‘For Rachel Barton Pine, out to resurrect her career, time has stood still since her tragic accident. Unfortunately, the world has not’

From the Chicago Tribune, a major profile of Rachel Barton Pine. The violin prodigy became news around the world in 1995 when the strap of her violin case got caught in the door of a commuter train in Winnetka and she was dragged 300 feet along the track. The accident severed one leg and shattered the other.

Pine underwent many surgeries that broke her momentum and stalled her concert career. Then, when she was ready to return to performing, presenters shied away from booking her because concert halls could not accommodate people in wheelchairs or on crutches. A legal settlement pays her medical bills and Pine, now off crutches, is performing regularly, “one of the most accomplished violinists of her generation.”

Her wunderkind days may be over, but her work continues to deepen and conceivably could attract an international following over the long haul. Certainly, as she proved in Santa Fe, she’s playing with more tonal bloom, self-assurance and emotional directness than at any time in her career.

For years after her injury, she concedes, her playing “wasn’t as good as I believe it could have been. And now I actually think I am back to realizing my potential.”

The question is whether the world is ready to hear it.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 1st, 2008 at 11:26 am and is filed under NOT2BEMISSED, arts/music, chronic illness, insurance, law, limb loss, personal stories, success stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.  Email This Post