Sad news for the classical music community, as we learned today that a young violinist was killed on Saturday. According to News 95.7, “24 year old Samantha Li was one of three passengers in a westbound car that crashed near the New Glasgow exit around 9:40 pm. Police say Li was in the back of the car when it crashed.”
Li was a member of the Bluenose Quartet, a local string quartet. It’s unconfirmed, but a source says that other members of the quartet were in the car, and are seriously injured [EDITOR UPDATE: Quartet member Megan Boyko left a message. None of the other members were in the car; all are safe]. A bio on the group’s website says that Li is originally from Toronto and was taking Honours English at Dalhousie. She began her musical studies on the piano at the age of 5, competing and winning in various categories of the Kiwanis Music Festival in Toronto at an early age. While in Halifax Samantha has studied violin under Jennifer Jones and Philippe Djokic and has played violin in the Dalhousie Chamber Orchestra, the Nova Scotia Youth Orchestra, and two string quartets. Samantha was also the winner of the 2005 Effie Mae Ross Scholarship in Music for violin performance at Dalhousie University. Notable performances in which Samantha has played violin include a spot on Information Morning, CBC Radio 1, with The Sakura Quartet; a collaborative concert between the Dalhousie Chamber Orchestra and Symphony Nova Scotia; performances with NSYO aired on CBC Radio 2; and a group-violin performance for former Governor General of Canada Adrienne Clarkson.
We wish Li’s family, friends and fellow musicians our condolences.
This article appears in Jul 9-15, 2009.
Samantha was a truly amazing person. I didn’t know her well, but everytime she saw me, even though I was a kid, she would stop and talk to me. She always had the nicest smile and she was one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met. This is a huge loss.
Samantha was an amazing person and could make me smile every time we were together. Her generosity, kindness and intellectual spirit will be greatly missed by many, myself included. Be in peace Samantha.
In addition to being a musician, Samantha was a brilliant and dedicated scholar who was incredibly promising as an explorer of ideas. She would have begun her MA in English at UBC this fall, funded by the most prestigious graduate scholarship in the country. She was much loved and admired by students and professors alike in Dalhousie’s English department. Her musical ability was but one expression of an intelligence that was pervasive and unforgettable.
Samantha and I had a couple of courses together at Dal. I’m shocked to hear that she is no longer with us. She was one of those people who you wanted to be friends with. She was overly kind, amazingly talented, and extraordinarily intelligent. She was also one of the most humble and generous individuals I’ve ever met. I will never forget her wonderful soft-spoken voice–that spoke with wisdom far beyond her years.