Chopin

The World is ready to celebrate the Bi-Centennial of the birth of Frederic Chopin in 2010. My fingers have been digging into his music with renewed vigor the past months. Never have I felt myself to be a "born" Chopin interpreteur,but I have neverthless played a fair share of his music, and as a professor have taught all the major works for years. What is fascinating to me at this point is how differently I hear his music than in years before. I find a renewed interest in how he actually achieves his extraordinary sounds and his fascinating technique, very new at its time and still enormously vital today. One of the pieces I have been close to since my teens is the Barcarolle, Opus 60. This is a very late work, and best described as the apothesis of the Nocturnes, where adventuresome harmonies meet a new aesthetic of pianistic art. The Barcarolle is almost like an improvisation, caught upon the cogs of the relentless rocking rhythm of the Venetian boat song. The rhythm is almost like a drone, so regular and repetitive. But overhanging this is a supple, almost unending melody, that intrigues with its varied colors and sensuous, undulating line. One feels as in a boat, yet floating in a hazy atmosphere of almost impressionistic haze. It is a boat journey like no other, caught up in some magical time machine that enters us into a new world.

Chopin makes incredible choices in his voicing of chords, in his fleeting spirals of fiorituri, and in the melodic line itself. When we speak Bel Canto, we refer to the operatic line of the great composers such as Donizetti, Bellini, and Rossini, masters at spinning out the vocal line in pure melodic delight, with ample room for flights of fancy. Chopin keeps the melody supreme, especially here in the Barcarolle, yet it is often a duet in thirds, with the alto adding just the right amount of drama. When I say he makes excellent choices, I refer to the underlying voice leadings of the most refined order, yet assuming a new guise in its freely minted romantic idiom. When you try to guess what he might have written, one's choice is often banal. When you examine the notes he actually chose, you marvel..." how did he think of that!" He has exquisite taste always.

The Mazurkas fascinate me endlessly. Here is the pure spirit of Poland, with its regional dances and quirky instruments mmostly unknown to us. All the gesture and pose of the native dances are here to explore. The rhythms change quickly, and vary tremendously where the stress falls. The shifting from major to minor creates light and shadow, often mysterious. Yet, melody is always supreme.

What makes the Preludes so difficult to perform is their brevity. One has to capture the mood immediately, with no space to breathe in between. I love the stark simplicity and almost abstract quality of many of them, and best of all, the sudden appearance of unforgettable melodies, so masterfully placed. Is there a more beautiful moment than the second page of the Prelude in F Sharp Major?

On Switzerland, the Swiss, Cows, Mountains, Tunnels, and Bridges.

Travels in Switzerland began in 1960, when I accompanied in the Pablo Casals Masterclasses in Zermatt. Traveling with a group from the UK that included the very young Jacqueline du Pre...only 15 at the time...this was my second experience in an international music setting. The first was three summers at the Aspen Music Festival, at the time in the mid 1950's a very small but captivating festival that featured musicians like Jennie Tourel, Rudolf Firkusny, Rosina Lehvinne, and Vronsky and Babin, perhaps the greatest of the two piano teams of that era. Pablo Casals was quite a different story. He had long since excused himself from the Franco Dictatorship in Spain, and declared himself a citizen of the world. Contrary to so many famous musicians today who have their own private jets, multiple apartments in multiple countries, and carefully craft an image that overcomes bad nights in the major houses of the world., Casals lived a simple, almost monastic life in the south of France, devoting himself to study, contemplation, and performance preparation. He had already enjoyed decades of popularity by the time I caught up with him. His musicianship was already almost of another era by 1960. He indeed seemed to live in a world that was a total combination of concentration, exacting musicianship, consumate communication and stillness of spirit. Every morning for three weeks we were in class with him, as he taught hand on hand the great literature of the cello. He seemed to know all the standard works by memory, including the biggest concerti and the smallest suites. I guess if I had a word for him it would be DIRECT. THere were no veils, curtains or other contrived barriers between you, Cassls, and what he was directing you to do. He was complete authority. I remember especially the last student concert when I had to play the most fearsome accompaniments by Hugo Wolf for a very fine singer from Zurich. There was no missing Casals. There he was in the front row...inches away... and so nowhere to hide. I strangely remember very little now about the performance, except to say, at the moment of truth, I was absolutely calm. He jumped up at the end and came to the edge of the stage to congratulate us, as he often did when he was pleased. How thrilled we were, and how grateful for his presence.

