tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81392874754872184152024-02-07T14:38:05.813-08:00BLOG...STEINAlon Goldsteinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00523933072950519556noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-89324117407989815432023-01-07T11:51:00.005-08:002023-01-07T12:57:48.190-08:00Forward to Writing …<p><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 21px;">Back to writing!</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Back? Why back?</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Perhaps, forward to writing?</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I prefer that. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 26px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Why did it take so long?</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Procrastination, she would say.</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Maybe it is actually the need for preparation. Readiness I mean, in the state of mind. Emotional mind.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 26px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Yes, yes, but this took a long time. </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I don’t think it was not having what to write about. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>It propels me to think what took so long. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Is it insecurity, or being too judgmental? Maybe I shut myself from writing? </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 26px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I like writing. I like searching for words, for sounds, rhythms, even colours. </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Words are special. They communicate. They express. But words can also be deceiving. Words can also be dishonest.</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Can we express though without words? </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Just by a look. Perhaps by a touch?</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I think a look and a touch are worth so many words! So many! <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>I think about looking at a person, or touching.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 26px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I, indeed express by a touch. A touch of my fingers on the keys. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Black keys, white keys. It doesn’t matter.</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">The touch, however, does matter. It matters a great deal. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>The movement to prepare the touch, to sustain it, and to release it. That’s the secret! <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>And with the way I touch I express a feeling, sometimes a state of mind. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Expressing even if I am completely blind.</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I do not need to see, only feel.</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Feel the keys, that I am about to fill with content, and peel its mysteries, and conceal its hurdles. Feeling is also revealing. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 26px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">And what happens when I am done feeling? Is there such a thing? Do we feel all the time? <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>What happens when the piece we perform ends. Do the feelings end also? </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 26px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I am not sure one is done feeling. However, one may shut himself from feeling. And then it’s very difficult to write. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>That might last just a few days. It might also last a full year! <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Wait, but what about me? <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Did I stop feeling for some time. Did I? </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Wow, I became a fossil. Oh shit. </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Was it for protection? </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Interesting. So to protect myself I shut myself. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Well, but I died. Sort of.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 26px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I am in a new place. Looking and seeing forward. Thinking and feeling forward. Let’s see. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Capturing the moment and embracing the unpredictable, and above all feeling. Feeling, and writing about it. </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj41MK1i5-EoAGpBIedfCiyQSEm0XjgLMXNc79UX_C53erdR7YvrKEQE10VsC8Bc8xA7MFPRspK9FP_6CCCrXsQ8fVoNCPLMoLnzFBI8kJQIu8eDsP4kYfw7wibAS8BtJlgiad-_RUoTfl5HwRDxFYoI0gEdwa5gQERAQ3J-GOdYkeUR4NOAvQn4nOh/s4032/3A3C2BF5-45F8-45CA-BC3F-C196B95B0A48.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj41MK1i5-EoAGpBIedfCiyQSEm0XjgLMXNc79UX_C53erdR7YvrKEQE10VsC8Bc8xA7MFPRspK9FP_6CCCrXsQ8fVoNCPLMoLnzFBI8kJQIu8eDsP4kYfw7wibAS8BtJlgiad-_RUoTfl5HwRDxFYoI0gEdwa5gQERAQ3J-GOdYkeUR4NOAvQn4nOh/s320/3A3C2BF5-45F8-45CA-BC3F-C196B95B0A48.jpeg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p></p>Alon Goldsteinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00523933072950519556noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-36536627053273086072017-07-21T22:50:00.001-07:002017-07-25T20:19:27.948-07:00Reflections on Recordings<div style="line-height: normal;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBFcuVll7rrJ09nbmn6cltJ0EKMahmRX3gNgVBlXizW1igioLQUY5smhL1y2sqMXu-UcmkoRZdx2j2_HMSTjIHkNjo-CkHpJq4ZpDy2HU4rmK1ouFKduU0Q17E7RkTxT-IR2SZcUy9pYM/s1600/Recording.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: helvetica; font-size: 24px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="258" data-original-width="180" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBFcuVll7rrJ09nbmn6cltJ0EKMahmRX3gNgVBlXizW1igioLQUY5smhL1y2sqMXu-UcmkoRZdx2j2_HMSTjIHkNjo-CkHpJq4ZpDy2HU4rmK1ouFKduU0Q17E7RkTxT-IR2SZcUy9pYM/s200/Recording.jpeg" width="139" /></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I am on the way back home from NYC following three days of intense recording sessions of two Mozart concerti arranged for piano and string quintet. This recording, for the Naxos record label, was with the critically acclaimed Fine Arts Quartet and bass player Alexander Bickard. Many thoughts go through my head at the moment. To put it mildly, could I have played better? This music is “better than could be played” as the legendary pianist Artur Schnabel so vividly asserted. Should this liberate me then from such thoughts? Of course I could have played better. It can always be better. But, knowing that a recording is a snapshot of a particular moment in time, of a particular moment in an artist’s infinite musical journey, could I have played this music better <i>today</i>? Recording, as I slowly and reluctantly came to understand, is a very powerful and most important learning tool. The process of preparing for it as well as the actual process of doing it is an experience that adds an invaluable level of understanding and internalizing of a piece! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A somewhat strange observation - In order to record a piece, one <i>has to</i> perform it first. However, it is usually after recording a piece that I feel much more <i>ready</i> to perform it. So, should I perform first in order to record or should I record first in order to perform??</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKYRsA_BKI91aUfbYr3hktEDx7OvDRRVdDw7Ueh9157BLu9HSsXg4Qe-TKn1qhYBjBfNCBy5X1CKC6g6zQ8Zck2Wt3hV7jRvqhDBidMHxC9zFvIwprWFPCsoPzBtC5_uI6ZreuMBrk4i4/s1600/Recording3.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-size: 24px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKYRsA_BKI91aUfbYr3hktEDx7OvDRRVdDw7Ueh9157BLu9HSsXg4Qe-TKn1qhYBjBfNCBy5X1CKC6g6zQ8Zck2Wt3hV7jRvqhDBidMHxC9zFvIwprWFPCsoPzBtC5_uI6ZreuMBrk4i4/s200/Recording3.jpeg" width="200" /></span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I would not record a piece before I get a chance to perform it multiple times on the stage. Experiencing a piece on the concert stage is one of the most important lessons in the pursuit of unveiling one of the most important aspects in the art of music - that which we call <i>time</i>. We can only experience <i>time</i> when we perform in actual time! Consequently, recording a piece before performing it is out of the question. And yet… recording a piece for a CD adds a very important layer of insight and intimacy to the process of learning. Are these insights unattainable during performances? Is it necessary to record? Why? What are those insights?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As I mentioned, experiencing the music in <i>real time</i> at a concert is one of the most important lessons, if not the most important lesson, when getting to know a piece. Performing a piece on stage for the first time is, if I may say, a necessary evil. Several times in my life I postponed a first performance of a piece due to insecurity and strong feelings that I needed more time. Chopin’s 24 Preludes is a prime example of such a piece that I kept postponing going on stage with. Looking back, that was a mistake. A first performance will always be a first performance, even if postponed by several weeks, months or even years! A first performance is the stage of transitioning the piece from infancy to beginning of maturity. It is literary crossing a major threshold. Once I performed the Preludes for the first time, it completely transformed. That first performance left much to be desired, but <i>that</i> which was left to be desired was much more within reach once I performed it, and not before. Similar resistance to first performances I get with late Beethoven or Schubert as well as other monumental works. Going forward, we perform the piece again, and then it is very important to leave the piece and learn other things. A few years go by and we take it again, having gained new perspective. We perform it again… and leave it again. The great pianist Radu Lupu told me once that he didn’t feel he <i>knew</i> a piece until he went back to it six times! </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpJYQceslEoF7it9eWx4mqgbasztZ8Vb-ca2YTz6Z8iSPnZcgauCqeFq_nOF-UXVsW8zzgX2T7W9jP23PA64pATSMO9stJmOpWSkwkB_-j6L8IDviup5b0q75HcGCPWHI45qytME8lhrU/s1600/Recording1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-size: 24px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="273" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpJYQceslEoF7it9eWx4mqgbasztZ8Vb-ca2YTz6Z8iSPnZcgauCqeFq_nOF-UXVsW8zzgX2T7W9jP23PA64pATSMO9stJmOpWSkwkB_-j6L8IDviup5b0q75HcGCPWHI45qytME8lhrU/s200/Recording1.png" width="155" /></span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now we come to the actual recording. Three 6-8 hour days of playing through the music multiple times, listening to the outcome, then playing again with particular concentration to the observations made by the recording engineer, my colleagues as well as my inner-self. Listening again - what’s gained, and what’s lost? Recording small sections, trying a different balance, greater dynamic contrasts, perhaps different tempo - slower? faster? The intense back and forth between artists, recording engineer and a microphone is exhausting. One feels exposed to the core. The piece is also being exposed to its DNA before you. These are very intense hours. The recording finally comes to an end. I still ask the recording engineer to listen some more after everyone has left. Just to <i>make sure… </i>The level of insight gained - nuances, subtleties, possibilities - is greater than has been reached so far. As a result, now is the time to perform these pieces! Now it is <i>ready</i> to be heard. So what were all these previous performances. Were they good at all? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A number of interesting surprises during the sessions made me reevaluate my sense of judgement when performing: </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One of the most common yet always confusing misjudgments in a performance in general, let alone a recording, is that of tempo - speed. Time and again what sounded full of vitality and life when playing at the concert, ends up sounding rushed and unnecessarily hectic when listening to the recording of the concert. The same holds for a recording - the last movement of one of the concerti felt great even if somewhat too comfortable during the playing for the microphone. It ended up sounding rushed and without any sense of elegance or style when listening behind that microphone! Also in a slow movement what seemed very slow during the recording session, sounded not slow at all when listening to it. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-D4NWqfl5IFQZX_CEf1FIkl_FLAXem8mrdqBWeU-JOCcGCSKxARITkVsaRYLO8uNBPpOvwzK-BdaZtbG5v2dr5jQaAQEtmy8bcQw8AZn4BvgFj0Dje_R_-rRlsjpXivRChlGyB_7ZvTY/s1600/Recording2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="215" data-original-width="236" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-D4NWqfl5IFQZX_CEf1FIkl_FLAXem8mrdqBWeU-JOCcGCSKxARITkVsaRYLO8uNBPpOvwzK-BdaZtbG5v2dr5jQaAQEtmy8bcQw8AZn4BvgFj0Dje_R_-rRlsjpXivRChlGyB_7ZvTY/s200/Recording2.jpeg" width="200" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Another revelation revolved around the musical ideas - In the desire to bring out a certain character of a particular tune one tends to take time here and there with the goal of highlighting this or that. Music is “the art of time distortion”. Going back again to listen, this “time distortion” was blown out of proportions when sitting behind listening to what I tried to convey. Can it really be that I exaggerated so much? This didn’t sound like a character but rather a caricature of a character!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">An opposite outcome occurred in the realm of dynamic range. What sounded pretty varied and wide in terms of dynamic range playing to the microphone, sounded narrow and one dimensional listening to what came out. Scary! Can it be that the recording actually irons out dynamic contrasts? Or is it me? I mean us!! How different is it playing to an audience than to the mic? Glenn Gould of course will argue that it is much easier and more <i>natural</i> to play to a microphone. He used to say “I prefer to convince one mic rather than a 1000 souls.” Should I alter my playing then when playing to a mic or playing to an audience? Should it be any different, and why?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One should always be sensitive to the space that one plays in and be flexible enough to adjust. We play in different halls and on different pianos all the time. Each hall has a different acoustic. In each hall the sound bounces differently. It travels differently. Needless to say different pianos will have a profound impact on the performance. We should be able to understand and feel our surroundings and the instrument in order to serve best the music that we perform. Having said all that, does a recording distort what we play or is it truly an aural image of what we do? I cannot answer that definitively. However, I can say without a doubt that to the art of performance we need to add the art of recording. It is different - the preparation as well as the process. The end result will bring us another step closer on the never-ending climb up the mountain to understanding the next piece we have been struggling with, and trying to ultimately give our best… snapshot. </span>Alon Goldsteinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00523933072950519556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-69730893070457325582017-03-03T20:57:00.003-08:002017-03-09T14:20:29.057-08:00"From Bach to Offenbach!"<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><u>Prior to performing Saint Sa<strike>e</strike>ns with the Virginia Symphony I addressed the audience with the following introduction:</u></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhefNQ_tUKBCyPc2DPI41QB_hyphenhyphen85k08oFexn81SM0RYiUZoK_YLjd3miilYg-hiswk81RuIcSJfbNH4taU9Jgi5l0LHbLKC5mb2bcPmb5O1AZvkIahpTTYPVyYbXkJgnhGMbRZRCkSkTbk/s1600/Bach.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhefNQ_tUKBCyPc2DPI41QB_hyphenhyphen85k08oFexn81SM0RYiUZoK_YLjd3miilYg-hiswk81RuIcSJfbNH4taU9Jgi5l0LHbLKC5mb2bcPmb5O1AZvkIahpTTYPVyYbXkJgnhGMbRZRCkSkTbk/s200/Bach.jpeg" width="173" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“From Bach to Offenbach!”, exclaimed a Polish pianist/composer following the premiere of Saint Saens 2nd Piano concerto. Well, I guess the opening page of the concerto with its organ-like polyphonic sonority can bring Bach to mind, and the last movement with its galloping tarantella might sound like an interlude from an Offenbach Operetta. But what’s in between? Are we going to hear all kinds of references?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Saint Saens was an interesting figure. He made his debut at age 11 playing a Mozart concerto as well as a movement from a Beethoven concerto. As an encore he turned to the audience and asked them to name any of the 32 Beethoven piano sonatas which he then played by heart. Please... let this NOT give you any ideas for tonight.