Meet Tracy Silverman | Electric violinist, composer, educator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tracy Silverman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tracy, how do you think about risk?
Well, one person’s risk is another person’s dreams. When I graduated from The Juilliard School, the expectation was that I was well set-up to pursue a career in classical music–if not as a soloist, then as a member of a string quartet or orchestra or as an instructor/professor at the university level. These are professions that can furnish fairly reliable and steady paychecks.

But I had a dream. A risky dream. It seemed to me that no one had done for the electric violin what had been done with the electric guitar. So I started designing and building electric 6-string violins and playing them in rock bands, hoping to be discovered and become the first rock star of the electric violin.

That was definitely not the safer choice. My parents wondered over and over when I would stop wasting my talent and get back to classical music. It was a fair question of someone who was already married at a young age and hoping to start a family.

But that’s just the career-choice risk. The everyday risk is in the workplace. Performing involves constant risk from the moment you step on stage, especially with a difficult instrument, and especially involving lots of electric gear which can and does malfunction fairly regularly,

So I have an intimate relationship with risk. I prefer not to think about it. But I do deal with the consequences of risk in terms of stress, and I spend a fair amount of time mitigating and dealing with stress, but who doesn’t?

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
First, I’m one of the first people to build and play 6-string electric violins back in the early 80’s. 6-string violins are still quite rare, but there are dozens of makers who are building them for hundreds of players all over the world.

I’m one of the only people in the world occupying the tiny niche of concert electric violinist. That means that I perform as a soloist playing violin concertos with orchestras, but the concertos are ones that were written for me on the electric 6-string violin.

In addition to that (because it is admittedly not a 365-day-a-year gig) I have taken on the responsibility of sharing with other string players the experience I have in non-classical styles, So I wrote a book called The Strum Bowing Method: How to Groove on Strings and created an online Strum Bowing Groove Academy, where I have subscription memberships to my extensive online library of instructional courses and method and etude books.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I think the most quintessentially Nashville thing you can do is go to a writer’ round session. The best ones have always been at The Bluebird, but I know there are lots of wonderful writers rounds all over town. This is where you’ll have 4 songwriters who take turns doing their hits or songs they’ve written, with stories in between that are sometimes as good or better than the songs.

Other than that, I’d find out what kind of food they like–there are so many good restaurants in town, it’s too hard to pick one or two, but I can pick one or two if given a style.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
So many really good teachers, most of whom are dead except for Lewis Kaplan who is 90 and still going strong!

My parents who really gave me the opportunity to take violin lessons as a kid and drove long distances so I could study with the best teachers available.

My manager/agent, Brian Horner, who finds a way to keep me employed.

My business partner in the Strum Bowing Groove Academy, Jared Judge, who knows how to do so many things that I don’t.

My wife, who married a musician and doesn’t seem to regret it too much so far.

Website: www.tracysilverman.com

Instagram: @tracysilverman

Twitter: @tracysilverman

Facebook: @tracy.silverman.3

Youtube: @tracysilverman

Other: www.strumbowinggrooveacademy.com www.strumbowing.com