Northwestern University and Evanston's Only Daily News Source Since 1881

The Daily Northwestern

35° Evanston, IL
Northwestern University and Evanston's Only Daily News Source Since 1881

The Daily Northwestern

Northwestern University and Evanston's Only Daily News Source Since 1881

The Daily Northwestern

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Who cares about U2? We’ve got Skowronski

Hanging on the wall of Vincent P. Skowronski’s Evanston studio are certificates naming him one of “2,000 Notable American Men” and “Five Hundred Leaders of Influence” as well as “Most Admired Man of the Decade.” On the adjoining wall are pictures of Skowronski’s private audience with Pope John Paul II in 1995.

The accomplished violinist and Northwestern alum was nominated for a Grammy Award in the “Best Chamber Music Performance” category for his self-produced album Skowronski Plays! Live in Concert. Today, however, he is still fed up with NU’s failure to reimburse him for his ticket to the canceled and then rescheduled football game against Navy last September. Some aspects of going to NU never change.

Sitting comfortably in his studio in a gray V-neck sweater and khakis with his white hair neatly combed to the right, Skowronski looks past these minor nuisances to reflect on what has brought him to this point in his life.

“If one pursues perfection, he will achieve excellence,” he says.

After missing application deadlines because of misunderstandings for the previous four years’ Grammy Awards, Skowronski’s persistence was rewarded with a nomination this year. The nominated album is a live performance recorded in March 1999 at Barat College in Lake Forest, Ill., featuring Saori Chiba, who is a studio pianist for the NU School of Music.

“To be in this business, you have to have people who will work with you,” he says.

Skowronski prides himself on the fact that all of his recordings are live. He says he works to “preserve the human and artistic performance of live music.

“You will not hear a perfect performance,” he says. “That’s not the point. It’s pretty damn good, though.”

Skowronski Plays! is his fourth CD release on his own label, Skowronski: Classical Recordings. He released nine LPs before starting the label and should have a new CD out soon. He has set a goal of eventually releasing 20 CDs to encompass the Skowronski Plays! series.

“It is important because that is my life’s work,” he says.

Skowronski’s album was one of 99 albums nominated in the Best Chamber Music Performance category last October, but it failed to make the final cut in January that decided which albums would actually have a chance of winning the award, which was given to the Angeles String Quartet on Wednesday. With his experience in the recording industry, he is realistic about the nomination.

“It’s not whether you win or lose,” he says. “The point is that you’re there.”

Skowronski began playing the violin at age 4. When he was 12, he went to a new music teacher who told him, “You’re very talented, but you stink.” Skowronski not only took the criticism but also spent a year relearning the violin with the teacher. He made his solo debut with the Chicago Youth Orchestra in 1959 at the age of 15.

Skowronski graduated from NU in 1966 and received his master of music degree there in 1968. Upon receiving his diploma, he spent two years teaching violin at NU and then taught at the University of Wyoming for a year. His teaching experiences only served to sour him on academia as he found the recruiting aspects of teaching at a university took him away from his teaching and his music.

In 1970, he was one of seven violinists chosen to represent the United States at the prestigious Fourth International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. He has since traveled as far as China to perform.

Over the years, Skowronski has watched the music world change. He spent the better part of his life as a solo artist, but he warns that it is now more difficult to live entirely off one’s own music.

“The industry is suffering now,” he says. “If you want to be a solo artist, that’s fine – but seek another career.

“I’m an icon, I’m a mastodon, I’m a Cro-Magnon man,” he adds to underscore the changes he has witnessed.

Skowronski has also been teaching violin privately at his studio on Sherman Avenue. for the last 10 years. In addition to his record label, he runs Skowronski: Fine Violins, a rare instrument brokerage firm. Since 1967 he has served as president of the Vincent Skowronski Music Foundation, which sponsors a violin and piano competition in Chicago. He currently spends his free time performing at senior retirement communities.

“I love it,” he says. “I’m glad I’m where I’m at in my career because I don’t have to prove anything else to anyone.” nyou

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Northwestern University and Evanston's Only Daily News Source Since 1881
Who cares about U2? We’ve got Skowronski