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| Photo of Christopher Ryan by Meghan Hall |
The two keyboards are placed at opposite ends of this 2.5 meter long instrument that weighs nearly 600 kilograms. The brilliance of the design lies in the fact that, although the two pianos are housed in one body, both have their own sets of wires, pedals and mechanism. (With a special switch, the Pleyel design also makes it possible for one of the players to operate the pedals of the other if necessary, and this of course also works the other way round.) At the same time, the casting and the resonance - an important element of the instrument - are common to both. All the sounds produced are emitted in a shared space, the overtones enrich each other, and all of this results in a warm and wonderfully full sound.Here are Pertis and Egri playing the Blue Danube Waltz:
The red spruce used by Pleyel and several other top manufacturers comes from the Fiemme Valley in province of Trento, Italy. Piano-makers are extremely fussy about this. "It has to be from a north-facing tree," explained Sylvan Charles, a master piano builder who supervises the 15 workers in Pleyel's Paris workshop. "The tree has to be a certain age. The direction of the grain and the thickness are also important, but I won’t tell you any more because that is the secret of our sound." He described the Pleyel sound as "round, warm and sensual." Steinway, by contrast, is known for its bright, powerful "singing" sound.
Q: How do you prepare to accompany a film?
A: I look at it once to get a general sense of it. I have some musical ideas after a single viewing, then I come back to watch the film and imagine what I've done. ... You have to get a sense of the general flow of the picture, the mood. So I try to develop a musical pattern that identifies with the general mood. ... I try to have a musical idea with each of the main characters, usually a rhythm or a chord. Then, as the film unfolds, if I suddenly have to refer to a character, I do it with a sonic mood or sound.
Q: Are there certain tendencies to watch out for when playing along with a film?
A: What you must remember first and foremost is to be in the background and support the film. You can't play over the film. I've done that before, and it's not a good idea.
Q: What other factors do you have to consider?
A: When you're performing, you have to get a sense of the audience. You're the mediator in all of this. You are there in support of the film, for them. ... You have to provide a continuity for the viewer sitting there basically in silence. You support the action, the psychology, the drama.For those who have access to JSTOR, it's worth checking out Patrick Miller's Music and the Silent Film in the Summer 1982 issue of Perspectives of New Music.
“Sometimes pianists (only) hear themselves and don’t really listen to anyone else,” Goldman said. “She was a great accompanist because she was very aware, she knew what everyone else was doing and she was able to be captain of the ship.”I also found a short tribute and MP clip from Ilana's final concert in 2007.
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| Image via giuseppeorfino |
Where You Would Perform
We perform in Umbria Italy. Citta' della Pieve, Italy is a gorgeous walled town, birthplace of the teacher of Rafael, Pietro Perugino, and high on a hill over looking the Valdichiana Valley right between Rome and Florence.
When You Would Begin
Rehearsals begin August 1. Performances are on August 24, 25, 26 2010. The pianist should arrive no later than the day prior to the first rehearsal. There will be 2 pianists who will alternate playing staging and musical rehearsals. Pianists will also alternate playing with the orchestra for the performances..
What You Would be Paid
We offer 300 euro, plus housing in a dormitory type setting. There is a communal kitchen in which to prepare and eat meals. It is not expensive to purchase food at the supermarket in the town. in Citta' della Pieve.
What Your Costs Would Be
The pianist is responsible for his/her own transportation, including plane fare. The pianist is responsible for his/her own meals. Pianist would fly into Fiumicino Airport in Rome and from there take a train to Chiusi and then a 10 minute bus ride to Citta' della Pieve.
Spare Time
There is a 10 day Renaissance Festival that begins on August 13. Everyone becomes very close during this process. They usually spend time eating together, sitting in the piazza, attending all of the festivities for Palio and dancing at night in La Pista, the place where all the young people in the town gather to talk and enjoy music.There are usually at least 2 day trips organized by the project participants to Florence and Siena or another exciting nearby town.
During Palio, visitors come to Citta' della Pieve from all over Europe to see the historical reenactments as well as the authentic celebrations. The final Palio competition, which includes more than 500 townsfolk dressed in authentic Renaissance costumes, with oxen drawn carts, flag throwers, drummers and horn players, has a giant flour fight which is always a big hit with our cast and crew, as well as a major archery competition between the three neighborhoods of the town. This is followed by a rousing celebration in the winning tavern, usually attended by everyone in our company.
