Helen Hou-Sandì in New York Magazine

Many of you know Helen Hou-Sandì, a graduate of the Piano Accompanying and Chamber Music program at the Eastman School of Music a few years back. I still remember when Helen put her hand up in a workshop that I gave at Eastman and asked if I would be open to a redesign of the blog. The design on the blog that you're looking at today is Helen's work and I hope you agree that it has stood the test of time.

Helen's passion for web design has blossomed into a major career, and she is now the lead developer for Word Press and director of open source initiatives at 10up. Helen was also recently featured on New Yorker Magazine's The Strategist, where she talked about her favorite gadgets.

Ditto on the FitBit - I'm on my third. Not sure if I'm interested in the Nest Learning Thermostat, but I drooled at the thought of that 27-inch Acer display on an Ergotron desk converter.

The Casement Fund Song Series Presents Mortality Mansions

If you're in the NYC area on March 30, consider checking out Herschel Garfein's new song cycle Mortality Mansions, with texts by former United States poet laureate Donald Hall. Performers are pianist Dimitri Dover and tenor Michael Slattery. The program starts at 7pm at the James Room in Barnard Hall.

More about the program:

Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Richard Ford and National Book Award-winning poet Jean Valentine will read Donald Hall poems. Professor of Clinical Medicine and Director of the Program in Narrative Medicine Dr. Rita Charon will join the artists in reflections on poet Donald Hall’s guiding themes of love, sexuality and bereavement in old age, and trace the unprecedented adoption of Mr. Hall’s work into the curricula of medical schools across the country. Mr. Hall himself will participate via remote video link from his farmhouse in New Hampshire.

Tickets are free, but you can book them here. Barnard Hall is located on Broadway just north of 116th  Street.

Daniel Gundlach Plays and Sings Janis Ian's Stars

Daniel Gundlach's recital with Lloyd Arriola last week at the Church of the Epiphany in NYC looks to be a fine indication of the route that the art song recital needs to take if it is to survive outside the conservatory setting: a program that freely uses rep from a wide variety of styles and genres for piano and voice, crafted with a clear trajectory. Here is Daniel playing and singing Janis Ian's Stars, which opened the program:



The full setlist:

STARS
Stars (Janis Ian)
Lied eines Schiffers an die Dioskuren (Franz Schubert, Johann Mayrhofer)
Vincent (Starry, Starry Night) (Don McLean)
Mein schöner Stern (Robert Schumann, Friedrich Rückert)
Lost in the Stars (Kurt Weill, Maxwell Anderson)

ROSES
La vie en rose (Louiguy, Edith Piaf)
Estrene de la rose (Georges Enescu, Clément Marot)
Roses (Janis Ian)
La rosa y el sauce (Carlos Guastavino, Francisco Silva y Valdés)
The Rose (Amanda McBroom)

RAIN(BOWS)
Die junge Nonne (Franz Schubert, Jacob Nicolaus Craigher de Jachuletta)
Gocce di pioggia su di me (Burt Bacharach, Hal David, Umberto Scipione)
Es regnet (Kurt Weill)
Desperado (Glenn Frey, Don Henley)
Over the Rainbow (Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg)

DREAMS
Rêve d’amour (Gabriel Fauré, Victor Hugo)
My Ship (Kurt Weill, Ira Gershwin)
Nacht und Träume (Franz Schubert, Matthäus von Collin)
Dream with Me (Leonard Bernstein)
J'avais rêvé d’une autre vie (Claude-Michel Schönberg, Alain Boulblil)

Help Ensemble Meme Record the Piano Chamber Works of Gabriela Lena Frank

A Kickstarter project from Ensemble Meme aims to record several works for piano and chamber ensemble by Gabriela Lena:

We are trying to complete our recording of a fabulous CD which features world-premiere, never recorded chamber music works by the brilliant composer Gabriela Lena Frank. So far we have recorded a portion of the disc, thanks to generous contributions from the Copland Recording Grant and our donors. However, we need your help in order to complete this CD! Please watch our video, where you will see Molly and Gabi in person, and sample a little bit of the beautiful music on this disc, performed by Barry and Molly live.