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Saint Saens gained a reputation as a Poet, Playwright, Philosopher, Scientist, Astronomer, Archeologist, Graphic designer and a Cartoonist. His heart, though, was set on Music. He wrote 12 operas, 5 piano concerti, violin concerti, symphonies and a whole lot of miscellaneous works. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The second half of the 19th century was highlighted by two main opposite poles. On the one side there was Johannes Brahms, the last of the great classicists. The man who carried the torch directly from Beethoven as Schumann wrote back in his famous article - "New Paths" 1853. On the other side were Liszt and Wagner, which were referred to as the “music of the future”. It is interesting to see where Saint Saens was influenced or </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">paid homage to</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> the classical era, and where he is turning his aspirations to “the future”… This concerto has three movements, it has an opening theme, a contrasting second theme. These themes will come back at the end and create a certain symmetry, and we also have a cadenza at the end of the first movement. These are all “classical ingredients”. However, the order of the movements is somewhat reversed. We start with a slow movement, then go to a fast movement followed by a faster one. Also, the themes are not being developed or treated as if it is a sonata style. They rather unfold one after another as if telling a story in the nature of Liszt tone-poem. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I also like to ask myself what makes this music French. Can it be the search for different orchestral coloring or sonorities, something that French composers where fascinated by? Or perhaps it is the character of the themes - a combination of elegance, charm, wit and above all nonchalance. This is also very passionate music, but is it passion that one wears on his sleeve like Tchaikovsky or Rachmaninov, or a deeper more profound passion like Schumann or Brahms? Or maybe it is altogether a bit lighter kind of passion, or shall we say it is more French?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is music of great ingenuity, creativity and imagination. After all it was written by the same composer who wrote a decade later “The Carnival of the Animals”. Are we going to get a preliminary appearance of some of the animals from the Carnival? Let me give you a hint, one of the “animals” featured in the Carnival is talking to you right now… Movement no. 11 in the Carnival is called “Pianists!” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So, whether it is Bach, or Offenbach, Liszt or Brahms, French music or Carnival of the animals, ladies and gentlemen I am just the messenger. The rest is up to you. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Thank you all for coming and I hope you will enjoy the performance. </span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-60856530623977250222016-11-21T13:27:00.003-08:002017-03-03T21:00:18.974-08:00Poking Poulenc<div style="background-color: white; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><u>Preceding the performance of Poulenc’s concerto for two pianos in Savannah GA, I addressed the audience with the following short introduction:</u></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"Good evening ladies and gentlemen. I wanted to share with you a few thoughts, perhaps insights into this unique work which you are about to hear - the Concerto in d minor for two pianos by Francis Poulenc.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">At the end of the 19th century the musical scene in Europe was dominated by the music of Wagner and Strauss. This rich, lush, self-indulgent, self-oriented music completely overwhelmed and overshadowed anything in its way. Composers such as Stravinsky, Ravel and Debussy had to look elsewhere for their sources of inspiration. They tried to break away and go as far as possible from this intoxicating, somewhat "dangerous" music. Stravinsky started to incorporate African rhythms into his compositions. Ravel looked to Persia and being fascinated by the new cultural possibilities wrote Scheherazade. Debussy went even further, off the coast of Indonesia to the island of Java and brought back the sounds of Gamelan music - an orchestra of bells. The search for new sounds - <i>exoticism</i> - was central especially to the French composers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Francis Poulenc was born into this atmosphere in 1899. Absorbing these new waves and musical thoughts, he also raised an important question - whether music / art has to always represent something serious, above, high, elitist. Can music, at times, be just plain <i>silly</i>. This concerto is in d minor. The two most famous d minor concerti are those by Mozart and Brahms. Both are profound masterpieces with monumental as well as tragic substance. The piece which we are about to hear, although in the same key, is a complete antithesis to its predecessors. It might be looked at as a counter-reaction to everything that d minor represents. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In his pursuit of sounds and silliness Poulenc also asked the orchestra to get out of its comfort zone and be <i>something else</i>. Right at the opening pages of this magnificent work, the strings are being asked to sound like drums. In the middle section of the first movement, the wood winds and brass will produce hallowing, wining sounds resembling some creepy creatures. At the end of the first movement, one of my favorite places in the concerto, the two pianos need to create a gamelan orchestra of high-pitch bells while the principal cellist will be transformed into a glass-harmonica. Good luck with that…</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is music that combines buffoonery with brilliance; elements of fear with elements of flirt. It will make you love as well as laugh. It is sophisticated and surprising. It is very moving music, as well as movie music. Ladies and gentlemen, you are right! Combining all these things together might end up sounding more like one big cacophony than a piece of music. Well, we thank you for coming. We wish you good luck, and hope that you will enjoy this evening’s performance."</span></div>
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Poulenc plays Poulenc<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-49061755239182035752016-05-20T15:35:00.004-07:002016-05-20T15:37:33.870-07:00Orchestral Music @ the Piano<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px; line-height: normal;">
Music is an art form that “happens” in the dimension of time. It is horizontal - starting at point A and ending after some time at point B, or perhaps Z. It has high points and low points, climaxes and moments of relaxation, drama, chaos, order, relief, triumph and so much more. When we make music we strive to tell a story and create these infinite array of emotions while keeping throughout a sense of movement, a sense of horizontality.</div>
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Piano is a strange instrument. We press keys down in a vertical movement in order to create something that is purely horizontal. We do not blow air into an instrument as with a wind instrument, or have the advantage of using a bow to create movement as with a string instrument. The piano has 88 evenly laid out keys which hit strings with hammers in order to create something which is anything but even or percussive. Composers dealt with this “ethical” enigma when they wrote for the keyboard. One of the inspirations and aspirations for composers in reconciling this problem is to transform the piano into something else… an orchestra. The piano (after all) does have some advantages - the ability to deliver many notes at the same time, the ability to use different registers all at once, the enormous span, the different colors and so on. Composers put this idea at the forefront, and in pursuing their goal turned the piano into an orchestra in astonishingly different ways.</div>
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J. S. Bach published his Italian Concerto in 1735 as part of what is known as “Clavierübung II” or “Keyboard practice book 2”. At age 50 Bach decided to publish a book consisting of only two works - The <i>Overture in French Style</i> and the <i>Italian Concerto</i>. Both pieces are <u>studies in orchestral writing</u>. While the <i>Overture</i> examines the dance genre, the <i>Italian Concerto</i> looks at the brilliant writing of the concerto style. A presenter once asked me upon seeing that I will be performing this piece, “who are you playing it with? which orchestra?” Not realizing this extraordinary work is played with one instrument. The essence of the concerto genre is the confrontation between the soloist and the orchestra. This creates a lot of the drama. This drama may be severely damaged if a conversation between two becomes a monologue of one! Bach created here the effect of an orchestra against a soloist by experimenting with <u>textures, registers as well styles of writing</u>. The first movement suggests the style of a violin concerto with virtuosic writing for the solo right hand. The second movement is a highly ornamented aria accompanied by a continuo bass. Though sounding quasi improvised, it is very meticulously written out. The third movement is a concerto grosso, or concerto for orchestra having all the voices in high speed participating as soloists as well as orchestra. </div>
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Almost 90 years separate Bach’s work, with one of Franz Schubert’s most monumental “orchestral” works - the Fantasy for solo piano in C major known was <i>“The Wanderer”</i>. Its dramatic power, bold formal structure, emotional range and conciseness, makes it one of the most revolutionary pieces in the Romantic era. The piece was shocking in the way it treated the piano. It influenced generations of composers such as Liszt (who orchestrated the piece) Mendelssohn, Chopin and others. A student played the piece for me once. His playing was extremely aggressive and percussive. When I suggested the idea of looking for an orchestral sound, he instantly agreed exclaiming “here we have the bells. and here are the drums, the gong, cymbals and so on.” I then suggested that this should not be a Stravinsky orchestra, but rather a similar orchestra to the one that performed a Schubert Symphony. The <i>“Wanderer fantasy”</i> is a grand symphonic work - The “modernity” of its use of the piano is truly revolutionary - Its <u>exhaustive use of the sonorities</u> of the instrument, its <u>insistent use of broken octaves</u> - suggesting string tremolo, the <u>cascading full throttle octaves</u> - perhaps a brass section, the broad rich texture - full tutti, the <u>wide range of dynamics</u>, the entire scope of the piece, all suggest the search for a multitude of forces that exist only within the orchestra. The piece was written in C major, the same key that Schubert later wrote his final symphony nicknamed “The Great”. </div>
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Moving forward to the world of Franz Liszt who wrote over 60 transcriptions, paraphrases and arrangements of operas from Mozart to Bellini, Verdi to Wagner. He made these for several reasons: Being a virtuoso pianist, it was a way to show-off his abilities and imagination also as a composer / improvisor. Secondly, it was an opportunity to bring this music to a wider audience at a time when not everyone was able to connect to YouTube… and Lastly and the most important reason in my opinion - these arrangements celebrated the instrument that had become so popular, so central during the first decades of the 19th century. <u>To celebrate the piano as well as to challenge it</u> - above all the sonorities which included dynamic range, articulation possibilities, note repetition and pedals. It is commonly thought that Chopin wrote “everything that was possible for the piano”. Well, in that case <u>Liszt wrote everything that was NOT possible for the piano</u>. This is not to say one is better than the other. It simply suggests that the things Liszt asked for from the piano were beyond what the instrument was “supposed” to do. LIszt’s arrangement of Wagner’s last scene from Tristan and Isolde is a wonderful example. Bringing to life Wagner’s epic orchestra - 100 string players, six harps, 12 horns and more - all captured within one single instrument is “mission impossible” or is it not? It is fascinating the way Liszt creates the effects of a timpani drum-roll, string tremolo, harp arpeggios, and of course winds solos. The arrangement is full of imagination. At a certain point one forgets about the orchestra altogether and immerses himself in the toxic beauty of sound and color that comes out of the piano. </div>
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At the hight of Romanticism, from 1890 to the beginning of the 20th century, the music of Wagner and Strauss was so overpowering, so dominating that the composers that followed - Debussy, Ravel and Stravinsky - had to look anywhere but Germany to find their sources of inspiration. That went a long way in the areas of <u>sound, texture, sonority and rhythm</u>. There was a search for new colors - <u>exoticism</u> was central especially in the works of Claude Debussy. One of Debussy’s most enchanting piano works “Estampes” gets its inspiration from Gamelan music coming from the island of Java of the coast of Indonesia. This is an orchestra made up of almost entirely percussion instruments - clappers, rattles, a variety of gongs and bells producing timbres which were previously unknown to classical music. Debussy revolutionized our perception of the scale of dynamics, silences and articulation markings as means of expression. In this exploration he achieved a whole new range of orchestral colors within the piano. We might compare his revolution in that aspect to what Liszt had achieved a few decades before with his virtuosic demands on the piano . A short piano work called “D’un cahier d’esquisses is particularly interesting as it explores silences and sound in just as much intensity and consistency as it explores the moments of ecstasy and climaxes. One gets a sense of hallucination as if being catered for under a magical spell.</div>
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After WWII, the entire world was in a state of complete shock and lost hope. In the music world that manifested itself in the idea that we have to <u>“start anew”</u>. Composers began asking themselves whether a piece needed to have structure, melody, rhythm and so on. Furthermore, can structure be something different, new? The same question applies to melody and rhythm. <u>What is a melody? What is rhythm?</u> Along these lines, the concept of whether instruments can produce different sounds was tested. Does an orchestra needs to sound like an orchestra? Georgy Ligeti’s Musica Ricercata which was written between 1951 and 1953 examines the very foundation of such questions. Six movements from this collection were transcribed for a Wind quintet. Humor, wit, sarcasm, pain, songfulness, folklore and paying homage, are all played-with and ultimately given new meanings in what lay the foundation to post-modernism. One of the most important phenomenas that occur when we listen to music in general is <u>“Expectations”</u>. We expect a theme, we expect to feel, we expect to resolve tensions, we expect certain sounds. The idea of “expectations” is being put to the test and shaken to the core in this fascinating piece by Ligeti. </div>
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Throughout the centuries the Keyboard remained central in the creative lives of composers. Some wrote their new symphony first at the keyboard and then orchestrated it. Others wrote their new symphony <b>FOR</b> the keyboard, imagining the range of sound and color that an orchestra can produce within that enigmatic instrument. Some of the most fascinating pieces ever written were for the piano but with the full resources of an orchestra behind as the driving force. </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-37667084948308071092015-10-12T06:08:00.003-07:002015-10-20T07:05:46.444-07:00“Go to sleep Mom, I will call you later”<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;">
In memory of Vera Stern </div>
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What can I say about a person who could show me reason in places that others saw chaos, and who gave me the feeling of a warm home at a place that others considered a jungle. Ms. Stern, as I often addressed her, made New York City feel like the warmest place whenever I came to perform. She also made me focus, in the sometimes confusing life of music on what is important.</div>
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The first time I met Ms. Stern was in 1991, when I played with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra after winning a competition. At the reception following the concert she stood on top of a sofa with bare feet addressing the people, the conductor and myself standing on either side. A few months ago I came across pictures from that event and enthusiastically told Ms. Stern about them. She remembered where it was, the sofa she stood on top of, what she said, and the purple dress she wore!</div>