Where You Would Rehearse
Citta della Pieve is a walled medieval town. The Renaissance church and the theater where rehearsals take place are both within easy walking distance from anywhere in the town.
Where You Should Email
info [at] internationaloperatheater dot org
What You Should Include in Your Email
Please include 2 MP3 samples of contrasting pieces, preferably of yourself accompanying a singer. Include your CV and a brief description as to why you would like to be part of our project and what you feel you would bring to our project.
OPERAPLOT 2010 - The LowdownGood luck to everyone! You can also follow me on Twitter - I'm @chrisfoley.
Dates: 9am EST Monday 26th April to midnight EST Friday 30th April.
Judge: Jonas Kaufmann
Headlining House: Opera Theatre Company based in Dublin is offering two tickets to their Marriage of Figaro production in May, 3 nights hotel stay and up to 1000€ towards flights.
Other participating houses (full details here - updated as new houses join)
Atlanta Opera, Edmonton Opera, Fort Worth Opera Festival, Opera Australia, Opera San Jose, Portland Opera, San Francisco Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Scottish Opera, Seattle Opera, Vancouver Opera,
Other prizes
Universal has put CD and DVD sets of Wagner, Haydn and Mozart into the pool. In addition to be fantastic in their own right, these prizes help solve the problem of opera houses not being especially portable....a bit of a snag in a global competition. Tickets for the Vancouver aren't very useful to a winner living in Atlanta.
How it works (full rules and FAQ here)
A few facts about last year (the whole story can be found here)
- Anyone can enter. Contestants must have a Twitter account.
- The idea is to summarize the plot of an opera in 140 characters- the Twitter maximum - or less.
- Each tweet must carry the #operaplot tag, so everyone can follow along.
- Contestants can enter up to 10 times.
- 5 winners will be chosen by Jonas. They will each get to choose a prize out of the pool in a randomly selected order.
Top 5 from 2009
- 32 opera houses in 4 countries
- Over 500 entries
- Danielle DeNiese judged the comp
- It ended up with Priscilla Barrow, an inner city school music teacher in DC, getting an Opera Ball fairy tale courtesy of the Washington National Opera and #operaplot winner Stephen Llewellyn
- Compressing the plot wasn't enough of a challenge for some. By the end, people were writing haiku, limericks and even doing the whole Ring cycle in one tweet.
A bit about me
- @leboyfriend – There was a young lady called Fricka Who . . . who . . . *snore* 'Wake up -- it's over.' It's good, I just wish it were quicka. [The Ring]
- @wordsmusic – Here's my castle. Are you afraid? No, I'm going to open all those damn doors! Are you afraid? No, let me in! Who's that? Oh shit. [Bluebeard]
- @musicbizkid – Let me get this straight: unfathomable treasure if I betroth my loopy daughter to a ghost? Deal. She'll meet you by the fjord. [The Flying Dutchman]
- @DrGeoduck – Who wants to live forever? Me! No, wait, i changed my mind. *dies* [The Makropolus Case]
- @voxdixit – Monk: Repent, courtesan! (Meditation) Courtesan: Okay! Monk: Wait, there is no God after all! Courtesan: Too late, I'm dead! [Thais]
A freelance classical music journalist and ghostwriter from Toronto. I write a lot of books on business as well as arts journalism for the Toronto Star, the CBC and Sony. Online, I am Miss Mussel of TheOmniscientMussel.com. I'm doing this mostly because it's really fun. Opera fans are usually pretty nerdy and love to play games, so #operaplot is a really good fit.
Power failure at city hall. Minister a no show. Married by rabbi instead, but who cares, it was dark. 22 years later still married.Sophie's submission:
Greek Otis waits at the altar. Indian Padma, an hour late. Malaise and scuttlebutt. Padma locked in vestry. Priest beseeching she converts.A huge thanks goes to Opera Atelier for making these tickets available. You can find out more about OA's upcoming production here.