Now it is almost 50 years ago, and Jackie du Pre died in her forties after a dramatic career that brought joy to millions. Just the other day in Zermatt I found a photo of the masterclass, and there I was on the outer edges, long hair and gazing into space...no doubt in a trance. How formal we all looked...Casals in coat and tie, many lisners also, and the students all neatly dressed. No blue jeans, sandals, Blackberries, cell phones, headphones. How dull we were! Typical for the age, we dressed in respect, and took away what we could.

Now, all these years later, Zermatt has a yearly music festival. It has one great strength, and that is the presence of members of the Berlin Philharmonic, who take direction of the student orchestra, which plays without conductor, and sit alongside the students. It is the old method of "laying of the hands", where you have a master near you to guide and counsel.

The greater weakness is the lack of public relations from the festival itself. It is surprisingly laid back, as I often say, "waiting for an introduction". The Euros are so formal it gets in the way of spontaineity. What the staff needs is a bit of Yankee know how, so that more support comes in by way of fund raising. They so easily let Credit Swisse get all the credit (pun intended), and seem content with whatever they get.Also, programming often misses the mark, as per having this year's opening concert be an old music group, period instruments, and a counter-tenor. Many left at intermission. One Spanish lady was rather frightened by the counter-tenor, obviously having a gender crisis of identification! She left, also.

As for the lovely cows, they are still everywhere. I was too early this year for the weekend they bring all the cows down from their pastures high in the mountains. What a lovely, time honored procession. But, HEIDI is alive and well. I saw her several times, with her charming smile and simple ways. May she live forever.

London- Then and Now

Walking around London the past weeks reminded me how much has stayed the same, and how much is vastly different. When I first arrived in 1959, the first thing I noticed was that there were not that many cars in the inner city. London was late recovering from the Second World War, and didn't enjoy the boom we enjoyed in the USA in the 1950's. While we were testing TV dinners and in love with all the new gadgets - Presto Burger..remember that, bomb sites were common in London, expecially round St. Paul's in the City of London, where piles of rubble stlll lined the streets. Cockney ladies took your fares on the buses and Coca Cola was served warm off the shelf. Gentlemen going to work in the City wore black cut-a ways, a red carnation in the button hole,with an umbrella as faithful companion. It all seemed so English, with very few foreign faces on the streets.

Today it is a totally different story. London in so packed with cars drivers have to pay an eight pound a day fee to drive into the inner city. Traffic still crawls, and many hours are wasted. Supermarkets abound, and shops have folded in favor of mega stores and mega malls. The streets are full of people from all over the globe, and crime rates have soared. The latest craze is knife culture, and the papers are full of victims of this vicious crime. The UK must be the most watched society in the world, with cameras everywhere. There is even the new St.George Society, which is trying to preserve "Englishness" in light of the dumbing down and homogenizing efforts of the Labour Party...everyone on the same level, and supposedly,with the same chance.

Indeed, corrupt business practices are just as rampant as here, and politicians just as opportunistic. We don't have a monopoly on scandals in the USA.

The bright spot is the free admission to museums, and free rides on tubes and busses for senior citizens. (that is, if you are a UK citizen). Also, free concerts abound, many of very high quality, and the parks are just as inviting as before. Visiting libraries for research is still a very civilized proceedure, and lectures on rare and even arcane subjects entice.

Quality of life still abounds in London, especially in the near suburbs like Parson's Green, Hampstead, Putney and Kew. People still walk their dogs and play cricket on the greens. Invited for dinner, one is apt to sit in the kitchen, looking out at a small garden, enjoying a long meal with people from diverse backgrounds. People in London travel all over the world, and this lends a great vitality to conversation. The evening light goes on forever in the summer, and the clouds race in the sky.

