Barber's Hermit Songs 1-8 Performed by Helen Semple and Polina Gerasimenko

Here is some really fine playing and singing - from a lunchtime concert at St. Martin-in-the-Fields earlier this year, the first eight of Samuel Barber's Hermit Songs performed by soprano Helen Semple and pianist Polina Gerasimenko:





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Thomas Quasthoff and Hélène Grimaud Perform Hör ich das Liedchen klingen at Verbier

From the 2007 Verbier Festival, here are pianist Hélène Grimaud and baritone Thomas Quasthoff performing Hör ich das Liedchen klingen from Robert Schumann's Dichterliebe:



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Tapestry's 30th Anniversary Celebration This Wednesday at the Distillery

This coming Wednesday, I will be performing with Theresa Tova at Tapestry New Opera's 30th Anniversary Celebration in the Distillery's Fermenting Cellar. Also appearing are Jean Stilwell, Patti Loach, the Gryphon Trio, Xin Wang, Carla Huhtanen, and Peter McGillivray. I've been working with Tapestry since 2002, and it's still weird to think of a company that specializes in cutting-edge artistic work to have been around so long. Join us as we both celebrate the past 30 years and look forward to the next 30. Tickets are $130 for this fund-raising event.

Update: A short article about Theresa Tova is featured in this week's NOW Magazine.

The Ringed Earth

What better music than Schubert's Ave Maria as performed by Barbara Bonney and Geoffrey Parsons to contemplate what the earth might look like if it had rings:



(Via Real-Time Rendering)

Collaborative Piano Internships at the Banff Centre

From June 28 until July 16, 2010, eight pianists will have the opportunity to participate in the Collaborative Piano Internship program at the Banff Centre. From the Banff website:

This unique internship opportunity allows eight collaborative pianists the opportunity to interact with a diverse group of musicians in the master class program on a wide range of repertoire and projects.

The collaborative pianists will have their own studio space with grand piano, access to mentoring by the director and visiting guest artists, countless performance opportunities, and opportunities to network with talented artists from all over the world.

Proven ability in solo repertoire and in chamber music is essential. Of equal importance is an amiable personality, efficient time-management skills, and an interest and desire to be a part of a collegial music environment.

Collaborative Piano Internship at the Banff Centre
Faculty
Program Fees
Application Requirements
Apply Online

All materials are due by January 15, 2010.

(Image by pinkcanoe on Flickr)

Vadim Repin and Nikolai Lugansky Play Arvo Pärt's Fratres

From a 2004 performance in Tokyo, here are violinist Vadim Repin and pianist Nikolai Lugansky playing Arvo Pärt's Fratres for violin and piano:

The Accompanist: A Poem by William Matthews

The Google Books entry on Billy Collins' Poetry 180 Anthology features William Matthews' The Accompanist, which makes for some interesting reading:



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A question: is there a tendency in poets who write poems about accompanists to stereotype what we do by poetically exploring our (wrongly or not) perceived servitude?

More links to poems about accompanists on the Collaborative Piano Blog:

Arnie Ibsen's Accompanist Poem
Accompanist for Florence Foster Jenkins, a Poem by Darren Morris
Ken Weisner's Accompanist Poem
Dick Allen's Accompanist Poem