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It took eight more years till we met again, and started what was to become an unforgettable friendship. I came to New York to play a recital and was offered to practice at her beautiful apartment overlooking Central Park. My manager told me some time after the concert that Ms. Stern noted that I could come again to practice on her piano because “I did not break any string”. Needless to say that was the end of me practicing any Prokofiev or something above "mezzo-forte" on that piano…</div>
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Slowly and with much caution she opened herself to me in ways that made me shiver each time all over again. </div>
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Ms. Stern enjoyed getting to know people. She loved helping people. To help was a life’s mission, an ultimate pursuit worth any sacrifice. Helping, also meant being there. To miss a concert of someone she cared for was inconceivable - if there were 50 stairs to climb she would fly; if there was 3 feet of snow on the ground she would slide with elegance. Not showing up was not an option. One of my vivid memories was playing at the People Symphony Concerts when it was below zero degrees outside following a snow storm, which resulted in dangerous icy conditions. She was not only there, but also brought along others! I think her presence at the concerts made people play better. It made the audience experience more than usual. She knew that, and therefore it was not an option that she will miss a concert.</div>
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But it was not just the concerts. Ms. Stern cared for everything, and wanted to help in all sorts of ways. I remember once she cut a newspaper article for me and kept it for months till we met. It was about the importance of spending time with family. I guess she did not feel I understood that enough. Sharing was her way of caring. I did change after reading the article, and it gave her great pleasure. Over the years I received many more articles...</div>
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What always brought tears to her eyes was her family - reading in the newspaper about Michael or David, seeing an old video of Mr. Stern, getting a picture from a grandson or granddaughter - this would immediately bring tears in a most humble and inspiring way. She was so preoccupied with giving to others, her family gave it back to her. It was extraordinary to witness some of that.</div>
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And so, I learned over the years that orange was her favorite color, and each time I visited I would bring orange roses, tulips or lilies. That color belongs to her. Even though she had a great sense of authority and will-power, greater than I have ever seen, it was always special to see her child-like reaction when seeing a good chocolate, or getting some blueberries. </div>
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A couple of years ago when she was at the hospital for two weeks I came to visit and saw a piano in the dining hall. Within minutes we gathered around the piano and I played for her a private concert. Ms. Stern was a magnet, and so within seconds people came for this private little soiree. I remember playing a Schubert Impromptu among other things. Two days after she past away I had a recital in New York City and dedicated the encore to her memory - it was a Schubert Impromptu. </div>
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The day before she died I came to practice at her apartment. It had been some time since I have been to New York. She was not conscience, but I was assured that she knew I was coming and had the piano especially tuned the week before. I want to believe that she waited for me to come just one more day to practice. </div>
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Ms. Stern, I miss you!</div>
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with lots of love </div>
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Alon</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-17316752216047760232015-03-09T13:25:00.000-07:002015-04-28T05:40:42.595-07:00Beethoven surprises us / Schubert surprises himself!<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Prior to performing Schubert’s towe</span></b><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">ring sonata in c minor D. 958 I addressed the audience with the following remarks -</span></b><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">I recently spoke with a close friend sharing with him the program for my upcoming solo recitals. When he heard that I will be playing a late Schubert sonata he asked whether my intention is to put people to sleep! He then recommended that I ask the audience to turn on their cell-phones, and feel free to send text messages or check e-mails between movements. Well, He was not completely wrong. During the second half of the 19 century concerts were a much lighter affair. A program would normally consist of a movement of a piece, followed by two arias, then perhaps an improvisation on a popular tune and so on. To play a full Schubert sonata was inconceivable, not to mention that these works were pretty much neglected back then.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">We seem to be living in an era in which in order to be taken seriously one has to program four Beethoven sonatas. Programming Liszt transcriptions, or Brahms Hungarian Dances means you won’t be considered as a serious artist. Playing only a movement from a sonata means you will be vetoed altogether. And yet the programs of Horowitz or Rubinstein from the first half of the 20 century show much greater variety and imagination.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">The Schubert sonatas remained unappreciated until well into the 20th century. When the great pianist Artur Schnabel was recording the B flat sonata, in the early 1930’s, Sergei Rachmaninov came to visit Abbey Road Studios in London where Schnabel was recording. Apparently each time the Russian virtuoso came to the studios there was a ritual that everyone would line-up to greet the great maestro. Schnabel decided to play along and stood in line. When Rachmaninov saw Schnabel he asked him for the reason he was at the studios that day. After Schnabel told him that he was recording the last Schubert sonata, Rachmaninov asked whether he could listen. Upon hearing this monumental masterpiece Rachmaninov turned to Schnabel saying “…but this is great music!” Schnabel replied “I know!”</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">What was it then in the sonatas of Franz Schubert that puzzled so many important figures in the 19 century? Robert Schumann in his review of these works in 1838 criticized their "much greater simplicity of invention", claiming the sonatas "ripple along from page to page as if without end." Schumann in his review of the great C major symphony, however, remarked so poignantly about its "heavenly length." This, in my opinion, suits the sonatas just as much.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">Music is an art that happens in the dimension of time. Schubert’s perception of time is unlike any other composer. I guess one can say that about almost any composer. But there is a uniqueness to the way Schubert’s works unfold in time. I like to say that <b>Beethoven surprises us, whereas Schubert surprises himself.</b> Beethoven has a very clear idea where he is aiming, and how long it is going to take - the goals, the climaxes. With Schubert you get a sense that he is unsure where the piece is going to take him. I played some years ago the big A major sonata to Claude Frank - a wonderful pianist, musician and teacher. I remember him telling me that when he played that piece he always felt that he was a driver of a Trolley somewhere in the Austrian Alps, and just before launching onto the last movement he wanted to call the audience “ALL ABOARD”. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Listening or playing one of the grande Schubert sonatas indeed you are on a journey - you might discover along the way a hidden brook. Please stop for a moment and try to speak with it. Most likely the brook will answer. You might also encounter severe weather that will throw you out of your way. Confront it, fight it, you might succeed. I also hope that on your journey you will meet a beautiful maiden. Do fall in love with her, though let me warn you, she is most likely already engaged to the hunter. Still you should fall in love, and get hurt, and feel some hope together with despair and anger. Oh, and beware of the evil spirit. He is there somewhere, most likely disguised in the most beautiful seductive music. Perhaps what you are looking for is a place you can call home. You might never find one! These are all important awarenesses on the path to the heart of this music, to the heart of Romanticism - nature, a beautiful maiden, unfulfilled love, a talking brook, a storm, the Erlkönig, being a wonderer and a stranger in any land - all of which come to life in the eternal beauty of the music of Franz Schubert. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">The c minor sonata has four movements which suggest a large symphonic scale. Also the choice of the dramatic key of c minor is obviously a homage to Beethoven (the Pathetique sonata, the variations in c minor, the 5th symphony). But there is also a homage to the divine lyricism of Mozart. It is a piece of vast dimensions written moments before the composer died at the young age of 31. It was published more than ten years after he died.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small;">Ladies and gentlemen before I begin, please allow me to take the driver sit and call “ALL ABOARD!”</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-3693740291242056782014-10-31T05:22:00.003-07:002014-10-31T05:30:25.508-07:00Pre-ludes, Middle-ludes, After-ludes Part IV (Final)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">This is the forth and final part of the journey to find 24 "musical" thoughts and after-thoughts, middle-thoughts and Pre-thoughts after Chopin's beloved and yet enigmatic Preludes. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">19) With such a pastiche of 24 miniatures, one is compelled to try all sorts of directions for inspiration and imagination. I often find it helpful to orchestrate as my interpretation evolves. For example the surging melody in the left-hand of the b minor prelude (no. 6) might be beautifully conceived on a cello. The texture of the chords in the c minor prelude (no. 20) reminds me of brass. The soaring beauty of the cantilena line in the B flat major prelude (no. 21) could be played on the flute. However, what is extraordinary to me is how idiomatic Chopin's music is. It belongs to the piano! Thinking, imagining, referring to other instruments might add greater nuance to one's playing. But whenever I heard such realizations of Chopin's music on other instruments - whether strings or winds - the music sounded very weak, timid and ultimately unconvincing. Can it be that as great as Chopin's music is, it only sounds good on the piano? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">20) The preludes are at once similar as well as strikingly different. While the differences seem obvious, the similarities are more implicit, hidden. Take for example preludes nos. 2, 3 and 24 - all three exhibit a left-hand obstinate that governs the entire piece. <i>ostinato</i> also sets its tone. In all three preludes the left-hand pattern also begins a few bars before the melody enters. And yet how obviously different these preludes are. Such inner-connections are in abundance throughout the whole set. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">21) While the preludes are so different in character they are also incredibly varied from a technical point of view: the child like simplicity of the A major prelude (no. 7) is at times taught to amateur pianists while the gargantuan b flat minor one (no. 16) is among the most difficult compositions Chopin ever wrote. I once taught the very slow pace chordal c minor prelude (no. 20) to a 9 year old, and yet, I would never attempt to even introduce the same pupil the immensely difficult (especially when the hands are still cold) G major one (no. 3). The reason for such drastic variety lies in the fact that Chopin's technical demands always serve a much greater purpose. Unlike some of his contemporaries (i.e. Liszt) who could enjoy the showmanship aspect of technical difficulties, Chopin did not write technical difficulties for the sake of exhibition. In the preludes the difficulties are part of the music, part of the DNA of the piece, its essence and message. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-n81EGrymuMJBikzq8aBo7_Lu5eJb9tT6G-WjXSqe-N8C59lVhETrqTVhO-mAFm8lUXwbKQZz0ClroZqhPxLGDd0w-lHBZpkWLZMMyTIbt-viWDHoEBz8VwaOD7S-Kt2ULhNrO5M_YWk/s1600/Preude+13+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-n81EGrymuMJBikzq8aBo7_Lu5eJb9tT6G-WjXSqe-N8C59lVhETrqTVhO-mAFm8lUXwbKQZz0ClroZqhPxLGDd0w-lHBZpkWLZMMyTIbt-viWDHoEBz8VwaOD7S-Kt2ULhNrO5M_YWk/s1600/Preude+13+.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">22) The composer Robert Schumann was known to have had the gift to sketch in music people that he knew - a portraitist in music. His Carnival op. 9 is the example where several of the movements have names such as Paganini or Chopin. The Preludes of Chopin, being so many different things, are also influenced by and as a result paint a sketch portrait of a wide range of composers - the elf-like lightness of </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Mendelssohn (10); the lied-like with brook-like texture of Schubert (13); the tour-de-force virtuosity of Liszt (16, 24); the coloratura of Bellini (21); A Bach homage and a Bach choral (no. 1 and no. 20); emblematic ambiguity of Schumann (14, 23); and what about Mozart his idol, or Beethoven, even though he did not like him. The subconscious work in mysterious ways.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">23) And if we bring up other composers, then what about the ones that came after Chopin’s death and were highly influenced by the Preludes - Faure, Szymanowski, Scriabin, Debussy, Rachmaninov and Shostakovich among others. Interestingly Chopin had a profound impact on Russian music. The Russian public was introduced to his music as early as 1829 in a concert in St. Petersburg. The genuine clarity and beauty of Chopin’s melodies, the deep sadness, tenderness and melancholy of his music greatly touched his listeners in Russia. The audience as well as the critics saw him not only as a pianist and composer, but also as a genius poet. The way Chopin incorporated national dances into his music also captured the Russian interest. With the composer Karl Szymanowski the influence obviously is the direct link to the Polish national school of piano. In my humble opinion though, if we were to draw a line from Bach’s WTC to Chopin’s set, then the next line should be to Debussy’s two books of Preludes! In their originality, inventiveness, new ideas, use of dynamics, finger articulation, use of pedal, motivic development, amorphic shape, emotional range and much more, the Debussy Preludes are as revolutionary as the Chopin’s!!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDoca8p7tXSQ9TKxvA1bM0PxXrYZfwD5AbUvPtYBK7vzusPWaxVOqz9qo42tm5TirAMyYv2WuBwlVGPa1hwgLjqjvUNKim07dMAcx1xlDhf-q-Cu4hilgqc5CSElzn5xcVJn8di6URudI/s1600/images-2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDoca8p7tXSQ9TKxvA1bM0PxXrYZfwD5AbUvPtYBK7vzusPWaxVOqz9qo42tm5TirAMyYv2WuBwlVGPa1hwgLjqjvUNKim07dMAcx1xlDhf-q-Cu4hilgqc5CSElzn5xcVJn8di6URudI/s1600/images-2.jpeg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">24) The last words have to be given to none other than George Sand - the woman that causes so much inspiration for Chopin, together with anguish. Sand described the preludes as “most beautiful of short pages, which bring to mind visions of deceased monks, the sound of funeral chants, melancholy and fragrant. They came to him in time of sun and health, in the clamor of laughing children under the window, the far away sound of guitars, birdsongs from the moist leaves, in the sights of the small pale roses coming in bloom on the snow… while charming your ear, they break your heart… Chopin’s genius was filled with the mysterious sounds of nature, but transformed into sublime equivalents in musical thought… The gift of Chopin is the deepest and fullest feelings and emotions that have been existed.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">An Epilogue…sorry an Epi-lude:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Preludes of Chopin are a fountain of inspiration, a wealth of ideas that, having an important place in the music literature. For their brevity, ingenuity, originality, wit and poetry, they constantly attract musicians and audience alike. The most Romantic of composers disliked this association altogether. His music wasn’t inspired by literature or paintings as some of his contemporaries such as Liszt or Schumann. Whereas Beethoven turned the piano into an orchestra (or string quartet at times), and Mozart was bringing to life an opera at the piano, Chopin completely and wholeheartedly conceived his music solely for the piano. In no other single piece that he wrote his genius is more conspicuous as in the set of 24 preludes Op. 28. Even-though these are miniatures, they encompass tremendous emotional power. With seemingly inexhaustible variety of moods and ideas and an endless supply of beautiful melodies the set stands along the great achievements of human creation and vision.