The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

24 Artscene · FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2010 Cellist wins opportunity to play on a Stradivarius By Tina Depko OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF I t is a little stressful being entrusted with a 1696 Bonjour Stradivarius cello worth approximately $7.5 million US. Just ask Rachel Mercer. As the recent winner of the Canada Council Instrument Bank Competition, the 32-year-old cellist has the privilege of playing the instrument until August 2012. It is both an honour and a great responsibility, she said. "If I start thinking about the dollar figure, I get nervous," said the Oakville Trafalgar High School graduate. "I take public transportation and live the way I always live, but I'm very careful with it because as with any instrument I have, I need it to be in really great condition. I'm not going to be careless with it." Despite the nerves, Mercer said she is looking forward to playing on the beautiful instrument for the next two and a half years. "It makes a huge difference playing an instrument like this," said Mercer. "First of all, everything is easier. Now, after five months, I'm working to find how to get even more out of it. An instrument like this is really rich and there's a lot you can bring out of it. I'm excited to see what I can do with it." Mercer has been lucky with instrument grants. She won a similar Canada Council for the Arts competition in 2006 that saw her win the right to play an 1824 Italian cello worth more than $200,000 for three years. She has lent her own French cello from the 19th century to a friend to keep the instrument in shape. "I didn't think I was going to win again, so I felt sick when I won (the Stradivarius)," she said with a laugh. "It is worth $8 million. What am I going to do with it? It was really shocking." Her Stradivarius will accompany her around the globe, as Mercer has a demanding performance schedule that means she is away from Canada about six to seven months of the year. As a chamber cellist, her main ensemble is the Aviv Quartet. She joined the ensemble in 2002. The quartet tours regularly on five continents. "I go to Europe between five to eight times a year, then my group (the Aviv Quartet) does a North American tour twice a year and an Israel tour twice a year," she said. Mercer is principal cellist for Via Salzburg, a chamber music series. She also plays with the piano quartet Made in Canada, and the Art of Time Ensemble. Mercer said she relishes playing with each ensemble for different reasons. However, among her favourite performances are those with her violinist sister Akemi, who lives in Germany and plays with the Frankfurt Radio Orchestra. The sisters are looking at starting a concert series in Hamilton. The pair is also being featured with the Etobicoke Philharmonic on Feb. 26, performing Brahms' Double Concerto. "I try to schedule lots of concerts so she (Akemi) can come home and play," said Mercer, who admits it is hard living so far apart from her younger sister. Mercer has played cello since the age of three. She started thinking seriously about a career in music while she was in her teens, studying at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. She earned a bachelor of music from the University of Toronto under renowned Canadian cellist Shauna Rolston and a master of arts from the New England Conservatory. She said she very happy with how her career has PHOTO BY NIKKI WESLEY / OAKVILLE BEAVER been going. "When I think about all of the great things that A CELLO FOR ALL SEASONS: Oakville native Rachel Mercer recently have happened to me, I feel very lucky," she said. won a Canada Council Instrument Bank Competition, which means she will be playing this 1696 Bonjour Stradivarius cello until August 2012. See Musician page 27