The countryside is as beautiful as ever, and farming is still flourishing. Village life is active, with many clubs and community events, including sewing and quilting, gardening, choir singing, brass bands, movie nights and even bell ringing practice. Privacy is still valued and one does not approach a closed gate lightly. Roadsides are still, for the most part, clutter free, and many wild flowers are coming back along the verges as mowing is not intrusive.

One noticable thing was the many empty shops along the roads, and in London, the fashionable arcades around Piccadilly also have their share. Fortnums is twice the size, at the expense of the charm of old, but still as packed as ever. Old fashioned areas like Marlebone High Street are now "destinations", with trendy shops and many places for coffee and tea. Only occasionally does one find a book store with charm, but one is found at the top of Marlebone High Street called Daunt Books, where you can climb a ladder like staircase and look through old second hand travel books. But even there the once very comfortable reading area, sitting at an ancient round table, seems less inviting, with only a couple of chairs provided. There was also always a beautiful bouquet of flowers, but even that has gone missing. Perhaps it was too late in the week.

A Sunday caper took me down the Thames Estuary to the amazing Barrier, a series of massive doors that close to keep river storm surges at bay. Global melting will soon make it obsolete. The area is fascinating, with the Thames Park providing a comfortable oasis. The flower borders there are actually wild flower borders, full of bees and scent. Even furthur down the estuary one finds salt marshes, cows and meadows. All in the shadow of London.

A visit to the Chelsea Physic Garden to see the oldest plants in England was a treat, although, as a friend said, we have seen better kept gardens. The small restaurant serves a homemade lunch, and the day I was there the cook placed a glorious Salmon en Croute to cool on the window sill. Its all rather old fashioned and full of charm...right in the middle of London. Of course, I loved it!

Guirne Creith "Concerto in G minor" for Violin and Orchestra

Saint Paul's Knightsbridge proved an amicable setting for the West London Sinfonia's first public performance of Guirne Creith's Violin Concerto. Recently rediscovered, as told in a previous entry, the work deserves a place in the repertoire, as it is not only an important statement by a woman composer in the early 20th century, but more so because it is such an attractive and personal work. Written in three movements, and performed with great poise and poetry by Tamsin Waley-Cohen, the work comes across as a very polished, colorful and dramatic work, the highlight being the intimate slow movement which falls into the very best tradition of English string writing. There is something intensely feminine and sensual about this work, felt immediately by the motive that is heard immediately at the beginning, and reappears at important moments trhoughout the work. Its rather like a spontaeneous caress,being so surprising and intimate. The orchestration is big, and gives prominent display for the winds especially. Perhaps it would be a challenge to keep the orchestra down at times, but the violin part alternates from solo passages to concertante passages, where it is absorbed into the fabric of the orchestration. The work shows its time and place by reminding one of the style of Elgar or Delius, but the strength of the work is nevertheless in its originality which never comes close to being a mere copy of former styles,rather adding a path of its own. Waley-Cohen was able to hold her own against the full orchestra, and brought a distinct and very musical approach to her performance. Conducted with authority by the gifted conductor Peter Hesketh, the work was received with enthusiasm. One hopes a Prom performance is in the future.

The West London Sinfonia, an amateur group with a few professionals and music students, proved to be a well-trained and spontaineous group. The performance of the Berlioz "Symphonie Fantastique", only their second one, was very impressive, especially the excellent wind and brass sections.

Hearing a work that no one really remembered existed, performed after so many lost years, was a very moving experience for myself and the many family and friends gathered to hear the concert. I lived for a year in Guirne's home, and my memories of her are those of a very young man with more than a few rough patches throw together with a woman of vast life experience. Music was a common bond, and our conversations were probably the best I will ever have with another musician. That the concerto itself should so closely catch her personality and point of view made for one of life's more memorable moments. Soon to be published, the Guirne Creith violin concerto will undoubtedly receive many performances.

Off to London to hear a re-discovered masterpiece.