</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-77110644647884518912014-05-07T13:36:00.001-07:002014-05-07T20:40:33.392-07:00Pre-ludes, Middle-ludes, After-ludes (Part III)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB26HjEC8fDLH5-PcKFN6jGPqCn1d_ppJwD9Zf5haViMhNn0tWgN6c0L-J5xzuKbSV3h2gzIynlA3aGvAXuSJakaoa8-7wmpRN67mHZUOzdZXYNhOu64OTjsn_8-bcHTe2vnHQ_O8XrTY/s1600/Chopin,_by_Wodzinska.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB26HjEC8fDLH5-PcKFN6jGPqCn1d_ppJwD9Zf5haViMhNn0tWgN6c0L-J5xzuKbSV3h2gzIynlA3aGvAXuSJakaoa8-7wmpRN67mHZUOzdZXYNhOu64OTjsn_8-bcHTe2vnHQ_O8XrTY/s1600/Chopin,_by_Wodzinska.JPG" height="200" width="150" /></a><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Continuing my quest to "find" 24 observations, </span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">thoughts and after-thoughts on Frederic Chopin's 24 preludes op. 28. This is chapter 3 out of 4.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">13) I once had a few lessons on the preludes with the late pianist Marek Jablonsky. One of the things that intrigued me was that he liked calling the short preludes (nos. 5, 7, 10 etc) "Interludes”, referring to them as short breaths, quick pauses, or as connecting links between two prominent statements. So now we have "Preludes", "Middle-ludes", After-ludes" and "Interludes" - all have different psychological implications to the piece as a whole. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiumP0UfzGMG1IDzJ8y31L95HtzBc2GpbOjl74PcY8mcKBpp3zlt_iL7Goj9G3lnclksbTzaKGMzRj-33MoLv_9cUexvzCcfFx0-EwZppQD-rJQcWjCR1NsZOKp-KjDd2aq6FYWsCZNiBA/s1600/Prelude+15.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiumP0UfzGMG1IDzJ8y31L95HtzBc2GpbOjl74PcY8mcKBpp3zlt_iL7Goj9G3lnclksbTzaKGMzRj-33MoLv_9cUexvzCcfFx0-EwZppQD-rJQcWjCR1NsZOKp-KjDd2aq6FYWsCZNiBA/s1600/Prelude+15.jpeg" /></a><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">14) Chopin opposed programmatic references to his music. He refuted Schumann when the latter crafted storied around his Op. 2 variations. Chopin saw music as representing abstract feelings and ideas, transcending visual earthly images. Nevertheless two noteworthy musicians - Hans von Bülow and Alfred Cortot - went as far as giving nicknames to each of the 24 preludes. Occasionally the names are somewhat similar, though most of the time they differ remarkably. It is worth glancing at these names. Hans von Bülow, for example, gave the ubiquitous name "Raindrop" to the famous D flat prelude no. 15. He called the succeeding prelude no. 16 "Hades". Alfred Cortot named the beautiful A flat prelude no. 17 "She told me, I love you…", and to the culminating prelude no. 24 he gave the emphatic name “Blood, Passion and Death".</span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI6Mc-I4ub8aZIRDifNvG8ojgwI3wrITWHwdZONDlmX0MMm-vZZpelmcUrAqFbbS9eJ9hX6prvFI9qzraqMWH1PecJJkRuZxrMsNdUudws7yTGoNKwK5fGOGZcI2ctq4Vnu2sTd4Ob-7c/s1600/Prelude+24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI6Mc-I4ub8aZIRDifNvG8ojgwI3wrITWHwdZONDlmX0MMm-vZZpelmcUrAqFbbS9eJ9hX6prvFI9qzraqMWH1PecJJkRuZxrMsNdUudws7yTGoNKwK5fGOGZcI2ctq4Vnu2sTd4Ob-7c/s1600/Prelude+24.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">15) As I mentioned in chapter 1 of this endeavor Chopin organized the preludes differently than the way Bach did. Rather than in chromatic order, Chopin organized them according to what we call the "circle of fifths". As such, each prelude (first major then minor) adds one accidental. The result means that the first half of the cycle (nos. 1-13) employs the keys with the sharps while the second half (nos. 14-24) employs the keys with the flats. Since keys to a piece of music is to a large extent like color to a painting, there is a greater sense of spring or sunrise in the first half of the piece while the second half sounds more autumnal, sunset.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">16) Ambiguity seems to be a <i>favorite</i> ingredient when analyzing transcendental works. Ambiguity plays an important role in the preludes. Almost every prelude has an ambiguous element to it. No. 1 -</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikwO7ilGlso4ni9TNJ6LE1N6GUuFlehMq5D1h0fpm3hJsM041Lo13YetSC_X7-KCqcIWUlFd2Mk8V0RD6tbK9YaWTc-7KP7kr2NM46sI9eabooo8lzn1gsMws4T1LYFoG0LN0pOfO7I_g/s1600/Prelude+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikwO7ilGlso4ni9TNJ6LE1N6GUuFlehMq5D1h0fpm3hJsM041Lo13YetSC_X7-KCqcIWUlFd2Mk8V0RD6tbK9YaWTc-7KP7kr2NM46sI9eabooo8lzn1gsMws4T1LYFoG0LN0pOfO7I_g/s1600/Prelude+1.jpg" height="146" width="200" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> Melodic: The melody is not on the down beat but rather on the upbeats. It is also toying between being played by the thumb and the pinky. No. 2 - Tonal: Until the very last chord we cannot be sure of the key. No. 4 - Harmonic: The suspensions throughout this prelude with the two note melody hovering above has a great sense of instability. No. 5 - Rhythmic: The constant <i>hemiolas</i>, together with the extreme brevity of this prelude makes the listener feels disoriented and bewildered. Etc etc.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">17) The idea ambiguity should lead to further discussion about the enigmatic no. 14 in e flat minor? This prelude is pure anarchy!! It is almost violent - not from anger, but rather from the unknown. It is scary, frightening, and unstable. The pianist Russell Sherman referred to it as music from the under-world. Chopin, the composer that thrived on melodic beauty, sensuality and elegance, the composer that was admired for the suave quality of his sound, his soft touch, wrote here a piece of incredible darkness and menace. The two hands are playing absolutely the exact same pitches an octave apart. Both hands are playing continuous eighth notes, and it is all in the same low "F" clef. A dark shadow. Never has brevity been so brief, and ambiguity been so emblematic. Needless to say, one should compare this prelude to the final movement of another great work by Chopin - the 2nd sonata. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">18) “Chopin’s music is essentially unhealthy. That is its imperfection and also its danger”. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">This comforting statement belongs to Hippolyte Barbedette, a scholar of the mid 19th century who wrote essays on Chopin’s music. While admiring Chopin's individuality and remarking that the Preludes are “a jewel-box of precious stones”, she also wrote that he was a sick man who enjoyed suffering and did not want to be cured. Furthermore she pointed that by playing his music one will inevitably imagine that the sickness is his own. She concluded with the above quote which I find to be absolutely <i>true</i> - Chopin's music is dangerous to play. It is also unhealthy. These might be two of the reasons why we cannot leave without it. It is intoxicating.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-46492600233335526102014-03-19T21:50:00.002-07:002014-10-03T11:46:24.282-07:00I came, I saw, I wanted to stay,,,<div style="font-size: 18px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Canceling art vs. Creating art:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Not long ago a good friend of mine posted on Facebook a newspaper announcement that: "The board of the Delaware Symphony has decided to cancel the next season of the orchestra." As usual the reason was linked to the financial situation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The "shock waves" were felt as far as two hours away, which is where I live in Maryland. I immediately wrote to my friend offering to come and play a benefit concert. My main goal (aside from a chance to have lunch with my good friend), was to show that people outside the community also care. I also wanted to raise awareness to my strong belief that canceling a season / cutting concerts… could not be a solution for "helping" sustain art. In other words canceling music could not help make music. There has to be another way, or music will not be heard anymore in this beautiful building shown here. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdlCBNvgU7JXZH3GfVja51KaliF3I_RnFNZgn3qUsciRQ0diHXNiU7J0RjH7Lo__Jj8kNOtx7wV6vcdq8PXnufNuOaL_gFi5nhpHVXyWOyHkz1pMwE_SqmfzBO0mZf1oUExFQkklQ7R3Y/s1600/images-1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdlCBNvgU7JXZH3GfVja51KaliF3I_RnFNZgn3qUsciRQ0diHXNiU7J0RjH7Lo__Jj8kNOtx7wV6vcdq8PXnufNuOaL_gFi5nhpHVXyWOyHkz1pMwE_SqmfzBO0mZf1oUExFQkklQ7R3Y/s1600/images-1.jpeg" height="132" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Before playing a note, I addressed the appreciative audience, many of which were patrons, sharing with them my feelings and concerns regarding cutting concerts due to financial climate. The second step after that is probably shutting down the museum because that takes a lot of tax money. Next on the list will be turning the park into a parking lot, and soon enough, without music, museum and a park we might as well move to another city, one that offers these essential "luxuries". The recital raised $50,000. I was happy and proud, but later learned that this is like giving a band-aid to stop massive bleeding.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">On the contrary, last weekend I gave a concert in a small town in Virginia called Staunton. Nestled in the Shenandoah valley near the foothills of the Blue-ridge mountains, prior to the year 2000 Staunton was just another little town, an exit on interstate 81 going north or south. In 2001 a group of art lovers got together and raised money to build the only re-creation of a Shakespeare indoor theatre in the US - The Blackfriars Play House. The city was transformed after the theatre was built, and the American Shakespeare Center, which was founded in 1988 as a Touring Troupe, moved in as its resident company. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOKCvS5hFijLUbp6ncwM4G04dy8YNxT7hUOyHuh7ecMULOAwKtQJC6bNMmQ_kFRGXXYPg5PvSmrkEhGLWZ8ptn9LoM4vVvBZa-W5r864q3hyphenhyphen0Z_OnORHlhYtpMs912c7nD6FlDpx05Ve8/s1600/images.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOKCvS5hFijLUbp6ncwM4G04dy8YNxT7hUOyHuh7ecMULOAwKtQJC6bNMmQ_kFRGXXYPg5PvSmrkEhGLWZ8ptn9LoM4vVvBZa-W5r864q3hyphenhyphen0Z_OnORHlhYtpMs912c7nD6FlDpx05Ve8/s1600/images.jpeg" height="133" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Since opening its gates more than half a million people visited this theatre. A number of hotels opened up in the downtown area along with new restaurants. The town is now a cultural destination where people from all around come to see one of sixteen different productions each year. The shows run five days a week, a total of 7 performances mostly in the evenings but also at times in the morning (for students) and afternoon (the elderly). I could not help it, and went to see Shakespeare's "As you like it" at 10:30am the morning of my concert. There were many students. It was thrilling - so fresh, so alive. I was inspired. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlpaa6dAgJI_K5IRgMKwOmvXgwlbh1ok_0lzNp73FWPMKJNIpcVrQK21MwjO3E-bFM0FY6S3SmJ92VtPFuJoPoZQHW6x2ztoCvlAogk5xH6dIsVtStWCiHx_jbMfC-rc-cR8sLXk5nY-M/s1600/Unknown.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: Helvetica; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlpaa6dAgJI_K5IRgMKwOmvXgwlbh1ok_0lzNp73FWPMKJNIpcVrQK21MwjO3E-bFM0FY6S3SmJ92VtPFuJoPoZQHW6x2ztoCvlAogk5xH6dIsVtStWCiHx_jbMfC-rc-cR8sLXk5nY-M/s1600/Unknown.jpeg" height="130" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">In the middle of nowhere, three hours away from the nearest big city, there lies a small town that thanks to its theatre has become a destination to many. I want to believe it has also become a better place to live. Seven performances a week?! Are there so many art lovers in Staunton to fill the sits? Maybe the answer is that when you build something special people will come? Perhaps also the people who helped create this place feel responsible to bring their friends to the shows? Whatever the answer may be, it is an example of how to create not to cancel, how to make something where there was nothing, and how art can change as well as revive a whole town.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I do not know if it is possible to do the same with music let alone an orchestra. To play seven concerts a week in a small village? Wouldn't that be something?! Playing concerts for kids, elderly people, whoever… seven concerts every week! I do not know. I sure though wanna live in such a place! Hopefully it also has a nice little museum, a park and even a small Shakespeare theatre…</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-49209306375237243362013-11-26T08:02:00.000-08:002014-03-22T06:47:40.290-07:00About a Vision, a Voice and a Visit<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">Back in
1994, when I was a student at <a href="http://www.ravinia.org/steans_piano_strings.aspx" target="_blank">Ravinia's Steans Music Institute</a>, one of my highlights was performing Schubert's E flat major trio. I cannot
remember if it was after the dress rehearsal or the actual performance, that a person came to me and started talking about
Schubert's music in correlation with my playing. It's been nearly twenty years and I remember that conversation quite vividly. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">He was chubby looking, open hearted and warm. From his musical insights and inquiries it was obvious that he was no
stranger to this music. On the contrary, he knew it intimately. At one point he addressed the challenges a pianist faced when trying to produce a singing
tone on the piano, especially in music of the master of song literature Franz
Schubert. Getting more specific he spoke about the way I trilled, the
singing aspect. He was very complimentary, supportive and loving. A few years later I learned that that person was Edward Gordon (1930-1996), the
vision and force behind the whole program known as the Steans
Institute of Music… or as he simply introduced himself: "my name is
Ed."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">Ed
served as Executive Director of the Ravinia festival between 1968 and 1990. Back then he articulated
to the Board of Trustees his vision to create a comprehensive educational
program. "I have long felt that many young artists never attain their
potential as performers, not from any lack of fine teaching and necessary
skills, but because they have not had certain opportunities at a critical time
in their development. The most important opportunity is having prominent
performance platform, where listeners include peers, artistic leaders, and the
important general public." Quite a <b>VISION</b>!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times-Roman;">Jump
starting to the summer of 2013, I was invited again to teach at the Steans. My
week comprised of coaching Beethoven and Brahms, Chopin and Schumann. At my
last day I was asked to give an extra coaching on a piece I could not recall
ever coaching before - Schubert's Trio in E flat. It was a Friday
night, late after everyone had dinner. A few students still
practiced, most already left. Instead of going to a teaching classroom the students and I had
the hall to ourselves. I sat in the middle of this wonderful space, while the group
played the slow, lyrical second movement.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">The
playing was beautiful, well meant and heart-felt. I started to ask for something, but could not quite
articulate what was it that I wanted. I was </span><span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">searching for the right quality or sound, </span><span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">looking for that special singing tone - what Ed Gordon and I were discussing back
then. I asked the cellist, who had the opening tune to search for the
right voice. It was not there yet.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">The
legendary cellist Bernhard Greenhouse used to say: "you will be judged by
your <b>VOICE</b>!" <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">But
what is <i>your</i> voice? Where and how to find it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I kept insisting, going back and forth to the beginning, to
find that special sound - an internal beauty, a quality, a voice, that exists only within <i>you</i>. Perhaps a slower
vibrato, using less hair on the bow, softer attack on the string… pilling one
layer after another - layers of uncertainties, insecurities, self-doubts -
slowly a glimmer of light, a miracle surfaced. An inner-voice started to
shine, piercing the air. It was shivering and luminous. It had a glare, a
hallow. We could hardly breath. It was meaningful! The pianist was
forced to play half as much to support, to caress that shimmering voice, to
coarse it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">All
of a sudden a door opened and a phantom walked in and sat next to me. It was
Ed! I froze in my sit - could not move, could not talk. Ed died in 1996,
yet he was sitting there next to me. He came to <b>VISIT</b> his vision. It was a long day, it was a long session.