Community Pages are a new type of Facebook Page dedicated to a topic or experience that is owned collectively by the community connected to it. Just like official Pages for businesses, organizations and public figures, Community Pages let you connect with others who share similar interests and experiences.So far, it looks like the Community Pages aggregate content from other Facebook sources, such as pages and status updates, rather than being platforms for directly posting content. If the Accompanist Community Page gains traction, it might end up being a place where people could advertise or request services
Dear Soloists
If I showed you a new solo
Fit for champions to play
And said “They’re going to judge it now
So start without delay!”
Would you feel disadvantaged?
Would your knees begin to knock?
Would your dried-up mouth and beating heart
Recover from the shock?
The piano would be PERFECT,
I’d have practised it for weeks,
And I could sit there laughing
At your ineffective squeaks!!
Have any of you ever thought
How pleasant it would be
To send all music in advance
For pianists to see?
Of fixing plain white paper
Over all omitted bars –
Instead of scribbled messages
And multi-coloured stars?
Your solo has been written
With two instruments in mind,
And just like all ensemble work
One cannot lag behind.
So smarten up your attitude
And think this problem through.
The pianist could possibly
Be just as good as you!
--Pauline Arnold, Orange, NSW, Australia
Therefore, the piano has 96 keys and only sounds one octave. I am able to use any multiple of this 16th-of-tone chromatic "scale". Thus, I can use ET [equal temperament], or approximate any just tuning and modulate between them at will. It represents total "tuning" freedom.
Established with the aim of recording the best of contemporary British music to the highest artistic and technical standards, NMC Recordings – which celebrated the 20th anniversary of its first release in 2009 – was founded in 1988 with funding from the Holst Foundation and assistance from the Society for the Promotion of New Music. Following the success of two pilot releases the following year – Jonathan Harvey's Bhakti, and a disc of contemporary piano music performed by composer Michael Finnissy – NMC became an independent registered charity; it has since established itself as "Britain's most important producer of CDs of interesting new or recent and neglected work from this country" (The Sunday Times).
- any student residing in Oakville can have free access to the Naxos music library through our Oakville Public Library, provided that they have a library card. It can be accessed online via www.opl.on.ca.
- when introducing impressionist music to my students for the first time, I would ask them to look up some impressionist artists and their work, and come prepared to tell me something about the style. Our more visual learners can often 'see' the subtles of the music in the paintings of, say, Monet.The Naxos idea is a useful one - take a look at the resources at your local library, as many of them (especially in schools) have a Naxos account that cardholders can access.
Simple sinewave synthesizer triggered by an ordinary 16 step sequencer. Each triggered step causes a force on the underlaying wave-map, which makes it more cute.You can check out even more experimental synthesizers and waveform generators at André's #Laboratory.
Unusual Suspects is the TPC’s most conceptually ambitious to date – the concert is a “composer scramble” whereby the audience members will be invited to figure out which composer wrote which piece, with clues as guidance. “We wanted to take advantage of the fact that our composers are so different and celebrate their diversity instead of trying to box them in,” Clorey explains, “So our one stipulation to the composers was for them to write music that was stereotypically ‘them’. And now we get to have fun with it – we plan on accusing them of things like ‘excessive development’, ‘reliance on repeated rhythmic patterns’, and sentence them appropriately.”Unusual Suspects starts at 8pm on Friday, April 23 at the Heliconian Hall, 35 Hazelton Avenue, in the Yorkville neighborhood of Toronto. Tickets are $15 door/$10 advance.
The Atlanta Opera will be holding auditions for an accompanist for the 2010-11 Atlanta Opera Studio Tour on May 21st. The Atlanta Opera Studio Tour performs in schools throughout the Atlanta area as well as other areas of Georgia. Rehearsals and performances take place October 11-November 19, 2010 and February 21-April 1, 2011.
Applicants must have vocal accompanying experience. Audition requirements will include one selection of your choice from classical solo piano literature and two arias from the opera repertoire, which are to be determined (applicants will be notified prior to the audition). A singer will be provided for you to accompany during the audition.
Interested applicants should send a resume to auditions@atlantaopera.org. The deadline to submit resumes is May 7; invitations to audition will be issued by May 12. For more information visit www.atlantaopera.org/opportunities. No phone calls please.Note: the link to the Opportunities page at the Atlanta Opera site doesn't go through at the present time. However, it looks like there's enough information on the job listing to send in what's needed for the position.