I listened to BBC Radio 4 this morning as a fascinating story was told involving a lot of people important and dear to me. Next Saturday, July 4 ,I will be sitting in Saint Paul's Knightsbridge, listening to Guirne Creith's Violin Concerto, and trying to take in the amazing history behind this performance. While a student at the RAM in London in 1959, I lived for a year in the home of Baroness Van Zuylen, a pianist, singer, and all around fine musician. She had two sons, Robin and Jeremy, and they were a few years younger than me.Robin was busy with his first job, and Jeremy was at Stowe during the week, but often home on weekends. Altho known to me as Guirne Van Zuylen, she also had various other names that became apparent over the years...Gladys Cohen, Guirne Hunter-Coddington, Guirne Creith, Guirne Van Zuylen, and lastly Guirne Siddons(?). There was indeed a lot of mystery about her, and portions of her life were not discussed, or just veiled over.I think, as a young musician with a vivid imagination, that none of this bothered me at the time, as I already knew enough about the world of creativity to allow for many personality types, and Guirne was endlessly fascinating! Mr. Hunter-Coddington was the father of her two sons, but they were divorced after a few years. Although Guirne never told me she was a composer, she did talk alot about the art of orchestration, and I just surmised that she must have written some works. There was a bookcase in an unused room, and while looking for something Guirne had sent me in search of, I noticed a bundle of music manuscripts on the bottom shelf. I just assumed they were some of her work, but I never actually looked at them closely.

About two years ago, I re-established contact with the family, after a silence of almost 45 years. Amazingly enough, my email arrived almost to the day of what would have been her 100th birthday, although she passed away in the mid-1990's. In her honor, her sons had established a website, telling what they knew of her life's story, and inviting friends and contacts to share their memories. Shortly there came the unusual news that a manuscript of a violin concerto by Guirne Creith had been discovered in a second hand piano shop that was going out of business. In a box marked "all contents 2 pounds" was the manuscript. It was purchased by an individual, curious enough to search for information until he was led to her son, Robin Hunter-Coddington. Robin verified her handwriting, at the same time hardly believing what he was looking at. He began his own search for information, never having known that his mother composed anything. Through research at the RAM and BBC, he finally learned that she had won important prizes while a student, and had written several ballets, piano sonatas, songs and orchestral works. Robin's hard work has resulted in this first performance since the 1930's, which will be presented by the Kensington Orchestra.

The work has already been recorded in a splendid performance by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, produced by Epoch Records. For most in the audience, this will be their initial introduction to Guirne Creith. More ...after the concert.

Southeastern Piano Festival June 2009

The second week in June saw the annual Southeastern Piano Festival for high school students at the University of South Carolina School of Music, with its monumental parade of talent from all over the world. This year was our seventh season, and we have grown in statue and size. Overall, this was the strongest field of young pianists so far. Of course, the main body of competitors come from Southern states and the East Coast but we also had contestants from the rest of the country, the winner this year hailing from Chicago. I taught five students this year, four girls and one boy. Last year it was four boys and 1 girl. Amazing the difference in dynamics this makes!! Four of my students were Asian descent, and one was from Eastern Europe. Among the concerti I coached was the Tschaikowsky, Prokofief 3rd, Rachmaninoff Rhapsody, Chopin No. 1, and Beethoven 3rd. These are cumbersome to work with in that, since the pianists have strict rehearsal rules with their appointed accompanists, we must avert going straight through the work, as if we were rehearsing. This perplexed me until I came to the conclusion that there is just a small amount one can accomplish in four lessons, and the contestants are more or less "set" in their preparation by the time they get here. So I divide the works into large chunks, find a few spots where I think they can improve in a short time, and keep coming back to those. This worked brilliantly this summer. The girl doing the Chopin was able to add a lot more color and variety of sound, the Beethoven gathered much more style, and the Tschaikowsky cadenza gainned more integration into the whole. In the Rachmaninoff Rhapsody we concentrated on the long build up to the BIG THEME, and especially the very ending of the theme, where there is a long coda like section with a lot of orchestral color. In general I find young pianists rarely look at the orchestral score, mostly concentrating on the piano part (and hoping they can get the notes). The young girl doing the Prokoview was only 15, and she was very polished...so we only had one session. In addition, they each have a solo piece. The boy who did Tschaikowsky picked the Beethoven "Appassionata"...with its long and dark first movement. It was a poor choice I felt, as it didn't add enough contrast in his repertoire. But he came a miracle mile in stylistic concept, and the quality of sound required. The Prokovief girl chose Ravel's "Jeux d'eau" and she also moved forward in the ability to make a "whole" out of a piece with alot of detours into cadenzas and impressionistic effects. She was thriled with what we accomplished, and won honorable mention in the finals. She was my only winner this year, as opposed to last year when my students won First and Second.