It ended when the building closed close to midnight.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">The
next day we had a big barbecue. I went and told the story to Paul Biss who
coached me that Schubert Trio when I was a student. He shared with me that after that
conversation I had with Ed many years ago, they all had lunch and Ed
brought it up saying "this was my vision when I thought of this
place".<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">"You
will be judged by your voice", said Bernard Greenhouse. For Ed that voice
was a vision. On that day his <b>vision</b> turned to be a <b>voice</b> that came to <b>visit</b> me when I listened to Schubert.</span><o:p></o:p><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Times-Roman;"><br /></span>
</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWI56P9A9Yb1wJxdrCQRbER5koW3u6dS4CnlXRGHIku47FHzVFx8zTxDw9RoeSMW_BlLEVlagcBGngVqhrIh93k-3lletls763yq5RYCwS2IlNuIObQhQ4Pk5EORTRoxQC5a5boYFD984/s1600/Ed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWI56P9A9Yb1wJxdrCQRbER5koW3u6dS4CnlXRGHIku47FHzVFx8zTxDw9RoeSMW_BlLEVlagcBGngVqhrIh93k-3lletls763yq5RYCwS2IlNuIObQhQ4Pk5EORTRoxQC5a5boYFD984/s1600/Ed.jpg" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Edward Gordon </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5sHjax4nlCfE1cdDcs3JDOLYeLABxDO1KhDNeGMYVQCp3psnbvCEDmicZGtje5oO6g4uofY3BT6J0wE2KblX7z5bvVLuYrRWcY9-372Ho3KZEEJXS3xURBBXU7awTHwsZhZy9eOxx9W0/s1600/Greenhouse.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5sHjax4nlCfE1cdDcs3JDOLYeLABxDO1KhDNeGMYVQCp3psnbvCEDmicZGtje5oO6g4uofY3BT6J0wE2KblX7z5bvVLuYrRWcY9-372Ho3KZEEJXS3xURBBXU7awTHwsZhZy9eOxx9W0/s1600/Greenhouse.jpeg" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Bernard Greenhouse</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXSW2TlWpa2flRambJidi6o7b9UcBmYaDT8XO5hkhx7jOrmtVQ7MPeVYCzdv83B9gucAzRilXHqMAAVS4ALNIfoxy2SwLBKkUgAM0huUODkArBhYhVr2MVMMwhIQu0K74PeUHizBtCyQI/s1600/Schubert2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXSW2TlWpa2flRambJidi6o7b9UcBmYaDT8XO5hkhx7jOrmtVQ7MPeVYCzdv83B9gucAzRilXHqMAAVS4ALNIfoxy2SwLBKkUgAM0huUODkArBhYhVr2MVMMwhIQu0K74PeUHizBtCyQI/s1600/Schubert2.jpeg" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Franz Schubert</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<!--EndFragment-->Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-40309809566467963192013-09-16T06:15:00.003-07:002013-09-29T17:21:48.888-07:00Pre-ludes...Middle-ludes...After-ludes (Part II)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB-4UFhVTT7WyLXtM8gNy9dbCQN747WDQchgTUewWa2uRDshlykPV8M-RcuUR8drR2i_NqxM7Yvzb3gpgQoTYNLEE5Is507NAzt-mrYxjfaVm3or1QCxsThQDd1qB97LcO8oPciZWBdXQ/s1600/Chopin+2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB-4UFhVTT7WyLXtM8gNy9dbCQN747WDQchgTUewWa2uRDshlykPV8M-RcuUR8drR2i_NqxM7Yvzb3gpgQoTYNLEE5Is507NAzt-mrYxjfaVm3or1QCxsThQDd1qB97LcO8oPciZWBdXQ/s200/Chopin+2.jpeg" width="160" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica;">This is the <u>second</u> of four installments about 24 Pre-thoughts, Middle-thoughts and After-thoughts on Chopin's epic 24 Preludes Op. 28.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="font: 18.0px Helvetica; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">7) Bach's Preludes and Fugues were conceived as a "study", an "exercise". One can argue that a few of Chopin preludes also sound as a kind of a "study". Both Bach and Chopin wrote these works as a labour of love for the keyboard, its keys, colors, sensualities, timbre and infinite potential. However, even-though some of Bach's Preludes and Fugues have inner-connections, as a whole, they were not thought of as one gigantic work to be performed as such. Chopin's Preludes on the other hand are inseparable. The more I play them, the more I feel how they are connected. They support each other, they rely on one another. Each prelude complement as well as contradict the previous one or the next one that follows. Put together side by side, they become a journey, a roller-coaster ride, or more poetically a symbol of the infinite diversity of the human spirit.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font: 18.0px Helvetica; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">8) Unlike Schumann who was somewhat bewildered by the Preludes, Franz Liszt</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm0hFR1Gw4hA7Uy5NBGAjLjXRUSiN_2zcoLc5zn9JAqrLO3e2Ml8VFGGmuMbghfm1AlBIRIrxMo0IKNmKCDgHyeyilrZxV4Lrg6AVCdzBcA3d54CHAtUmK5hJbFXZYfxm34p8OAguN44w/s1600/BSD_liszt_and_emperor-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><img border="0" height="126" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm0hFR1Gw4hA7Uy5NBGAjLjXRUSiN_2zcoLc5zn9JAqrLO3e2Ml8VFGGmuMbghfm1AlBIRIrxMo0IKNmKCDgHyeyilrZxV4Lrg6AVCdzBcA3d54CHAtUmK5hJbFXZYfxm34p8OAguN44w/s200/BSD_liszt_and_emperor-3.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">on the other hand found them "admirable for their variety, the labour and learning with which they abound…appreciable only by the aid of a scrupulous examination; everything seems fresh, elastic, created at the impulse of the moment, abounding with that freedom of expression which is characteristic of works of genius."</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="font: 18.0px Helvetica; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">9) Chopin was a ground breaking pioneer not only with transforming the prelude into an independent entity, but also with the way and to the extent in which he freed the right hand from the left hand - or perhaps better to say the melody from the accompaniment. The art of great Chopin playing involves "a free walk (the melody) on a firm ground (the accompaniment, the pulse)", to quote the words of the great Artur Schnabel.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font: 18.0px Helvetica; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">10) Harmonically speaking, Chopin was among those who lay the foundation for the break-up of tonality! Take for example Prelude no. 2 - the sense of tonal ambiguity is astounding. Not until the very last chord of the piece do we finally arrive at the home key of A minor, which has not been heard even once before.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">11) Furthermore, harmonic analysis of the preludes can be tricky at best, useless many times. Prelude no. 4 is one of the most beautiful single pages of music ever written. Analyzing this prelude vertically, knowing the degree of each chord means not knowing much at all in regards to this masterpiece. Chopin tells us that true harmonic understanding dates back a century or two - first and foremost to Bach or even prior, when figured bass and voice leading stood above all.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCZKcVsXLv58RXLUv7WADcBEHZuL9fDesdlMQeeGX58Et5qDFnHtFw0uKCKZS4iiu33TaHkNU7JWcQ5lV9JV8T-lglZnu9QV9lRbs8x3z66FQu8mc2ODQrB-R9NQYaLvsEmFeE0yxUIhc/s1600/chopin-prelude-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCZKcVsXLv58RXLUv7WADcBEHZuL9fDesdlMQeeGX58Et5qDFnHtFw0uKCKZS4iiu33TaHkNU7JWcQ5lV9JV8T-lglZnu9QV9lRbs8x3z66FQu8mc2ODQrB-R9NQYaLvsEmFeE0yxUIhc/s200/chopin-prelude-4.jpg" width="169" /></span></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">12) But maybe Chopin is trying to tell us that harmonic examination is not the way to approach this piece (and others as well). "Passing notes", "neighbor notes", "leading notes", all serve a much greater purpose. Chopin decided to write one of his most profound pieces when he reached the key of E minor in the cycle. This key used to symbolize the crucifixion in the Baroque era. Just as Bach's "Crucifixus" from the B minor Mass was written in E minor so was this prelude. And just as Bach's music descends as if picturing the descent of Jesus into the grave, so does the notes in this prelude descend slowly and steadily. Slowly as if trying to cling to life, and steadily inexorably striding towards its ultimate faith and final breath.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">...to be continued with Part III which includes yet another reaction to the Preludes: "Chopin's music is essentially unhealthy".</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-26822234983820566972013-07-20T12:36:00.000-07:002013-09-16T06:22:31.609-07:00An Adventure in Anti-Gravity<div class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dedicated to Leon Fleisher in celebration of his 85th birthday.</span><br />
<br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
It has been fifteen
years since I received my last "official" lesson with my sainted
teacher Leon Fleisher. I remember telling him not long after I moved on that my
best decision in life was to come and study with him, and the second best decision
was to leave. He smiled. That was said, obviously, with much love and
admiration.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">
</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fleisher's teaching
did not involve extensive demonstrations. Not being able to play with his right
hand for many years, he spent a lot of time searching for the right word to
express what his inner ear was seeking. Musicians tend to say that music cannot
be described in words. I believed it until I heard Fleisher speak. It was so
clear, so eloquent, so rich, so incredibly precise, even if it took me a while
to figure out how to spell surreptitious, periodicity, subtle or menacing. His
goal was to teach us to teach ourselves: to know what to ask and when to ask,
how to do, where to find, why this and why that.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> It was not too long
after I began my studies with him that at one of my lessons after playing for
him, he said one of the most beguiling yet resolute discoveries I heard him
saying. It was during a lesson on a Schubert or Beethoven sonata, while I was
trying to find the focal point in the phrase, create a long line, generate momentum
and so forth, that Fleisher leaned backward slowly in his chair, closed his
eyes gently, raised his eye-brows and said that<b> "music is made out of
physical forces." </b>Every
note, every ascending or descending line, circular patterns or huge leaps is
surrounded with physical forces. They are the magnet between the notes. This is
what the music is made of. Understanding these physical forces, knowing how to
utilize them makes for an interpretation that is not only irresistible but
inevitable.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The other day I came
back to my alma mater, the Peabody Conservatory of Music, to rehearse Mozart's
concerto for two pianos with Katherine Jacobson Fleisher in preparation for a
performance with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra later this summer. In the midst
of rehearsing Fleisher entered the room unexpectedly and we both embraced the
opportunity to be transported by his presence.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As we began the first
movement these physical forces slowly awakened – Centrifugal force pushed us
outwards when an ascending melodic run changed its direction. Centripetal force
pulled us inwards when a descending line suddenly turned upwards. Circular
patterns, angular ones, leaps, jumps, sustain notes - all generated forces that
glued the notes to become a musical phrase. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> There was one force,
though that existed from the moment the first note of the piece was pressed and
until the last note disappeared. That was the <b>force of gravity</b>. As the melody soared high above, then dived
back down almost touching the ground, making loops and leaps, taking us on a
roller-coaster journey, it was a journey in anti-gravity. Fleisher, Kathy and
myself, were conversing together with Susanna, Dr. Bartolo, the count and
Figaro. Oh, and Mozart… he was <i>conducting</i> the whole opera.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hours passed, Fleisher
became more immersed in the music. As we began the second movement he was
pointing out the achingly beautiful suspended notes in the melody. "It
hurts so good" he said, and then continued: "Listen to the way the
long notes make a crescendo after being pressed, followed by a diminuendo
before the next note arrives." Every physicist would say this is
impossible, but we musicians are not physicists, we are illusionists. This is
vocal playing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When Fleisher was
pressing those keys there was a sense of <i>rightness</i>. The notes appeared at exactly the right place
in time. He (and Mozart) did not need to use many keys to <i>open the lock</i> into the mystery of such divine beauty.
Elevating our level of awareness to the next sphere, Fleisher described a tune
as "rising the way a balloon does, at an ever-decreasing rate of speed, to
the point where the pressure outside equals the pressure inside and it stays
suspended".<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The heavenly beauty of
the opening tune gave way to the intense sorrow of the middle section. I was
bewildered by Fleisher's reorganization of the phrase structure. "Listen
to the way the held notes in the melody change their color when the harmony
underneath changes". A simple held note, so painful, became so hopeful
under a different harmony, different color. After experiencing this
extraordinary moment, the rising line with the force of resistance felt
exhausting. The next held note was one of resignation, of acceptance. It gave
in to gravity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The middle section
came to a close, and the opening melody returned. At the beginning this melody
had a future. Now it had a past. It sounded entirely different as a result. Our
resistance to the force of gravity was soon coming to a close as the movement
approached its end. Taking off when the movement started, being carried on top
of one giant force, hovering above when the pressure outside equaled the
pressure inside, experiencing all those ever-changing moods, while being aware
of the forces surrounding the notes, and at the end coming back down.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It seemed so natural,
so obvious when Fleisher put his hand on the piano. Every key he pressed was
part of nature's forces that shape our world in general and this music in
particular. For Kathy and me it was a great adventure. After all, music is an
adventure in anti-gravity. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-10736395363198057722013-03-19T05:30:00.005-07:002014-10-03T11:39:18.790-07:00Closing Circles<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Celebrating the </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">25th anniversary of </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Ravinia Festival's Steans Institute of Music</span></h3>
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<br />
It was the summer of 1994 that gave a whole new perspective
for me as a musician. A new chapter started less than a year prior to that, when I
left Israel to come and study with Leon Fleisher at the Peabody conservatory of
music in Baltimore, MD. So much had happened during the course of that year, and yet something
very special was left for the summer, when I was accepted to attend the Steans
Institute of the Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, IL not too far from Chicago.<o:p></o:p></div>
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"I hope your experience here will be an everlasting
increase of awareness" asserted Mr. Fleisher to a group of young musicians at a
festival, me being one of them. My experience that summer of 1994 at the Steans
was not so much to do with <b>awareness</b>. It was to do with <b>awakening!</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I was never a big fan of competitions. It gave me neither
motivation nor inspiration to go and practice. Yet competitions seem to have
been the excuse for countless of hours of practice to so many young pianists,
seeking that elusive thing we call "career".<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Steans institute took me on a
different path, one which was much healthier in my humble opinion. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Five weeks of intense work on solo repertoire as well as
chamber music literature - one nourishes as well as supports the other. It is
interconnected, interwoven. The Piano faculty consisted of Leon Fleisher,
Menachem Pressler, Christoph Eschenbach, and Claude Frank to name just a few.
The String faculty was of equal merit with Miriam Fried, David Geringas, Lynn Harrell, Kim Kashkashian, Paul Biss and many more.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq02JYiJHgHh5VKnt1qiVLROH18J2mtyEUSkj8Wu1IVwN954iOmUHOTzA6IQKT1oKisJnLOJF5Sw4e6ezEb-XYBb3zfeaP1GqJIjD-gzALuYSaoCA0uQpzEFue7IU5aPltQ9zJDJiTxms/s1600/1994-07-20+Master+Class+Program.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq02JYiJHgHh5VKnt1qiVLROH18J2mtyEUSkj8Wu1IVwN954iOmUHOTzA6IQKT1oKisJnLOJF5Sw4e6ezEb-XYBb3zfeaP1GqJIjD-gzALuYSaoCA0uQpzEFue7IU5aPltQ9zJDJiTxms/s200/1994-07-20+Master+Class+Program.jpg" height="200" width="112" /></a>Miriam Fried the leader of the program with her
uncompromising musicianship and sense of integrity has created an environment
where individualism and creativity flourishes. I will always remember the many hours of extra
work that Paul Biss spent with Laura, Inna and me on Schubert's E flat major
trio, helping us achieve a performance that opened our eyes (and ears) to the infinite beauty of Schubert and of chamber music. I remember how Lynn Harrell, while coaching Colin, Si-Fei, Inna and me the Brahms c minor quartet joined us in the last movement.
His playing with us amounted to a tsunami wave which I had never known
existed. For a moment I can also close my eyes and feel the aura in the room
when Claude Frank spoke about and played parts of Beethoven's sonata op. 90, or feel the exhaustion after working nearly six hours with Christoph Eschenbach on Beethoven's
<i>Les Adieux</i> sonata.<o:p></o:p></div>
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After that summer I decided that at the end of each year I
would go to a different summer festival. I went to Aspen, Tanglewood, Verbier,
Marlboro and Santa Fe. All have their special virtues. For me though, it was
the Steans Institute that turned on the light and showed the way that was best
for me.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />
Sometimes a lightening strikes twice in one place. I was struck for the first time in the summer of 1994. Then again when Miriam Fried called me to join the Piano faculty. For the past three years now I have been coming to teach /
coach at the Steans. To share and pass on what was given to me here in this special place more than a decade ago, together with other experiences each with its own nuances, is what we are meant to do. It is a privilege. To see how the Steans continues to grow and inspire young musicians while still keeping its core values is one of the joys in my professional life. </div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--EndFragment-->Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-41463877183244158442012-10-17T10:51:00.000-07:002013-09-17T11:25:53.335-07:00Eat, Play, Fly...I made my orchestral debut when I was 18, playing Rachmaninov's 1st piano concerto with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Zubin Mehta. Needless to say how exciting that was: the sense of achievement, of fulfillment - reaching for the stars and then touching one. I was completely intoxicated by the whole experience and contemplated pursuing a career playing just one piece... the Rachmaninov 1st. After all, I played it quite well, and also I did not know much else.<br />
<br />
Jumping ahead a few years (twenty-three to be exact) and about three dozen concerti, I was reminded of that thought when touring Latin-America with the Israel Chamber Orchestra conducted by Yoav Talmi.<br />
<br />
For nearly one month I enjoyed a superb career playing only two pieces - Beethoven's concerto no. 2 and Mendelssohn's concerto no. 1. Sixteen concerts, starting in Tel-Aviv and continuing in Mexico (two concerts), Guatemala, Costa Rica, Columbia, Peru (2), Ecuador (2), Argentina (5), and Uruguay. All of the concerts were in the major halls of the major cities including Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City, Teatro Nacional in San Jose, etc.<br />
<br />
Several stretches of this tour turned out to be: playing in Guatemala City, flying the next morning to San Jose (Costa Rica) and playing that night, flying the next morning to Medellin (Columbia) and playing that night, flying the next morning to Lima (Peru). My "job" was to be at my very best sixteen times in order to serve Beethoven or Mendelssohn (as to be at their service), as well as serve to the public Beethoven or Mendelssohn (I am also a waiter in some sort of way). All I did was Eat, Play and Fly. There really was not much sleeping involved. And yet, in many ways it ended up being much easier than the "normal" erratic concert schedule when one plays once or twice each week usually different repertoire.<br />
<br />
I had no time (zero, nada, zilch) for anything but what I came here to do - perform B&M. No e-mails, no voice messages, credit card statements, traffic jams (we cruised through traffic with the help of the local police in Medellin and Lima), or any other 21st century improvements/distractions. The level of concentration was at its highest, constant adrenalin, getting into the rhythm of performing. It was a continuous state of euphoria. This was one of the most rewarding music experiences I have ever had.<br />
<br />
Performing sixteen consecutive times with the vibrant and wonderfully supportive Israel chamber orchestra under the commanding hand of the venerable conductor Yoav Talmi allowed for a degree of insight and intimacy that I have rarely felt. The possibility for experimentation and exploration, risk taking and stretching the boundaries was enormous.<br />
<br />
* Should I launch onto and bring out the dramatic side of Beethoven right at the opening statements of the concerto, or should I play with a Mozartian elegance and leave the dramatic aspect more to the outrageously daring Cadenza?<br />
<br />
* How far can I push the limits of the operatic scene in the second movement of the Beethoven? Perhaps each day I can give the role to a different singer?<br />
<br />
* Can I totally change each appearance of the Rondo theme of the third movement, or should I "try to get closer to how my inner-ear would like it to sound" as my legendary teacher Leon Fleisher would have said?<br />
<br />
* Can I really joke around in the last movement of the Mendelssohn concerto, while even adding a few ornaments?<br />
<br />
* How about giving the First movement of the Mendelssohn a Lisztian flair?<br />
<br />
All these questions and countless more were "up for grabs" or rather "up for trying out". What ecstasy!<br />
<br />
Feeling at home on the stage, challenging and being challenged by the warmth and wit of Maestro Talmi; Making chamber music with the whole orchestra; And above all, being proven yet again that Music has a power of communication like no other. The music of Beethoven and Mendelssohn have not only transcended time and survived over centuries, it has also transcended place and touched the people of Guatemala, Peru, Ecuador or Columbia, just as profoundly as in any other parts of the world. We all witnessed it, and were privileged to have taken a role of ambassadors - ambassadors for music, for dialogue, for friendship, for multi-culturalism.<br />
<br />
At the beginning of the tour I was excited every day we had a concert. As we approached the end. I got excited when we had a day off...<br />
<br />
Now, it is time to move on, but I want to linger just a little longer. I want to savor the moments, perhaps even write about them, talk, share, and most of all start dreaming about the next tour.<br />
<br />
<br />
Alon Goldstein<br />
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In front of the Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City with the whole orchestra and Yoav Talmi</div>
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Inside the hall warming up just before the concert</div>
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My second visit to see Il Sistema in action in Guatemala City, Guatemala</div>
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The add for the concert in Teatro Nacional in San Jose, Costa Rica<br />
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In front of Teatro Nacional in San Jose, Costa Rica<br />
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This (and the concert) is pretty much what I remember from the 12 hours we spent in Medellin, Columbia</div>
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OK... I did not just perform (Lima, Peru)</div>
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A sign for our performance in Guayaquil, Ecuador</div>
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With Yoav Talmi in a moment of profound concentration</div>
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The beautiful hall in Cordoba, Argentina during the second half of our concert</div>
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Teatro Colon at night - This is It!</div>
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In action - Tearto Colon</div>
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I had to add one more</div>
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Four hands encore with the multi-faceted maestro</div>
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Teatro Solis in Montevideo, Uruguay</div>
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One last goodbye together in Montevideo, Uruguay (after the concert)</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-19016217447259061552012-05-06T16:29:00.003-07:002013-09-23T07:25:31.601-07:00Pre-ludes…Middle-ludes…After-ludes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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One of the most monumental yet enigmatic works of the nineteen-century is the <b>24 preludes op. 28 of Frederic Chopin</b>. It puzzled as well as fascinated the most celebrated musicians including people like Schumann and Liszt. Is it one work, or are these 24 little miniatures? Should it be played as a whole? Does it have an exposition, a development, any climax, goal, and resolution?