Our story began with Molly, our pianist, who met Gabi, a wonderful composer at the John Harbison/Dawn Upshaw Workshop at Carnegie Hall in 2004. They bonded both musically and on their views of life and living over rehearsals and meals shared during those weeks. A strong friendship ensued. And during a sushi meal in Berkeley a few years back, this recording project was born.

The works on this CD include: Tres Homenajes: Compadrazgo (For Piano Quintet), Sueños de Chambi: Snapshots for an Andean Album (For Flute and Piano), Canto de Harawi: “Amadeoso” (For Flute, Clarinet, and Piano), Sonata Andina (For Solo Piano), and a brand new work for piano four hands that Gabi will join in with Molly!

Molly Morkoski talks with Gabriela about their collaborative process so far:



The deadline for contributions is June 15 and the recording is already 27% funded as of this evening. Lots of promotions await those who donate, including dedication rights, house concerts, coachings, instruments,CDs and digital downloads.

SongFusion Presents States of Mind on May 8 in NYC

If you're in the New York City area, head on over to the DiMenna Center for Classical Music on May 8 for States of Mind, a recital of new American art song presented by SongFusion featuring visual artist Kevork Mourad. About the project:

"States of Mind" uses as its point of departure the Baroque Doctrine of Affections. Over the course of three mini narratives held together thematically and visually, SongFusion explores opposing pairings of affections - love/hate, joy/sorrow, wonder/desire to create a joint multidisciplinary artwork with projections of visual art. Mourad, who has a deep musical understanding and has worked with the leading musicians, including Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Project, has a highly individual artistic style in which he provides his response to the poetry and music. “States of Mind” aspires to be a modern look at everyday states of being. In America. Today.

This concert will feature sopranos Mary McKenzie and Victoria Bowers, baritone Michael Kelly, flutist Henrik Heide, and violist Ed Klorman, with Liza Stepanova and Kathleen Tagg on piano. Tickets are $15 advance/$20 at the door.

The New York Festival of Song Presents In The Memory Palace

Part of the art song recital's enduring wonder is its ability to mix artists, national styles, time periods, and genres in new and interesting ways. The New York Festival of Song's In the Memory Palace celebrates at a kaleidoscope of songs by Gabriel Kahane, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Enrique Granados, Frank Bridge, and others, with two shows this week in New York City. Soprano Michelle Areyzaga, mezzo soprano Rebecca Jo Loeb, tenor Paul Appleby, and baritone Stephen Garland are joined by pianists Steven Blier and Michael Barrett.

You can really get a sense of the collaborative music-making energy from Steven Blier and company in these two NYFOS promotional videos:





In The Memory Palace will be showing at 8pm on October 25 and 27 at the Merkin Concert Hall at the Kaufmann Center on West 67th. Tickets are $55/40/15.

Full program
Facebook event listing

Pop-Up Pianos for Sale at Sing for Hope Charity Auction

Calling all fans of custom piano mods: the opera-based social change charity Sing for Hope is auctioning 10 pianos from its stable of 88 Pop-Up pianos installation from the NYC area. About the Pop-Up piano program:

Sing for Hope's Pop-Up Pianos bring live art to The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island with the installation of 88 pianos, representing each of the 88 keys, placed at parks and public spaces throughout the five boroughs. For the two-week duration of the project, the pianos feature formal and impromptu concerts by amateurs and professionals alike, in an open festival of music involving all elements of New York’s culturally diverse population.

Sing for Hope’s Pop-Up Pianos celebrate our vision: that all New Yorkers — from Times Square to Coney Island, Lincoln Center to Arthur Avenue — have access to the arts. Each one of the 88 pianos on New York City streets has been painted by a Sing for Hope Volunteer Artist who shares our mission of bringing the arts to all. These professional visual artists volunteered hundreds of hours in our piano warehouse to bring their Pop-Up Pianos to life!

This project combines the participation of dozens of community organizations, the creativity and passion of hundreds of professional artists and public school students, and the spirit of a one-of-a-kind city – New York – to present Pop-Up Pianos.

All profits raised from the sale of these pianos will go to Sing for Hope's Art U! youth outreach program. Get your cash ready soon, as the auction closes on Thursday, July 14 at 5pm.