We have professional artists play envening recitals, and the one I enjoyed the most was by Christopher Taylor. He played a monumental program of Rzewski's The People United will never be Defeated, and the Bach "Goldberg". He is a fine pianist with a broad range of temperment.

This year's winner was Shawn Yeh, who played a movingly stark yet virtuoso performance of Ravel's Concerto "a main gauche", and also the Liszt Etude "Mazeppa".

Bouncing Back

It seems impossible I have ignored Windrushnotes since January. But, there were reasons, primarily a long spell when a pesky cold would not go away, and ending up with weeks of coughing and breathing with my mouth open. That must be the most uncomforable thing in the world, especially as it is so disruptive to proper rest. But I managed to "carry on" as the Brits say, although it meant the cancellation of plans and projects. It is difficult to do everything for oneself when ill, and I guess getting older has taught me that one can have the priviledge of just folding up and just plain being sick! I did manage to keep practicing, although some days for a very brief spell. And, my only student, a 15 year old, managed to have all his lessons, and won a 1++ in his first competition in March, and an Outstanding two weeks ago in another one. That pleased me tremendously.

Now it is total Spring here in South Carolina, and the flowers are their most magnificent this week. If you ever watch The Masters from Augusta, then you have an idea of what a Southern Spring looks like. This year it has been quite cool, and thus things have stayed fresher longer than normal.

It is interesting to me how much can be accomplished in small doses. I have made it through the Eroica Variations of Beethoven, working very slowly, never in a hurry. The technique of this work is different in that there is a residue left over from the Eroica Symphony that makes the approach rather orchestral, and hence, not always so pianistic. But, there again, Beethoven is rarely conventional, and more often than not you have to invent a way to play him. A student recently observed that one rarely finds a scale in Beethoven in the fashion we normally practice them. So, endless scale practice might lead to strong fingers, but it doesn't solve the way he actually employs them. That might sound like a flippant remark, but it has to do with his creative genius, and the lengths he went to be original at all costs. I hope to perform this work next year as a PowerPoint presentation.

The other looming Everest is the 200th Anniversary of the births of Chopin and Schumann. I have Piano Portraits of both composers, completed over 30 years ago, and performed all over the world. Now it is time to recreate them with PowerPoint technology, which means transferring dozens of old fashioned slides to disc, so they can be computerized. Then again, choosing the right repetoire is a great challenge, as what one may have played easily in earlier times is not so easy at present. Age!!
But I am pleased to say, I am able to satisfy myself that what I do choose to play will be on a level that will satisfy me....my most important critic!!

So, if one seeks, one finds. Learning new works at this time of life is so gratifying, as the hard won experieces one has gainned over the years make each phrase a new adventure in learning.

A Detour in the Schedule

February has brought some very cold weather to South Carolina, and I am the victim again of a nagging head cold that refuses to move on. To have two such adventures this winter has been a big surprise. Perhaps when I was teaching dozens of students I built up a much stronger resistance to germs and hence rarely had a cold. But, just as sure as you tell someone you are feeling low, the response is always the same..i.e.its a lot worse over their way, and the feeling is that you are lucky not to be as bad off as they are. Well, being bad off for me is to have my ears stuffed to the gills and sound distorted in all sorts of odd ways. It is painful to practice the piano, and only slightly worse to hear someone else play it. But one does muddle on, and hopes for the moment when it all lifts and floats away.

