48 | JANUARY 19 • 2023 A lisa Weilerstein has appeared around Michigan over her many years as a cel- list — either as a soloist or with orchestras — but this month she is performing alone for the Wharton Center for Performing Arts. Her selections on the program are all by Bach and are his Cello Suites 1, 3 and 5. They will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26, at Cobb Great Hall in East Lansing. “I chose the Bach suites because there is no repertoire like it for solo cello or any instrument, ” said Weilerstein, recognized with a MacArthur Fellowship. “The Bach suites, I think, come the closest to encapsulating life and one’s jour- ney in life through music. “I’m just very happy that finally this concert, canceled and rescheduled sev- eral times because of the pandemic, is finally happening. I’ve recorded these pieces in 2020. ” Weilerstein’s most recent performance in Michigan was with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO). She presented a Barber concerto in 2020. “Every performance I’ve had in Michigan I’ve really enjoyed, and my last experience there was just wonderful, ” she recalled, describing early ses- sions with the DSO. “I was finishing my senior year at Columbia University, and it was around the times of final exams and papers being due. I was a history major, and I remember having four concerts — Thursday at 8 p.m., Friday 11 in the morning and Friday and Saturday at 8. “I had so many things due at the same time so basically I played the concert on Thursday night and wrote 10 pages that night. I stayed up until 3 in the morning. I woke up at 9:30 to be on stage at 11. I came back and rushed to do another paper and concert. ” She joked, “I just remember that whole time being this crazy blur fueled by adrenalin. The concerts went incredibly well, and I remember thinking maybe this is the way to play concerts. ” Weilerstein’s musical interests can be traced in part to dad, violinist Donald Weilerstein, and mom, pianist Vivian Hornik Weilerstein. The three used to perform together, but the parents have been doing more teaching and independent concerts. “The cello is a kind of chameleon, ” the musician said. “It has the widest range of any instrument from the deepest basso to the highest coloratura soprano. Composers seem to have a soft spot for the cello. “We have some of the most special repertoire that there is. It gets the most beautiful and profound lines to play. It’s the most human sounding of instruments. It’s the closest to the voice. ” Weilerstein, entering her 40s, graduated from the Young Artist Program at the Cleveland Institute of Music, studied at The Juilliard School and earned a history degree from Columbia University. She has performed in famed venues across America, Europe and Asia and has completed many recordings. At the end of the month, she is introducing a commissioned perfor- mance project in Toronto. Cellist Alisa Weilerstein to perform in East Lansing Jan. 26. Bach Cello Suites SUZANNE CHESSLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER ARTS&LIFE MUSIC