Suzuki drops disgraced violinist
alleging he had sexually assaulted a student, found 12 women who said he had harassed and abused them.
On Tuesday, Alfred Music, the U.S.-based publishing firm that holds the copyright on the recordings together with the non-profit Suzuki International, announced after three months of silence on the subject of Preucil that it would be re-recording the excerpts.
“We take the allegations of sexual misconduct that have been made against violinist William Preucil Jr. extremely seriously, and we are dismayed at the findings of the investigation conducted on behalf of the Cleveland Orchestra,” Alfred said. “To that end, we will work closely with the International Suzuki Association and will replace our current Suzuki Violin School recordings with new recordings as soon as possible.”
Preucil has previously denied most of the allegations against him, but has admitted to engaging in sexual contact with three female students, which he has acknowledged was wrong.
Many teachers have been grappling with the Preucil issue since The Post story was published in July. Because there had been rumours about Preucil’s behaviour for many years, some had been against the recordings for even longer.
“I have from Day 1 been very against these recordings, and very open about it,” said Marissa Murphy, a violinist and founder of Washington Suzuki Strings in Chevy Chase, Md. “I have tried to go every avenue I could to avoid the Bill Preucil recordings.”
Murphy studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where Preucil taught, and she had heard rumours, she says, for 25 years. In the welcome packet she sends to new families, she includes information on the sheet music but tells parents to go to iTunes and download the recordings of the earlier version of the books, by her former teacher, David Cerone, even though they don’t always reflect the revised fingerings and bowings in the newer, Preucil version.
“That guy,” she said of Preucil, “is not getting my money or my students’ money.”
Preucil is himself a student of the Suzuki method and his parents were pioneers in bringing it to North America. Shinichi Suzuki, the Japanese music educator who developed his approach in the 1940s and ’50s and shepherded its spread around the world, believed it developed not only music, but also character.
“It’s a very idealistic community. It’s not just to teach, to create little prodigies.
“Our idea is to, through music, have people be good citizens, have good hearts,” said Laurie Niles of Pasadena, Calif., a violinist and teacher who writes the blog violinist.com. She said many students grow up idolizing the musician whose playing they emulate. “It is important who it is on that recording,” she said.
The Suzuki Association of the Americas has almost 8,000 members.