Who would have imagined that a new piano would be my special gift to myself! It was one week since my mother had passed away at 100 and I was devastated, shaken by the loss-- too distressed to be thinking about celebrating my upcoming birthday in any way. Yet when I saw an ad for… Continue reading My Birthday present to me!
In this no thanks for the memories flashback, I recount the bias I'd experienced along the housing trail, when as a musician, pet owner and mother of a grown daughter, I applied for a Berkeley lease. (Add a grand piano to the mix, and my rental opportunities nearly evaporated) As it played out 2 years… Continue reading The challenges of a pianist seeking housing
I hand-selected a particular recital for an outing with my adult student, Jocel. While he'd suggested a Yuja Wang foray at Davies Concert Hall in San Francisco, I prodded him to first experience the sublime artistry of Richard Goode. (Location: Zellerbach Auditorium in Berkeley, CA, CAL PERFORMANCES series) We were not disappointed. http://youtu.be/Dh4I_b9KipQ The last… Continue reading A Feast of pianist, Richard Goode’s Artistry and a walk down memory lane
I couldn't help but chuckle at a stream of advertising overlapping my Haydn D Major, Hoboken XVI 37 Sonata: "FOUR SIGNS OF A HEART ATTACK" The Google ad, as it ran, uncannily tracked KILLER passages in this composition that would pose a risk to cardiovascular health (Especially the brutal contrapuntal bass line in the Development… Continue reading Heart Attacks and Haydn!
I don't mean to inject pins into this post, but it amply introduces Haydn's vibrant Sonata no. 35 in C Major. Yesterday, as I diligently embarked upon learning this masterpiece, I had to deal with basic housekeeping matters: How to practice the pages-long first movement without breaks in continuity? My short-term solution: http://youtu.be/g7vP3mqg8WM Harpsichordist, *Elaine… Continue reading A Well-known Haydn Piano Sonata is pinned!
http://youtu.be/MgwB3JESuG0 "Inquietude" from Burgmuller's Op. 100 collection of Twenty-Five Progressive pieces, invites a player to examine harmonic progressions as a clue to phrasing a composition that's often pounded to death with unnecessary DOWNBEAT accents. Seymour Bernstein, distinguished pianist, teacher and author, noted in a recent conversation we shared in New York City, that our musical… Continue reading Piano Instruction: Don’t always accentuate the downbeat– Burgmuller’s music proves it (Video)
Everyone loves a self-starter--a wide-eyed visionary who transforms dreams into reality. Patrick Schmidt comes quickly to mind, immersed in his universe of mult-media explorations but always reaching out to an "international" community of creative spirits. Here's how he describes himself: "I'm a tinkerer, artist, scientist, crafter, and many other things. I do small sculpturing and… Continue reading Patrick Schmidt sparks an East Bay Cultural Renaissance in the Meet-up Universe!
A composing activity stimulates a 9-year old student's mind and imagination
http://youtu.be/21cZoT6K2bU If this were a chorus line, Arius would be happy to have been selected for the next audition round-- sharing the honor with a blinds and shade installer. He hammered away, and snapped the wood cap to the oak-looking blind, while Arius and her companion Steinway M, provided a Bach to basics backdrop. The… Continue reading Arius 141 gets a call back during a blinds and shade installation
Arioso7's Blog (Shirley Kirsten) 