There is a lesson in this, as there is always a lesson in life when one's routine is interrupted. It makes you appreciate your norm, how wedded you are to routine, and how routine can bring great accomplishment and rewards. But it goes alot furthur for me. It brings home the reality that many people in this world only have the routine of waking up each morning to a world that is worse than the day before. Yes, we are suffering from an economic nightmare, but what if we were suffering the way people are in parts of Africa at this moment. Is there anything worse in the world than starvation? Is there any thing worse than being tormented by people whose only desire is your property, and if geting it means murder in cold blood, then that is the result? The power of the gun is looming over our heads every day of our lives.

I have noticed while flipping through television channels when bored, how many guns flash by, how many murders in cold blood, and how many people being tortured for the thrill of it. We seem to be besotted with guns, and just as besotted with the desire for revenge. So it is just entertainment you say. Perhaps the real truth is how victimized we are by television producers, and how easily we accept it as entertainment. Hence, I rent Netflik and try to avoid the TV except when something sane comes along.

A Visit to Kansas City

I was lucky with my visit to my hometown in that the weather was great, and one only needed a top coat and hat, but no gloves. Being use to the mild winter climate of South Carolina, it felt about the same. Kansas City, Missouri, Kansas City, Kansas, Overland Park, Kansas and North Kansas City, Missouri all run together to form a huge metro area. The state line between Missouri and Kansas is a street that runs down the middle of a huge residential area, so you really hardly notice what state you are in. But that doesn't mean Kansas people consider themselves from Kansas City, Missouri, and vice-versa. The distictions are there, and can be very subtle or very overt. When it comes to sports and the arts, its really a metro area experience. All the big concerts are in downtown Kansas City, Missouri.Kansas City Mo. has long been a mecca for touring groups. When I was growing up there in the 1950's there were several big arts series, and in a season it was not unusual to hear five or six of the greatest pianists, either in solo recitals, or with the Kansas City Symphony. It was a great theater town as well, as being half way between New York City and Los Angeles/San Francisco, we usually were the second stop for road companies coming out of New York. I saw many musicals with top casts, including "South Pacific", "Kiss Me, Kate", "Oklahoma", "Carousel", "Annie Get Your Gun" and "Brigadoon". I remember some of the stars, including Mary Martin, Alfred Drake, Janet Blair, Pamela Britton, Jean Arthur....all top flight productions.

With this in mind it was fun to hear Joyce DiDonato give a hometown concert at the Folly Theater in downtown Kansas City. On tour with her Handel program entitled "Furore" along with a wonderful baroque orchestra from Paris.."Les Talents Lyriques". Singing all Mad Scenes from operas by Handel (known and unknown) she gave a virtuoso performance that left a home town audience enthralled. Obviously, she is the darling of Kanss City. Two nights later she repeated the performance at Zankel Hall in Carnegie Hall, and then managed to return two days later to Carnegie and sing Mozart with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra with conductor James Levine. She is a pro in every sense of the word, and to see her reach the top has been a wonderful experience.

Kansas City is booming, and the old warehouse district behind the glorious Union Station is the scene or a renovation marathon. I visited Lidia's wonderful Italian restaurant and had a wonderful meal, had lunch at the old Walker School, a turn of the century treasure filled with superb architectural features, and then toured Quality Hill, the oldest downtown neighborhood, with its grand vista looking over the Kansas and Missouri Rivers.

Overland Park, Kansas has new neighborhoods of luxury homes that go on for miles. Everything reminds me of the Prarie Style, so beloved in the area. Shopping is great, and restaurants in endless supply. But I miss the "Mix" of my semi-rural area where millionaires rub shoulders with everyday folks like me.

Returning home I realized I have a free calendar for most of the Spring. There is something to be said about grouping my concerts and events into a special period of time. But several students are currently coaching with me, and I have my "Eroica" project to finish. This summer I will teach at the Southeastern Young Artist Festival here in Columbia...more about this later... and spend time in London, to hear a special concert in memory of a longtime friend. More about all this soon.