Rachel Lee Priday

Rachel Lee Priday is an American violinist who appears as a concerto soloist with orchestras across the United States. In these upcoming programs she plays two of the most performed Romantic-era violin concertos, by Korngold and Tchaikovsky, works that ask a soloist to carry long, singing melodic lines over a full orchestra. Listeners new to her playing can expect a soloist built for large-scale symphonic showpieces.

In these appearances Priday takes on two showcase concertos. Korngold's Violin Concerto in D major draws on melodies the composer originally wrote for Hollywood films, so it has a lush, cinematic quality, with the solo violin singing over rich, glowing orchestral harmony. Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto in D major is a staple of the repertoire built around a soaring first-movement theme, a slow movement of quiet, folk-like melody, and a finale full of fast, dance-like passagework. Both pieces demand a soloist who can sustain a warm, projecting tone through long phrases while also handling rapid technical figuration cleanly. Listeners can expect a violinist front and center in the orchestral texture, shaping the emotional arc of these audience-favorite concertos rather than blending into an ensemble role.