Issue link: http://www.wacmagazine.com/i/1215963
Go behind the scenes with Elizabeth and Matthew at libbyphelps.com/media and wac.net/timpani Violinist Elizabeth Phelps has a passion for playing baroque music on period instruments. "One of my violins uses gut strings and no chin rest or shoul- der rest," the Connecticut native says. Since moving to Seattle in 2018, Eliza- beth has filled in at the Seattle Sympho- ny; played with local groups, including the Seattle Baroque Orchestra, Pacific MusicWorks, and the Byrd Ensemble; and participated in the Salish Sea Early Music Festival. The week-long tour included nine performances on local islands as well as shows in Seattle and Vancouver. "It was an incredible way to see the great beauty of the Pacific North- west," Elizabeth says. Eight years ago, she wasn't sure she would play violin ever again. A nerve impingement in her neck disabled both her hands. Three months of intense physical therapy followed. "I was lucky," she says. The scare led Elizabeth to five years of Pilates. "I knew I had to start exercising regularly to get stronger and protect myself," she says. Now she routinely attends group fitness classes and lifts weights at the WAC. "I love the calm of the women's floor," she says. "I feel no judgment about whatever I'm doing. It's a very safe space." Her partner, Matthew Decker, is timpanist and a percussionist for the Seattle Symphony. "It's always an adventure to find just the right cymbal or stick or tambourine that is going to bring life to the symphony," Matthew says. Matthew grew up in Indiana and studied at the Manhattan School of Music. He and Elizabeth met while working at the North Carolina Symphony. While Eliza- beth leans baroque, Matthew's personal passion includes ragtime xylophone. Perhaps more than any other in the symphony, percussion instruments are a manual labor. "It's important to stay in shape," Matthew says. "Being able to work out so close to Benaroya Hall has been amazing for me. It makes it a lot easier with cymbal playing, when you're literally throwing around 12 to 15 pounds of metal for entire movements of a symphony." PHELPS ELIZABETH DECKER MATTHEW