The pianos being auctioned are:

• Love is Life by Diane von Furstenberg (pictured above)
• Hello Miss Piano by Isaac Mizrahi
• Chopsticks, anyone? by Kate Spade
• Playing One Continuous Line by William Conroy Lindsay (NB: my personal favorite, as its design may assist in getting the point across when explaining legato)
• Manhattan Rhapsody by Scott Taylor
• Got Away and Just Wanted to Play by Samson Contompasis
• Brooklyn Love by Adam Suerte
• Polychromatic Scales by Chris Soria
• Homage to Fred by Scott Glazer
• Pedal to the Metal by Moira Fain

(Via Camille Zamora)

Photo of the Day

Spotted by Elizabeth Grimes in New York City - how on earth does this pianist get his lovely Yamaha grand to and from Washington Square Park every day in order to play on the street?

BTW Elizabeth's blog (+Facebook page) is really, really worth a look. She's a freelance pianist whose blog looks at one magical and unique moment every day.

Salvador Dali Piano Sculpture

That Salvador Dali piano sculpture is sporting some serious pumps, and was spotted at the Time Warner Center in NYC by kiminnyc. For a better but non-embeddable look at the sculpture, take a look at these two photos by wallyg, who writes:

Surrealist Piano was first conceived in 1954 and cast in 1984. The mold was created and approved during Dali's lifetime. This 98-inch bronze casting was cast in 2000 at Perseo SA Foundry.

You can read more about the exhibition here.

Winterreise at the Gerschwin

For those who weren't able to see Operamission's recent Winterreise (featuring stunning performances by tenor Adam Klein and pianist Jennifer Peterson) at the Gershwin Hotel in New York, you can watch the entire cycle on five YouTube videos below.  It might be useful to refer to the text and translations if you haven't already got them memorized.

Stephen Blier, Song, and FSH

Justin Davidson's recent article on Steven Blier in New York Magazine sheds some light on one of New York's most famous vocal coaches. I particularly like his diet of one new song a day:

Today, he still tries to encounter at least one new song every day. YouTube helps. So do a network of advisers and his own meandering taste, which embraces pretty much anything that can be delivered effectively by a voice and a piano: Norwegian art songs, Bruce Springsteen’s “Fire,” Cuban ballads, Broadway tunes, zarzuela arias. What separates the ones that interest him from those that don’t is not style, but a nugget of emotional intensity. “A song is the closest thing I know in waking life to dreaming,” he says. “It’s a coded version of reality. It’s not like playing a scene from Chekhov, where you’re trying to look like you’re having a tea party or a nervous breakdown. Instead, you’re enacting a coded, ritualized version of that moment, and somehow everyone in the hall is dreaming along with you.”

What many people don`t realize is the difficulty with which Blier works because of Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy, its progress confining him to a wheelchair.  Through it all, he works to bring to life the often-mistaken-for-dead art of the song recital and the singers who adore the genre. Here is Blier talking about his brainchild the New York Festival of Song:

An Update from Hoi Pollio's Winterreise at the Ontological in NYC

Several weeks ago, I mentioned Hoi Pollio's irreverent production of Winterreise at the Ontological Theater in NYC. Earlier this week, Alec Duffy sent along the following update (edited):

Hi Chris,

Thanks again for posting about "Three Pianos" a while back. We opened the show and have been getting rave reviews! Here's a five-star review from Time Out New York, and a rave from Culturebot, the biggest theater blogger in NYC.

We're expecting the Village Voice's review on Wednesday, and the New York Times reviewer is coming to the Thursday show.

Thanks again for your help!

Alec

Best of luck to Hoi Polloi for a successful remainder of their run. If you're in NYC and haven't checked out Three Pianos: Schubert's Winterreise Exploded, featuring Rick Burkhardt, Alec Duffy, and Dave Malloy, you only have until March 20...

Three Pianos Explode Winterreise at the Ontological Theater Feb. 25-March 20 in NYC

Here's a wild romp in NYC not to be missed: from February 25 to March 20 at the Ontological Theater, Rick Burkhardt, Alec Duffy and Dave Maloy will be presenting Three Pianos, an irreverent look at Schubert's Winterreise. More about the event:

Based on Schubert's "Winterreise," his classic song cycle on winter heartbreak, Three Pianos takes the form of a musical lecture/demo gone astray, with the three creators each at their own piano, leading the audience through their respective passions for the piece. Compositional mischief, shifting rivalries, freezing dances and some unfortunate butchery of the German language ensue.