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Chopin's preludes re-examine, re-shape, re-evaluate (and more) common notions or expectations so to speak, as we delve dip into the Romanic era. Sensuality of sound; what constitutes a melody; rhythmic complexities; textural transparency; are all but a little teaser to what this epic work has to offer. It is the culmination of an era and at the same time the foundation of what is to come.
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Here are 24 thoughts – some pre-thoughts, some middle-ones and some after-thoughts - about the 24 Preludes of Chopin:<br />
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1) First of all Chopin liberated the Prelude from the… Fugue! Similarly, he liberated the Etude from being a mere exercise or the Scherzo from being part of a larger work. There were predecessors, but he was by far the most masterful.<br />
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2) These are Preludes then, but to what? Well, the first one is probably a prelude to the second one. The third one is a prelude to the forth one. But is the second one a prelude to the third? Can we also say that the first twelve as a whole are a prelude to the succeeding twelve? I certainly feel that.<br />
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3) Are all the 24 preludes??? No. 23, the penultimate one has the flair of an "after-lude" in my opinion. No. 15, the famous one with the nickname "raindrop" feels very much like a "middle-lude", being the center of gravity in the cycle. Hence the reason that I called this entry "Pre-ludes, Middle-ludes, After-ludes".<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGBDavtaVLBlQBAF7zIqWm-S_4TrOITVbN5ZJVG6jRm7YcQmpISd1ypYeNWKmsnZpCqh7bxINQtt-pMNuLEAjWL-QUNneuvDod9VqT0necIrGk3C4FELGZemh7pGcrRWY0AkuOq8IWdCw/s1600/Salon.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="120" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGBDavtaVLBlQBAF7zIqWm-S_4TrOITVbN5ZJVG6jRm7YcQmpISd1ypYeNWKmsnZpCqh7bxINQtt-pMNuLEAjWL-QUNneuvDod9VqT0necIrGk3C4FELGZemh7pGcrRWY0AkuOq8IWdCw/s200/Salon.jpeg" width="200" /></a> 4) Bach's "Goldberg Variations" among MANY things, is also a study of baroque dance genres, as each variation explores a different dance genre of the high baroque era. I would like to make a similar proclamation and say that to a large extent the 24 preludes are also 24 studies of 24 dance genres as well as other nineteen-century salon pieces that were common (more or less) in the Romantic period. We can find a barcarole (no. 13), a Nocturne (no. 15), Fantasy-Impromptu (no. 8), an elegy (no. 4), a funeral march (no. 20), a Polonaise (no. 6) a mazurka (no. 7) and etude (no. 19) etc.<br />
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5) Staying with Bach… when the great master wrote his B minor Mass he was approaching the end of his life. Writing a grand Mass for his legacy was of highest importance for him. Perhaps there was something of a "legacy" also with Chopin's decision to write 24 Preludes in all 24 major and minor scales – a large scale work that will encompass not only the eternity of music but of humanity in a sense. An emotional journey with the widest of range from triumph to despair, great struggle to euphoria, anger to ultimate sweetness etc.<br />
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6) In 1834 Robert Schumann founded the <i>New Journal for Music</i>. His first review was written about a little known polish composer by the name of Frederick Chopin and started with the words "Hats off Gentleman, a genius". Five years later even though Schumann still admired Chopin greatly, he had this to say about the preludes: "The preludes are strange pieces... They are sketches, beginnings of Etudes or so to speak, ruins, eagle wings, a wild motley of pieces... He is and remains the boldest and proudest poetic mind of the time. The collection also contains the morbid, the feverish, and the repellent. May each search what suits him; may only the philistine (dilettante) stay away."
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...to be continued with the words of Liszt and others in the next entry.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-33775363404213608852012-01-09T10:53:00.000-08:002013-09-17T11:26:09.941-07:00A Questionnaire to ShareI was recently asked to be a featured artist in a publication. I needed to answer the following questions:<br />
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1) What or who inspired you to want to be an artist? <br />
2) What was was your creative journey that has brought you to where you are in your career today?<br />
3) What do you need as an artist today? <br />
4) What creative project are you working on now? <br />
5) Where do you see yourself and your career in 10 years? <br />
6) What does it mean to you to be an Israeli artist?<br />
7) What does it mean to you to have an organization like AICF available in the art world?<br />
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This is what came out:<br />
1) Looking back, trying to re-live those early days when music became an integral part of my life, it was my late grandfather who first opened the door for me into the world of music. I was always drawn to interesting, multi-faceted people. My late grandfather was such a person – a painter, an accomplished violinist as well as a pianist, and a great actor who could impersonate Charlie Chaplin brilliantly. In other words, he was an artist in the true sense of the word. Every minute with him was filled with music and stories. Many of the stories were of survival during World War II. Throughout my life, the people that inspired me where the ones that were multi talented, larger than life, charismatic figures. Another such person was the composer / violinist / author and educator Ben Zion Orgad, to be further elaborated later on.<br />
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2) The creative journey that brought me to where I am right now involved on the one hand events, while on the other hand people that I met. When I was 17 years old I heard a concert in which Zubin Mehta conducted young soloists. I was so moved by the whole event. It energized me with tremendous ambition to be the next young soloist that the maestro will invite. That manifested itself in my commitment to practice harder every day. The following year I got my wish. <br />
In the earlier question I mentioned Ben Zion Orgad – together with Leon Fleisher, both figures shaped my musical thinking enormously. When Ben Zion Orgad gave me his newest piano piece, a Toccata, asking me to add all the dynamic and interpretative markings, he elevated my level of awareness of what I do and why, to levels that I did not experience before. And when Leon Fleisher asked me to “direct his ear to what he should listen for”, before I played for him, whether it was Schubert or Chopin, he taught me to teach myself.<br />
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3) There are many things that I feel I need as an artist: My family and my friends above all – my support team. I also need time – time to explore, to ask questions, to succeed as well as to fail. I need peace and quiet that allows me to concentrate. I need “Godot” – something that constantly challenges and stimulates me to wake up the next day and run to the piano. I need to see a good play, a good movie, take a beautiful scenic road… and oh, I almost forgot, I also need a glass of red wine with a few lamb chops. <br />
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4) One of the creative projects that I am working on right now deals with creating a mega work out of two enigmatic monumental works. One of the most important, yet difficult to understand, solo pieces of the 19-century is the 24 preludes by Chopin. Even Schumann’s review of this work was quite elusive in its praise. I am in the process of inserting into these 24 jewels the 11 miniatures called ‘Musica Ricercata’ by the 20-century composer Gyorgy Ligeti. I strongly believe that music makes infinite number of connections, just like our brain. The juxtaposition of the raw passion of Chopin with the somewhat “scientific” passion of Ligeti fascinates me, and I hope will shed new light on the essence of these wonderful works. I am also working on another project - to record the two Mendelssohn concerti with the Israel Chamber Orchestra and the wonderful conductor Yoav Talmi.<br />
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5) During the past year two major trips - one to China and the other to Guatemala - shaken my musical journey to the core. In both cases children where involved. In China, witnessing in each concert I gave the attendance of hundreds of kids was absolutely incredible. In Guatemala I was introduced to the "Il Systema" program, which takes children from poor areas and give them a sense of purpose, a sense of identity and pride through a classical music program ages four till twenty. This daily program (five hours each day) includes singing, building instruments, playing them and ultimately performing in the children’s neighborhoods. I hope that in ten years my career will somehow be linked with these sorts of inspiring experiences, all of which are connected with education through music.<br />
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6) An Israeli artist is an ambassador! This is a great responsibility, which I embrace with all my heart. It is a responsibility to show the immense creative power that emerges and is cultivated in the land of Israel. Once, following a concert with the Rhode Island Philharmonic orchestra I was asked to shed light on the possible reasons that despite constant security issues and existential threats Israel is still able to produce so many wonderful artists. My answer was that perhaps this is our way to bring sanity and hope to an otherwise a very sad situation. Maybe it is a retreat. We need that and you need that. Together, with the help of Beethoven and Brahms we will succeed.<br />
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7) To have the America Israel Cultural Foundation in the art world means first and foremost to have a family – one that gives you the love and support you need as well as the faith that you can fulfill your potential. The AICF is also a hub for ideas to explore, for friendships to make and for opportunities, which you are given. It is also a place with experience that will always be happy to share an advice. Combining all that together for over seventy years, they have had a central role in the development of some of today’s most beloved and successful artists. I have the privilege to say that I belong to this family. <br />
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Alon GoldsteinUnknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-50010479618598591392011-10-31T16:44:00.000-07:002011-11-04T08:16:48.648-07:00A Pianistic ParadoxThe art of playing the piano involves quite a strange paradox. <br /><br />In our pursuit of creating a beautiful <span style="font-style:italic;">horizontal</span> singing line we have to make <span style="font-style:italic;">vertical</span> movements!<br /><br />Pressing keys down seem to me such an unnatural movement in an attempt to create anything horizontal...<br /><br />The legendary pianist Artur Schnabel in his quest to reconcile this asserted that <span style="font-weight:bold;">"vertical is not only going from up to down. It is also going down up."</span> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihg7wjgc8S30myIARgYRDuUqEMRgSQ07lJPzD-qqA6tWKuUg1YRFg-WdWbn96ZziqJvu7_Sl3dze64r3Iy2QnqOiacSiKSBmmneDgZnbsSwAidhh0gPrpnfO7dxPAOaup_1sARpGMwGo8/s1600/1000123-1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 193px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihg7wjgc8S30myIARgYRDuUqEMRgSQ07lJPzD-qqA6tWKuUg1YRFg-WdWbn96ZziqJvu7_Sl3dze64r3Iy2QnqOiacSiKSBmmneDgZnbsSwAidhh0gPrpnfO7dxPAOaup_1sARpGMwGo8/s200/1000123-1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5669809661912982050" /></a><br /><br />Indeed we press keys down. However, the overall motion must be upward - the palm, the wrist, the torso, and above all our concept of sound. This must go up!<br /><br />Would that be enough to achieve the sense of a horizontal line?<br />Well, perhaps some talent to support this might help.<br /><br /><br />Alon GoldsteinUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-33746112618041769272011-09-25T19:49:00.000-07:002011-10-03T16:48:52.969-07:00Knowing the story - a friend or foeAt a recent concert in Frederick, MD I decided to experiment with the importance of sharing the story of a piece with the audience. We are living in an era where we need to be told what to listen for and what to expect. We cannot decide that for ourselves. Furthermore, this is an age where knowing which coffee Beethoven was drinking while he wrote his late string quartets is of highest importance. It will help us "understand" these pieces. Perhaps the better question here is what was he smoking...<br /><br />Program notes these days are full of dry trivia points as well as anecdotes and stories about the pieces, most of which are superfluous. What's entirely missing are the tools given to the listener so he can make an internal dialogue with the music - one soul to another.<br /><br />One of the pieces in my program was from Maurice Ravel's stupendous cycle called "Miroirs" (Reflections). The story, which I told the audience, had one major (or minor) problem, which I was wondering if someone would address, including the present reader of this blog.<br /><br />This extraordinary tone poem is the impressionistic realization of the famous Goethe song "Erlkönig" - the devastating story of a young boy who is riding with his father on a horse through a dark forest. The boy cries for help when he sees the evil spirit of the Erlkönig. The latter tries to seduce the boy and ultimately steal his soul. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhxt9Q6U0duSsjcVeUudUk0MotWxrVyilvdxgmAhFpzGPola5-WB3yoJVhW5LnkojYoRRS7Qm4aTxbgPiYn8fe5c_xOyIVeKwqNOuDqoiUFH2jtI_XX0XigbM9snlyDSGd3dCQ75wcPsY/s1600/Erlkoenig_Neher__898x500_.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 112px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhxt9Q6U0duSsjcVeUudUk0MotWxrVyilvdxgmAhFpzGPola5-WB3yoJVhW5LnkojYoRRS7Qm4aTxbgPiYn8fe5c_xOyIVeKwqNOuDqoiUFH2jtI_XX0XigbM9snlyDSGd3dCQ75wcPsY/s200/Erlkoenig_Neher__898x500_.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5656639739109215362" /></a><br /><br /><br />In Ravel's hands this frightening poem turns into a sensuous impressionistic tapestry - a mother is putting her little boy to sleep. She is singing to him the sweetest, most relaxing Lullaby. The boy who is afraid of bad dreams tells the mother of a demon that comes to him in the dream and asks him to follow. The little boy is filled with fear that if he follows he shall never return. <br /><br />The music caresses the story - it carries it through the boy's emotional upheavals while the mother is sitting by his bedside singing. The sweet dream gradually becomes dark and menacing. The music changes its color. I posed a question to the audience - "Was the boy taken by the demon at the end of this eight minute piece, or would he wake up?"<br /><br />I played through the piece and received a very warm applause mixed with appreciation. After all, this somewhat modern composition could not have been "understood" had I not mentioned the story. Most of the audience also participated in the questionnaire and said that in their opinion the boy would wake up.<br /><br />Wonderful! All is working according to my plan! Well, it is more according to the late Leonard Bernstein's plan that did a similar thing in one of his legendary Young People's Concerts. <br /><br />I then revealed to the audience the major problem (or minor) that my story had: It was definitely NOT Ravel's story! Actually, I can guarantee it had absolutely nothing to do with what Ravel was thinking. Ravel gave this piece a name: "A boat on the Ocean". <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEija4ayjgHVvqpqlY90rRARwLmRaBfJ_g3_mQbka1r_ndZhBRX8nhyphenhyphenmkUGmrxIe-NJYH2lpsKRMCfH4B5_eacjSxy1-EGmXwZ9wdBXnxzNQCbSKS2cFqIxSzr8LI3-UPm6PXNiewgT7uTA/s1600/colin-gustave-henri-1828-1910-barque-sur-l-ocean-2569192.