Friday, Jul. 25, 2008

Grapevine Duo to Appear in TV Show

By Scott Price

Staff Writer

Grapevine teens Robert and Alexandra Switala, 16 and 14, respectively, will perform on the television show From the Top of Carnegie Hall, to be broadcast at noon July 27, on KERA-TV.

Robbie and Allie, who are siblings, will perform Passacaglia [after Handel], arranged for violin and viola, by Johan Halvorsen.

From the Top at Carnegie Hall showcases the accomplishments of young musicians ages 8 to 18. The series features top performances, interviews and compelling stories of America’s best young classical musicians. The program is hosted by renowned pianist Christopher O’Riley.

Robbie and Allie trade off playing violin and viola. This summer, they are participating in the Summer Music School at the Perlman Music Program on Shelter Island, N.Y., and are studying under the internationally-acclaimed concert violinist Itzhak Perlman.

The Switala siblings are also students of Jan Marl Sloman, a noted violin teacher and principal associate concertmaster with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra.

The pair decided to play music after attending a Suzuki student music concert when they were just 4 and 5 years old. They studied the Suzuki music methodology with respected instructor Gwen Runyon.

Their parents, Steven and Lupe Switala, have home-schooled their children and say they have placed equal importance on academics and the arts.

"Attending arts events has always been a family affair," said Lupe Switala, the children’s mother. "From an early age we researched the stories of the opera and the composers before attending events by the Fort Worth Opera and the Dallas Symphony."

Those experiences helped develop a love of the arts..

At age 12, Robbie soloed with the Meadows Symphony as the grand prize winner of the 2005 Dallas Symphonic Festival. He has also received a number of other honors.

After winning Junior First Place in the 2007 Sphinx Competition in Detroit, Robbie soloed with a number of symphony orchestras.

Robbie is a recipient of the Texas Commission on the Arts 2008 Young Masters grant, which provides for young artists to further their studies in their chosen disciplines with a master instructor.

Besides playing music, Robbie enjoys tennis, robotics, chess, computers and reading.

Allie has also won a number of competitions.

After winning the Junior Grand Prize at the 2007 Dallas Symphonic Festival, she made her orchestral debut with the SMU Meadows Symphony Orchestra. She was a top prize winner in the Dallas Symphony Orchestra’s Lynn Harrell Competition, and will solo with the orchestra in the near future. When not playing music, Allie enjoys knitting, tennis and reading.