I gave up viola to be a stand-up comedian

I gave up viola to be a stand-up comedian

Orchestras

norman lebrecht

July 18, 2023

The Washington Post has a feature on Isabel Hagen, member of a musician family who gave up her viola career to tell jokes.

Not viola jokes, either.

“I mean, I was terrible at telling jokes,” Hagen says. “But just the act of it felt even more suited to me than music had…”

“With stand-up, I wanted to prove to myself that I could do this thing that I really loved. But people when they found out [I played viola] would be like, “Well, you should bring it onstage — that would be amazing.” And I was just like, “That is so hacky. What would I even do?” Then one day, I just had the idea of, “What if I just literally put them next to each other?” So I’m playing beautifully, I’m telling a joke I believe in, and the humor just lies in the juxtaposition. I’m not compromising the integrity of either one….“

Read on here.

Comments

  • Phillip says:

    What’s the difference between a viola and an onion?

  • Zarathusa says:

    So what’s new???
    Jack Benny, a classically trained and truly talented violinist, constantly used his instrument to spice up his memorable comedy routines! But good luck, Izzy! A new Joan Rivers..
    .but this time with “strings” attached!

    • D** says:

      I was thinking of Jack Benny before I read your comment. I had the pleasure of seeing him live several months before he died in 1974. He was in rare form that night, and the audience loved every minute of it!

    • Short Yu says:

      Henry Youngwoman.

    • Hal Sacks says:

      Anyone remember Henny Youngman…king of the one liners? Born in Whitechapel, raised in Brooklyn like Jack Benny he played a decent violin which he used as a prop in his routines. Died at 92,

      • David K. Nelson says:

        And Hal do you remember the “Waukegan String Quartet” on one of the Jack Benny TV specials? Jack Benny and Henny Youngman on violin, and the great Morey Amsterdam on cello (which he sometimes played, quite nicely, on the Dick Van Dyke show). The fourth member of the quartet? Michael Rabin! The gimmick of the bit was that supposedly the quartet was rehearsing but Youngman and Amsterdam kept interrupting the rehearsal by jumping to their feet and telling a joke. An exasperated Benny finally convinces them to just keep playing with no more jokes — and suddenly Michael Rabin jumps to his feet … and tells a joke. If memory serves, Michael Rabin played the third movement of the Mendelssohn Concerto on that same show, which was not all that long before his death.

        • Dan Kujala says:

          Jack Benny Show – season 1, episode 7 “Fiddler on the Loose” aired on November 11, 1967. I’d love to see this but couldn’t find the video online.

          I wonder if Morey was playing on the infamous cello he bought on sale at the drug store!

        • Chuck Cheesman says:

          I remember this and have been trying to find it for years. I’m at a farmer’s market in Hot Springs, AR and a string quartet is performing. I relayed this story but they are all too young to understand.

  • John McLaughlin Williams says:

    I had seen her stand-up and thought her very funny. Now we know why she plays so well.

  • Nick says:

    Knowing her personally, I can attest that Isabel Hagen absolutely rules – as a player, person, and comedian.

  • Euphonium Al says:

    I follow Hagen on Instagram and she is very, very funny. The viola world’s loss is comedy’s gain!

  • Nicholas says:

    To paraphrase the great Henny Youngman: “Take my Viola, Please!”

  • The Fun is Still Over says:

    She wouldn’t survive as a comic without the viola gimmick. Truly subpar comedy.

  • Sue Sonata Form says:

    Oh, jokes are allowed now are they??!!!

  • Robin Blick says:

    I just, like, like the way she, like, kind of, like, talks. Probably much better, like, than she sounds, like, on the, like, viola.

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