Just to give you an idea of what Rick, Alec, and Dave are actually up to, watch their rendition of Die Kraehe:



Three Pianos also needs your help with funding, so if you want to assist in any way, you can check out their Kickstarter page.


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Leonardo da Vinci's Harpsichord Viola Debuts in NYC Thursday Morning

Nicole Tubman sends along the following info about a fascinating event coming up this Thursday morning at Discover Times Square Exposition in NYC, featuring Leonardo da Vinci's hypothetical-but-never-built Harpsichord Viola:

On Thursday, December 10, at 11am, to mark the unveiling of Leonardo da Vinci’s harpsichord-viola designed over 500 years ago, Piffaro, the Renaissance band, will play a short concert featuring the never-before-built musical instrument at Leonardo da Vinci’s Workshop located at the Discovery Times Square Exposition in New York.

Da Vinci’s Harpsichord-Viola - now a permanent part of the exhibition --combines the keyboard of the harpsichord and the technology and sound of the viola. It’s unknown whether Leonardo da Vinci ever actually built the Harpsichord-Viola, but he left detailed designs in his Codex Atlanticus (1493-1495). This model, created using authentic materials by Leonardo3, was built to da Vinci’s specifications, enabling walking musicians to play what amounted to a stringed instrument. A belt would allow the player to wear it and play while walking in processions. The internal “bow” grazes the strings when the keys are depressed and is continuously propelled by a motor activated by the musician's leg as he walks. Further, unlike a viola, which essentially plays one or two strings at a time, the harpsichord-viola can play chords, like on a piano, which didn't exist in Leonardo's time.

This special performance by Piffaro for exhibit ticket holders will take place on Thursday, December 10 at 11 am. The performance kicks off a special “Meet the Curators” weekend, where Massimilano Lisa and Edoardo Zanon, of the Milan-based Leonardo3 will be available from Noon to 6 pm on Friday, Saturday and Sunday (December 11-13) to talk about the Exhibit and
demonstrate the Harpsichord Viola.

Collaborative Piano Blog readers: if you're going to this event, be sure to use the promo code VIOLA at the box office...

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(Thanks, Nicole!)

A Career in Parentheses?

Deborah Sontag's A Life Lived on the Side in Sunday's New York Times looks at the life and work of pianist Larry Fuller, a regular on the New York jazz scene, but one who works as a sideman rather than a band leader. The story of his personal journey and musical engagements makes for some interesting reading, as does Sontag's description of what it takes to maintain a lasting career in jazz:

To make a steady living as a jazz musician is in itself no mean feat, and Mr. Fuller has done so his whole life. His experience offers some insight into the requirements for survival as a working artist, especially in a specialty like jazz where fame and fortune are not realistic goals. Talent most certainly helps, but single-mindedness, passion, humility and the ability to live modestly seem critical too.

And yet...

I sense a kind of manufactured bias towards pianists who choose to work with others, as if a musical life that is spent working in collaboration rather than in the spotlight is a kind of disappointment (hint: re-read the title of the article). Buried near the end of the article is a disclosure by Fuller that he in fact makes $80,000 to $100,000 a year playing, a pretty respectable amount in the jazz field. Why not celebrate the fact that a jazz pianist who has managed to maintain an extremely stable career for years while overcoming enormous personal odds is able to make a solid living from his love of playing jazz? 

Be sure to check out the tracks of the Larry Fuller Trio on the multimeda sidebar. Although Sontag's article makes no mention that Fuller has ever led his own trio, the Larry Fuller Trio's recording on Pony Boy Records lists Fuller on piano joined by the legendary Ray Brown on bass and Jeff Hamilton on drums.

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One of the things I mention in workshops I give about my blog is how the media's perception of collaborative pianists colors what we do. Could you imagine the direction of this blog if I had named it "Accompanist's Corner"? "In the Shadows"? "At Your Service"?

And if there ever was reason that much still needs to be done, simply take a look at the anonymization of the pianists (and the abuses hurled at them) who are mentioned on a Twitter accompanist search. 

Previously on the Collaborative Piano Blog:

You're a What?

You're a What? Part 2

You're a What? Part 3

10+1 Ways to Advertise Your Services as a Collaborative Pianist