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 153px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEija4ayjgHVvqpqlY90rRARwLmRaBfJ_g3_mQbka1r_ndZhBRX8nhyphenhyphenmkUGmrxIe-NJYH2lpsKRMCfH4B5_eacjSxy1-EGmXwZ9wdBXnxzNQCbSKS2cFqIxSzr8LI3-UPm6PXNiewgT7uTA/s200/colin-gustave-henri-1828-1910-barque-sur-l-ocean-2569192.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5656642180077842994" /></a><br /><br /><br />Now, was I wrong? Everyone followed the music. They all were so happy. The music certainly supported my made-up story.<br />Ravel's name is definitely the right one for the piece, but I don't think I was wrong with my story. It worked. <br /><br />Most pieces do not have names by the composer, simply a number - Sonata number 1, 2, 3 or Symphony no. 4, 5, 6...<br />In such cases one can really let his imagination soar and come up with what might even seem absurd. In this particular piece by Ravel the given name should not "explain" the piece, but rather open the mind to the infinite possibilities of one's individual dialogue with this beautiful music. Perhaps next time I will follow along with a story about another demon... that of "Loreley" the beautiful water-nymph who sing to the men so they will follow her into the deep ocean. <br /><br />I will sing to my audience...<br /><br /><br />Alon GoldsteinUnknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-2405159438227369072011-06-09T05:48:00.000-07:002011-06-09T12:11:31.152-07:00Passion (or) Innovation<span style="font-weight:bold;">Legeti's Musica Ricercata</span><br /><br />Not long ago I played a solo recital in Chicago. On the afternoon of the concert as I approached the venue I noticed a big poster announcing the event with my name and picture underneath a big bold title <span style="font-weight:bold;">"Passion and Innovation."</span><br /><br />The program included as its focal points Beethoven's <span style="font-style:italic;">Appassionata</span> alongside Ligeti's <span style="font-style:italic;">Musica Ricercata</span>. Needless to say the rest of my day up to the concert was spent on trying to "figure out" which is Passion and which is Innovation.<br /> <br />O.K. fine, I know there are better things to do in Chicago even if one plays a concert that day, such as seeing the Chagall windows at the Arts Institute (which I did!) However, the title did throw me into tinkering with the ideas: Are all the pieces in my program Innovative? Or more broadly, does music have to be innovative? I would passionately assert: "YES!" Well, definitely my program is.<br /><br />With that exclamation mark, how about passionate? Ah, now that is different. Easy with Beethoven… harder with Ligeti.<br /><br />The <span style="font-style:italic;">Musica Ricercata</span> was written between 1951 and 1953, at a time when Ligeti was searching for his own voice. He was preoccupied with re-examining tone color, rhythmic patterns and rhythmic textures. Many questions were raised: what constitutes a melody? What is structure in its rudimentary form? Does music need structure? How about tempo? Does a piece need to have a heart-beat? And dynamics?<br /><br />This was obviously a musical search, but was it not also his soul searching?<br />Could we divide that?<br />Soul = Passion, right?<br /><br />When learning <span style="font-style:italic;">Musica Ricercata</span>, it is easy to find great wit, humor, complexity as well as difficulty in the fast movements, which seem to work against our normal reflexes. I would go even further in this spirit and say that these fast movements were not written for the piano. They were written "against" the piano. The constant change of meter, and accents make for very confusing strong beat–weak beat relationships. This is definitely an extension of Stravinsky and Bartok. The frequent register leaps, the abrupt dynamic changes, all are forcing the performer to concentrate on <span style="font-weight:bold;">panic</span> rather than <span style="font-weight:bold;">passion!</span> But maybe Ligeti's brain is just "wired" differently. For him, this might be the manifestation of passion.<br /><br />A different thought: could it be that Ligeti was trying to take passion out of music?!<br /><br />In the course of this interesting discussion with myself I suddenly became mortified. I remembered that during my studies of music history post world-war II there was a very disturbing experiment by composers such as John Cage to "take the responsibility of the performance away from the performer." This piece has SO MANY bizarre oddities, which are partially due to an INFINITE number of markings in the score – from all sorts of dynamics to exact tempo markings, to minute articulation directions and what not... Was Ligeti attempting to take me, the performer out of the equation? If I am really to follow ALL the interpretative markings which are in the score, am I not loosing my own voice, my own self? <br />Perhaps I need more time. Some fresh air...<br /><br />NO!<br />Perhaps Ligeti was re-examining how far-reaching passion could go – how diverse could it be.<br /><br />Looking at the slow movements for a clearer answer, my mind instead was finding new areas to explore. <br />The first movement basically uses ONE note! Well, no wonder we are asking ourselves about passion. What can you get out of a two minute repetition of one not? I think this is where the core of our discussion lies.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">GENESIS!!</span><br /><br />...In the beginning there was silence. And out of the silence the Big Bang - one note, a loud one! Then dynamics were created, surrounding that note with more possibilities, variety. Then different registers of the same note came to be, followed by rhythm. And within the course of two minutes, the creation of sound unfolds before our eyes and ears. Tempo and heart beat naturally evolve. <br /><br />The only thing still missing is to fulfill our expectations, and resolve the note. This comes at the very last note of this movement – a new note! <br /><br />Like Adam that finally got Eve as his companion and thereafter came the birth of humanity – this note got its companion and thereafter the birth of music, of melodies, of soaring and diving singing lines, of quirky and meditative rhythmic gestures, different tempi, dynamics, colors and so much more. Slowly but surely we get the evolution in the <span style="font-style:italic;">Musica Ricercata.</span><br /><br />If this is not passion than what is?!<br /><br />It is different. It is not what we expected. But it opens (o)the(r) doors of Passion.<br /><br /><br />Alon GoldsteinUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-13706533370656486832011-06-01T08:37:00.000-07:002011-06-01T08:56:29.626-07:00With logic you cannot jump... you need fantasyI just read an interview with the venerable conductor Nikolaus Harnoncourt, and wanted to share this beautiful quote:<br /><br />When he was asked about one watchword (a word or phrase expressing his core belief), he replied <span style="font-style:italic;">fantasy</span>, and went on to say that if Einstein, who played violin, had not been a musician, he would never have hit on his theory of relativity. ''Illogic is an important part of being human,'' Einstein said. ''With logic you cannot jump, you cannot make hypotheses. You need fantasy for that.''Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-2415691497110800542011-05-18T09:46:00.000-07:002011-05-18T06:24:37.014-07:00EL SISTEMA (Part II)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh98sGFDRKonUFy1GVHyKaMEw8w3mhjj0NFYTHDic41XdLnAeVV0ewUeLaurFyYgKknR9w6yb5nv4uciD8ei6wc6lsT_4r7gFoNFMeDojCOLKFtVafnJixFd0XS8RNezlU49O4ZNnjon5k/s1600/P1000594.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh98sGFDRKonUFy1GVHyKaMEw8w3mhjj0NFYTHDic41XdLnAeVV0ewUeLaurFyYgKknR9w6yb5nv4uciD8ei6wc6lsT_4r7gFoNFMeDojCOLKFtVafnJixFd0XS8RNezlU49O4ZNnjon5k/s200/P1000594.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5608043550095043186" /></a><br />...in a day filled with extraordinary highlights, there was still one moment that stood above others.<br /><br />We had a Q & A session (the young orchestra members and I), and I was asked whether I have a favorite composer or favorite piece. Not an uncommon question for which my answer is that I spend countless number of hours with every piece before it gets to be presented on the stage, and I cannot go through such a process with a piece I would not consider as a favorite. In other words, I have no favorite piece or composer, but rather favorites! <br /><br />To the principle cellist that answer did not suffice. Standing up, he asked me if I could play "something that I could identify myself with." Now that is different. With some hesitation I sat down and played the closing movement from Schumann's epic Fantasy Op. 17.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0UstxygswIW5ZBRILfiZEAIf_57lFj3PLog-3-xLfzeMyyn1aKCQS87uG0bjBUVI_hr1iSdbd0pan0jUqMCQdv1t5OlXN8-V_SDWXM7PA_UBz6_F-A7PV7AspQuIB25v26EQVcVrbNwQ/s1600/P1000603.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0UstxygswIW5ZBRILfiZEAIf_57lFj3PLog-3-xLfzeMyyn1aKCQS87uG0bjBUVI_hr1iSdbd0pan0jUqMCQdv1t5OlXN8-V_SDWXM7PA_UBz6_F-A7PV7AspQuIB25v26EQVcVrbNwQ/s200/P1000603.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5608043536624323778" /></a> This thirteen minute slow pace meditation or perhaps a prayer, a farewell, is one of the most heartfelt pieces ever written. It goes straight into our innermost. It is music which expresses such solitude yet is all embracing. It is probably meant for just one person, whomever you want him to be. <br /> <br />After playing it, I turned to my fellow musicians and asked for the reason for choosing this piece. The answers kept pouring. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDxMG_ADNxPYkU8ljlHf20A0xbkk77NPP2-nq2bFYxL2FAdKHjhGTQrDbFUrEbWTc5ZfEueS9dYTmVpYt1rAncXevDDCOgKR_SxM-y_qn8uCBCaXVBEBAGVTj9_OLt8tkJPbLSrf7Vrrc/s1600/P1000606.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDxMG_ADNxPYkU8ljlHf20A0xbkk77NPP2-nq2bFYxL2FAdKHjhGTQrDbFUrEbWTc5ZfEueS9dYTmVpYt1rAncXevDDCOgKR_SxM-y_qn8uCBCaXVBEBAGVTj9_OLt8tkJPbLSrf7Vrrc/s200/P1000606.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5608043542190406002" /></a><br />The two answers that I will never forget came from one orchestra member who thought that this music represented "the way I would like the world to be"; the second came from Bruno, their twenty-eight year old conductor who said that while I was playing, he saw the gates of heaven opening up and beaming light shined upon us all. This reminded me what Schumann said when writing this movement: that he had "a vision of Heaven with its angels in solemn troops and sweet societies, that sing, and singing in their glory move, and wipe the tears forever from our eyes.” <br />I could not agree more with all that I heard.<br /><br />Shortly after, a group of about fifty people came in and formed a half-a-circle behind the orchestra. At first I was not sure where they came from or why they were here. All of a sudden they started to sing Handel a-cappella, and continued with all sorts of folk songs. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-dQQNtxACWMh0xgMABb3axCjqUQMzyzkxg4E32M-OVfCNj7oJdCOh-aJHtDr9fXFF5xXjfIvZdCkZFlDW8A26sVGpof89l6i7tfJPTT0e67B1mQRxvQDrpUkWzXg_JMbyPfUWdqvOD9k/s1600/P1000659.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-dQQNtxACWMh0xgMABb3axCjqUQMzyzkxg4E32M-OVfCNj7oJdCOh-aJHtDr9fXFF5xXjfIvZdCkZFlDW8A26sVGpof89l6i7tfJPTT0e67B1mQRxvQDrpUkWzXg_JMbyPfUWdqvOD9k/s200/P1000659.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5608045009056987106" /></a><br />This afternoon started with one climax and gathered many more along the way: the choir of four-year-old's, the nine-year-old concert mistress, the instrument restoration shop, the ten-year-old conductor, the Schumann Fantasy, the a-cappella choir, and so much more. I saw a miracle in all its glory – a new reality. Can this be real or should I look at today's newspapers to find out what is real? I have no doubt that everyone around felt they were part of something special. Through the power of music they were able to get away each day from their reality if just for a moment, and build a new one, much more hopeful. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5z_Hp8-TKVcWotbCJLiG-1xQGePYaOIvXxjgGSVSZ6B5cQxHtuUssDL4_-nsCv7bFKAuBRHclTzP4cWNxVEPu-YsqBakXDmrKnhjYIqM86l4OwZcA9aOfXGG6ekmSQUkzOLV51GghuWo/s1600/P1000647.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5z_Hp8-TKVcWotbCJLiG-1xQGePYaOIvXxjgGSVSZ6B5cQxHtuUssDL4_-nsCv7bFKAuBRHclTzP4cWNxVEPu-YsqBakXDmrKnhjYIqM86l4OwZcA9aOfXGG6ekmSQUkzOLV51GghuWo/s200/P1000647.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5608043547150152754" /></a><br /><br />Many mornings I wake up and spend time with a composer that through the power of music he was aiming to build a more ideal world – Beethoven. I decided to end the visit with playing the Finale from Beethoven's Sonata "Appassionata".<br /><br />The orchestra made me their first honorary member. I told them that the real honor would be that next time, rather than play for each other, let us play WITH each other.<br />After all, they showed me what togetherness is all about.<br /><br />Thank you!<br />Alon Goldstein (Nov. 2010)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-47009748814911263202011-04-30T17:56:00.000-07:002011-05-13T15:42:19.841-07:00EL SISTEMAO.K. so I am going through my midlife crisis. My priorities shift. What interests me is changing dramatically and what brings tears to my eyes is becoming quite different.<br /><br />First it was China. Now it is Guatemala.<br /><br />Following two solo recitals in Guatemala not too long ago, I visited the youth orchestra of Guatemala City, which is modeled after the Simon Bolivar orchestra of Venezuela. The now famous orchestra that has taken kids from poor villages throughout Venezuela and gave them a home, a shelter, through a life in music, has become an inspiration to many. It was my first encounter with "El Sistema" – an encounter that lasted five hours, though feels like it still goes on.<br /><br />As I walk up the uneven stairway of the old abandoned post office building turned music school in the center of Guatemala City, I help my hostess Alex to carry bags of used clothes. These are for the children I am about to meet.<br /><br />One thousand five hundred kids, ages four to about twenty gather here daily between 2pm and 7pm to make music (and to give meaning to their life). <br /><br />My first stop was at a classroom filled with the very young children most of which are four years old, who lined up to form a choir. They began to sing for me. What joy! They were so proud. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz2A1JchuQHVBMvmE3T_Rw5QRr6Kps7AbcIRUCKQ2Rbbbdw2Xzl1EcUnCMlxK8XIgFTGUDGDpleAWc59XIUxtdKA_2_HkCd-JKHtB7D2AvPI4HM4J-SaOqwvadgfeQRLLjPhA8Gah3X_Y/s1600/Youth+1.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz2A1JchuQHVBMvmE3T_Rw5QRr6Kps7AbcIRUCKQ2Rbbbdw2Xzl1EcUnCMlxK8XIgFTGUDGDpleAWc59XIUxtdKA_2_HkCd-JKHtB7D2AvPI4HM4J-SaOqwvadgfeQRLLjPhA8Gah3X_Y/s200/Youth+1.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5601806361480144402" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8zyc1ADxN09UcaMrqAfrZWWMGYqRu2x8SH5MbzV5sDCsHPs1xhqmXvZOpH30u3-1B4w2nBXHl-xZ0Nq_685otbxsfE3vgZvlls_FYFMQxU2FvaNqVXzfE8r78HHA4PBFEMGOah9i20_s/s1600/Youth+2.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8zyc1ADxN09UcaMrqAfrZWWMGYqRu2x8SH5MbzV5sDCsHPs1xhqmXvZOpH30u3-1B4w2nBXHl-xZ0Nq_685otbxsfE3vgZvlls_FYFMQxU2FvaNqVXzfE8r78HHA4PBFEMGOah9i20_s/s200/Youth+2.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5601806370492310338" /></a><br />I will never forget the little girl who looked up at me. She did not remember all the words. She was shy. She was tiny, and yet she was part of something so big - bigger than her, bigger than me. Being together, singing together gave them a sense of purpose which was extraordinary. I became very emotional, and had to hide my tears. On the left side of the choir I noticed about a dozen older kids who were deaf and sang in sign language. <br />I was enchanted and did not want it to end but had to leave.