quality, but it's fewer of you,” she explained. Music was woven into the fabric of everyday life. “It becomes very weirdly ordinary. You don't… it's not like some sort of grand discovery. It's just part of daily life,” said Raum. She also noticed differences between the culture of wind players and the intensity often found among string players. “Wind players are kind of a different breed from string players, particularly violinists, who can get pretty intense and have the weight of the world on their shoulders,” she said with a laugh. “Oboe players are famously neurotic—they've got the reeds to worry about—but otherwise there was a kind of pragmatic, put-in-your-time, do-your-work approach. Some concerts are great, some are less great, but life goes on.” Collaborating with her mother, composer Elizabeth Raum Erika Raum has had music written especially for her by her mother, Elizabeth, whose violin concerto and sonata were composed with Erika’s unique sound and style in mind. “You can just… ask questions. I mean, it's great,” Raum said. “She respects my musicianship. It could be another musician who did the same thing, who said, you know what, this retard's not working… and she's just all about collaboration with like minded musicians.” On Saturday, she’ll perform her mother’s violin sonata. “All the violin music that you will hear played of my mother's was written with me in mind, and she had my sound in her head. So it's… I'm pretty lucky.” Looking ahead As Rosamunde continues, Raum says she is looking forward to more rehearsals and performances with colleagues and students alike. “The rehearsals—we're having so much fun. The rehearsals are a little bit too much fun right now. I think we got sometimes to get down to business cause there's too much fooling around. Too much laughing,” she said with a laugh. “But the kids too. I love the teaching. I enjoy the teaching, but it's a particularly fun group of musicians who are here right now playing. So yeah, we're having a blast.” With its mix of world-class faculty, ambitious programming, and performances that connect students and audiences alike, the Rosamunde Summer String Academy and Festival offers something rare: a chance to learn from—and be inspired by—musicians at the very top of their field. Having artists like Erika Raum share the stage and the studio underscores Rosamunde’s role as both a training ground for the next generation and a cultural highlight for Winnipeg audiences. The Rosamunde Summer String Festival continues to bring world-class performances to Winnipeg this August. Audiences can enjoy an array of string music, from Canadian premieres to classical masterpieces, performed by some of the finest musicians in the country. Festival passes cover all three concerts at a discounted rate, or individual tickets are available, with free admission for children 12 and under. Upcoming concerts: Tuesday, August 19 – 7 PM: Raum² Erika Raum performs her mother Elizabeth Raum’s Violin Sonata Works by Felix Mendelssohn, Kelly-Marie Murphy, and Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio No. 1 Performers: Erika Raum, Paul Williamson, Arne-Christian Pelz, Elation Pauls Thursday, August 21 – 7 PM: Serenade for Summer Features Haydn’s "London Trio," Ysaÿe’s Sonata for Solo Violin, Eckhardt-Gramatté’s Duo for Two Violins, and Dohnányi’s Serenade in C Major Performers: Gwen Hoebig, Karl Stobbe, Travis Harrison, Élise Lavallée, Yuri Hooker Ticket information: Festival pass (all 3 concerts): $75 Individual tickets: $30 Children 12 & under: free Tickets via website buttons or e-transfer to rosamundeadm@gmail.com