<br /><br />My next stop was the "six to twelve year old orchestra". All sorts of noises were coming from outside the building – cars, sirens, jack-hammers, and other unrelated sounds, however it looked to me that the children heard ONLY the sound of music making. Inquisitive eyes were staring at me – whispering, giggling. All of a sudden the nine-year-old concert-mistress got up and everyone was silent (including me). <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsIpd2Thdoom4TSeewygqQsqlgL9r06AOqzyaMrgjXstu5Kft15vCnPkKCq3naDk1ShcgMWray-tDRj6Z2jt2KuUi_rlLFuw7b334Ng_ZcN9HawM82CWTn93iCBT8PERIgUTKgqJe2XdE/s1600/Youth+7.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsIpd2Thdoom4TSeewygqQsqlgL9r06AOqzyaMrgjXstu5Kft15vCnPkKCq3naDk1ShcgMWray-tDRj6Z2jt2KuUi_rlLFuw7b334Ng_ZcN9HawM82CWTn93iCBT8PERIgUTKgqJe2XdE/s200/Youth+7.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5601809901491380130" /></a> They tuned. Discipline is very important. In that classroom, it came out of respect for your peer as well as for what was about to happen. They played for me. I could not help but play for them also. They asked me questions. I, on the other hand, was speechless. I did not know what to ask.<br /><br />We went to the courtyard where I saw a twelve year old coaching a six or seven year old kid. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpRnjJjBgsMDolK8FB69MlDYVpEvd9QgkVpSI9g214xgRA2RlI2aE0EJX8Jukto66yShINzLAgQv8DkfjgkgjzSJ_i6jSfeTX9FJC3Sb2c3rQ8aIyZcdIbmVsXz9_74uhtXkE7nb_8488/s1600/Youth+5.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpRnjJjBgsMDolK8FB69MlDYVpEvd9QgkVpSI9g214xgRA2RlI2aE0EJX8Jukto66yShINzLAgQv8DkfjgkgjzSJ_i6jSfeTX9FJC3Sb2c3rQ8aIyZcdIbmVsXz9_74uhtXkE7nb_8488/s200/Youth+5.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5601807880294617154" /></a><br />Alex told me that one of the principles of the system is learning from the older brother – learning from someone who is just a few years older (under some supervision.) Consequently the twelve year old will learn from the eighteen year old and so the pyramid is constructed. This is a very close-knit web, where one nourishes as well as dependent on the other.<br /><br />From the courtyard I went to hear a rehearsal of the twelve year old orchestra. If I heard correctly, then they have about FORTY-SIX different ensembles! <br /><br />I was then introduced to a new program of "Instrument renovation and maintenance program". The teenage kids, who receive instruments from all around - instruments, which are usually in bad shape - learn how to fix them and bring them to a descent condition. <br /><br />In retrospect, all of this was in preparation for my visit to the mature orchestra of children, which are in their late teens. They all sat in a large room that could barely fit them. A piano was waiting in the corner. There was electricity in the air. They started playing a Latin American piece, which was dedicated to me. My response was in the per(form)ance of three dances by Argentinean composer Alberto Ginastera - the closest to their musical language that I could get to. <br /><br />At this point it was me who could not help it anymore and started to ask them questions about their upbringing, their goals, hopes, dreams. I heard stories mostly about their concerts all around Guatemala introducing music as well as themselves to the people of their country. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiRJmi01vpxtMrZuXjF40RZA8AjZ6Roz9LWdr2CIRGnXFOr9SPtuLr1WOqIBed6pGrjBrMBEvPuFOycLYxD3Y7W9b7Vzb8jQ2A04G5ym8mfEjTOWUBkyYSocEYZg7MyxUEIpv0br_kE7U/s1600/Youth+6.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiRJmi01vpxtMrZuXjF40RZA8AjZ6Roz9LWdr2CIRGnXFOr9SPtuLr1WOqIBed6pGrjBrMBEvPuFOycLYxD3Y7W9b7Vzb8jQ2A04G5ym8mfEjTOWUBkyYSocEYZg7MyxUEIpv0br_kE7U/s200/Youth+6.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5601808851924900050" /></a>A ten-year-old kid then got up from within the orchestra and came forward to conduct the overture from Verdi's Nabucco. <br /><br />In a day filled with extraordinary highlights, there was still one moment that stood above others. <br /><br />...to be continuedUnknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-19550699016640068552011-03-08T15:35:00.000-08:002013-09-16T09:28:58.534-07:00An Unexpected FriendThere are tall friends and there are short friends. There are close friends, or friends that are far away. There are larger than life friends, and others who are just large. There are friends that you take with you when you climb your mountain, and others that you leave to rest by the sideline. But every now and again we discover that we also have an unexpected friend - one which defies any labeling. <br />
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Today I will write about one such friend. Alas, he is not a person, nor is he a pet. As a matter of fact this friend is not a living thing, though "he" is very much alive. This friend with whom I have so many memories and have been through so much together with is actually a piece of music - The Mendelssohn first piano concerto.<br />
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For one reason or another this delightful piece accompanied me on many happy occasions, and in the process also exposed me to the possibilities where things can go awry and as I like to see it... quite funny.<br />
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The first time I performed the Mendelssohn concerto I was an eighteen year old non-protege pianist. The performance took place in Israel in the southern city of Beer Sheba. Not a cultural Mecca so to speak, but definitely an enthusiastic community where music is appreciated and taken seriously... Very seriously, especially by one stage manager. <br />
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My rehearsals with the orchestra went well, playing an old scratchy piano (exhibit A: Steinway) which was o.k. When I came to warm up in the evening about 45 minutes before the concert I suddenly saw on the stage a different piano than the one I had during rehearsals. It was a beautiful shiny piano (exhibit B: Yamaha.) Somewhat agitated I went to the stage manager who politely at first, less so thereafter, shoved me to the side. I kept on being persistent and was finally told that in the morning I played on the "ugly looking" whatever piano (see exhibit A) and now in the concert I was lucky to get the shiny looking other instrument (see exhibit B.) Needless to say no explanation on my behalf helped in any way. He was NOT going to change the instruments. After all the audience is not going to tolerate such lack of aesthetic priorities. The situation got even more serious and ultimately I had to call the conductor to mediate. I finally got my wish to the stage manager's enormous anger.<br />
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That was not the end though of that experience. As I went upstairs to put on my tux, I discovered that I forgot to bring my black trousers. Looking for a solution, I saw one of the musicians pass by my door. As if taken out of a devilish cartoon, the next minute that musician was naked and his black trousers which were extremely tight were on me. I walked onto the stage. I was very nervous, and very concentrated.... NOT on the piece I was about the perform for the first time... but rather because the trousers were so tight, they could explode any minute. <br />
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A few years later came the next performances of the Mendelssohn. It was in January of 1991. The first gulf war was looming and I just won an important competition in Israel with the Prokofiev third piano concerto. At the announcement ceremony of the winner I was asked whether I can play the Mendelssohn piano concerto the next day with the Israeli Philharmonic under Yoel Levi due to cancellation of the supposed to be soloist. I have not touched the piece since that first performance over two years ago.<br />
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Good friends always are at your side, and so did this piece. The next morning I went to the rehearsal (the only one I had) playing from the music. After all, I had less than 24 hours to prepare which were spent on praying rather than practicing. That night, on the way to the concert I heard on the radio that "Zubin Mehta has just landed in Israel and he is on the way to the concert of the Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra". Well, I was way too nervous to remember anything that followed. But the maestro did invite me a few months later to play with him.... the Mendelssohn concerto.<br />
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But before the concert with Mehta, I also played the Mendelssohn under my very good friend, the late conductor Mendi Rodan. Again in Beer Sheba, and a couple of months into the first gulf war, at the concert a siren came on. It was the first time that Beer Sheba was attacked. I guessed the Iraqi dictator knew where I was.<br />
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Then I went with Mendelssohn and also Mendi on tour to Greece with the Jerusalem symphony in 1992. With that same orchestra I played the Mendelssohn under Yoav Talmi fifteen years later! <br />
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Two years ago Mendelssohn came to visit me very close to where I live in Rockville Maryland, when I performed it with Symphony of the Potomac just next door, and then flew to play with with the Shreveport symphony in Louisiana. Last month another happy reunion, this time with the Israeli Chamber Orchestra in a festival in Eilat. And just last weekend a very exciting occasion to celebrate with my friend and with the hope of having two new ones (an orchestra and a conductor) - my debut with the London Philharmonic Orchestra under the extremely intense and insightful Vladimir Jurowski. <br />
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This time though I need to thank the stage manager who ran to open for me the stage door that was locked when I came back from warming up in an adjacent hall. I heard the orchestra tune for me and I was outside. Well, all's well that ends well... Especially with such good friends as the Mendelssohn first piano concerto.<br />
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Alon GoldsteinUnknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8139287475487218415.post-17778099619177342112011-01-08T04:26:00.000-08:002011-02-08T07:35:53.934-08:00To Being or not to Being PatrioticHere is something I wanted to write about for quite some time:<br /><br />I became an American citizen just over two years ago. Shortly after, I was playing concerts in the mid-west and was invited to a luncheon hosted by patrons of the orchestra that I was performing with. Upon learning that I recently became naturalized I was greeted with tumultuous applause, and a pin with an American flag was given to me.<br /><br />Innocently I slipped it into my pocket, and sat at my assigned table. As it turned out, the hostess of this event was sitting next to me and apparently noticed that the pin was not attached to my jacket. Suddenly she exclaimed, "Look! He is NOT being patriotic!" That took me by total surprise, and I was somewhat hurt. <br /><br />My former teacher - Leon Fleisher - once remarked about my talking capabilities: "all that Alon needs is a conductors up-beat... and he will start talking" he said. My hostess' observation was the "up-beat" for me to talk. It was an opportunity for me to open up and discuss about some of the things I love most and able to do in this country. <br /><br />I told my proud hostess that when I am giving concerts throughout the US, I make it a point to visit and play at schools, retirement homes, and rotary clubs, to name just a few, in order to contribute as well as feel more responsible for the community around me. I went even further and shared with her two extraordinary experiences that I had while pursuing these goals.<br /><br />Back in 2004, I was invited to play in the Quad cities by an organization called <a href="http://quadcityarts.com">Quad City Arts.</a> During a period of two weeks, in addition to performing two recitals, I was sent to nearly THIRTY different places to encourage growth and vitality in the community through the "presentation, development, and celebration" of music. One of these places was a mentally handicapped facility in Davenport, IA. My program included works by Bach, Beethoven, Schubert and Chopin accompanied by some commentary. At the end of the concert, I wondered whether people might want to ask questions. That happens quite often. With some hesitation I turned to my audience of about 250 people and asked just that. <br /><br />About fifty people raised their hands and the first question already put me on the alert: "Why did the third song sound Russian to me?" By all accounts this is a terrific question. Right? The third song was Schubert's Moment Musicaux no. 3, which does sound a bit folksy. After a momentary thinking pause, I brought forth the possibilities of cross relationship in music that comes from different regions. Schubert might have heard musicians in the town square in Vienna - some Russians, some gypsies, as well as others from rural areas - and have been influenced by that consciously or subconsciously. All of a sudden, I remembered seeing the title... "A Russian Dance" on one of the preliminary drafts of this piece! I was shocked. What a discovery. I immediately told my enthusiastic crowd about this. <br /><br />Here was someone who was perceived as mentally challenged; Yet, in something so elusive and so high-spirited as music, he was more capable, more CONNECTED than most other people. <br /><br />The second story I shared happened just a week before this luncheon, when I gave a solo recital for <a href="http://www.beachesfinearts.org/">Beaches Fine Arts Series</a> in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. In the days before the recital, I visited several places in that area to do community outreach activities. One of these places was the <a href="http://www.bosellifoundation.com/">Boselli Foundation</a>, an organization striving to help children living in at-risk neighborhoods. There were about twenty kids aged twelve and thirteen. My program revolved around the Beethoven so called "Moonlight" Sonata. I constructed a story around the piece about a composer who went through crisis and cannot even come up with a melody, a tune, for his new piece. As the piece progressed we joined the composer and slowly emerged victorious and rehabilitated. Then I played the entire piece for them. The children were entranced, filled with delight. Was it about discovering something new? Maybe the possibility of understanding classical music? Well, it doesn't really matter. When I finished, a young girl raised her hand before I said a word and said, "Mister, you are WRONG. This music is about LOVE, not about DESPAIR."<br /><br />Wow! A rebel! But she was absolutely and unequivocally right! Not because she knew what the music was about, but rather because she THOUGHT she knew what it was about. She allowed the music to enter her heart and open various possibilities for different stories emerging as a result of her integrity and imagination. How wonderful, how unique. The idea that <span style="font-weight:bold;">music, in its essence, is above all stories, and consequently can live in infinite number of stories</span> – that was a secret I tried to keep from the children until after the performance. I could not, because of a young girl who had <span style="font-style:italic;">chutzpa</span>.<br /><br />Afterwords, I opened the piano and showed the kids the mechanics, the inside of the instrument. I asked them to come closer. They came, but not to see. They wanted to touch – touch me!<br /><br />These were just two stories out of many that I have experienced. Going out into the community, sharing the gift of music gives me also a great sense of belonging to this unique and complex society. It also makes me feel patriotic. I turned to my hostess for one last time to witness her reaction, to see the look on her face, the light in her eyes. Maybe a smile? A hug? What would she say? How would she respond? <br /><br />The whole time she had not even been listening.<br /><br /><br />Alon GoldsteinUnknownnoreply@blogger.com6