Notes From a Curious Listener

Last night's concert was the one that I was most looking forward to, and it didn't disappoint. The Chopin piano Ballades played by Vladimir Feltsman were gorgeous. The Arensky, Piano Trio in D Minor, Op. 32, played by Feltsman, Gary Hoffman, cello, and Cho-Liang (Jimmy) Lin, violin, was incredibly moving.  It was my favorite piece in all of SummerFest.

Being "real", I must admit that the piece by Victor Kissine, Partita for Piano, Harp and Strings (1998), was a bit more challenging for me because it was rather heavy. One of my friends said she enjoyed it because she closed her eyes and pictured the movie, an epic drama. I concur!

I had the privilege of mingling with the artists after the concert. Here are some tidbits, paraphrased rather than directly quoted because I, like them, was relaxing and drinking wine rather than taking notes.

From left to right:  Vladimir Feltsman, Cho-Liang Lin, Gary Hoffman and Deborah Hoffman

Cho-Liang (Jimmy) Lin  "Oh, thank you, Karen."

CL Note: Said after I told him how beautifully he played the Arensky piece. Always gracious and humble, Lin immediately shifted the focus to something else. Feltsman was also gracious. Gary's reaction was a bit more playful.

Gary Hoffman, with a wry smile, "It wasn't me; it was the cello."

Vladimir Feltsman, later in the evening,  "Maybe we should become a permanent trio: Jimmy, Gary and I. We wouldn't have to talk much. We rehearsed a little of course, but not much. I only made two pencil marks in the score, the ENTIRE score."

Deborah Hoffman, Harpist, "After the Kissine, we all looked at each other, simply glad that we got through it without any catastrophes.  We worked on it really hard. It wasn't difficult technically, but we had to count through the silence. The difficulty is that I could have been counting much faster than the bass player, Chris Hanulik. But, my biggest worry was that I would drop the screwdriver."

CL Note: Hoffman used a screwdriver to strike the harp strings rather than a triangle rod, which was called for in the score, because she couldn't find one. Who knew the trials a musician goes through!

Whenever I speak with Orion Weiss, he is smiling and enthusiastic; and this interview is no exception. Fresh and happy, Weiss is so clearly from a later generation than the other musicians I interviewed. Check out, for example, his answer about his cellphone ring tone. He has four of them; and he has two websites, both of which he is intimately involved with. But, let me start with a question on rehearsing to insure that you also appreciate the intensity he feels about his musical career. 

Do you do anything unusual during practice or preparing for a performance?

Rehearsals are so important. They must be exactly like a performance so that the performance isn't the first time you give it. You need to envision how the performance will be. Right before the performance I have race-horse excitement. My focus is much better. They say, "if the horse isn't excited, don't leave the gate." I have to make sure that my excitement doesn't become anxiety. The excitement is the fun of playing for people, and the anxiety is the desire to do well. Somehow the two come together and make the best performance.

You have only been married (to Anna Polonsky) for 1.5 months. How is it going?

Fantastic. At this festival (Seattle Summer Festival) we are together and it is so wonderful. I hope I can come to La Jolla with Anna sometime. The wedding was beautiful and perfect. And, since we just got married, there has been a lot of attention about how well we play together. That has been fun. Anna's fantastic.

Do you ever get irritated with Anna when you work on a piece together? 

We play a lot of stuff for each other. When we are working on a new concerto, we'll go into our piano room, which has two pianos in it, and play the orchestra part. We like working together. It strengthens our relationship to practice together.

Here is a video where you and your fiancee, now your wife, are talking in detail about composers.  Is it important to play a piece the way the composer wanted it played? 

You can learn a lot by playing other pieces by the same composer. You can get into their mindset.  I wouldn't ever want to do something that is not what the composer wanted; but you do have to pick out the parts of the music that you especially like and work with them.

Curious Listener Note:  If you are in a hurry, fast forward to 2:20 to Adrian Spence's announcement of their engagement and watch Weiss' (adorable) reaction.

I asked Chinary Ung, who has been married to a musician for 43 years, to give you some advice.

Oh great. We have been asking everyone we know for advice. 

Click here to read the entire interview .

It isn't unique to respond to e-mail in the middle of other work. Who doesn't? But, watch Wu Man play the pipa in the video below and then explain to me how this virtuoso does it because I have no idea. Here's her interview: 

Is eastern music like coffee, an acquired taste? 

It depends on where you grew up. If, in your childhood, you are surrounded by one kind of music, then of course you are used to it, and you would enjoy the taste.   I would try coffee, tea or hot chocolate -- all kinds of music.

Here is a video of you playing one of your own compositions. One person commented, "god, pipa players probably laugh at guitars." Is it true?

I hope not.  Yeah, that piece needs good technique skill.

What inspired you to write Night Thoughts which you will play at SummerFest on Friday, August 20? 
         
The piece was inspired by the 12th Century  pipa mode (scale) from Dun Huang cave in the west part of China.  I especially chose this ancient mode to compose because I find that I can give the listener a very different musical experience of the pipa. It sounds more like Central Asian music rather than Chinese.   Both the pipa and percussion parts are based on per-structured improvisation, so that will give each performer a fresh idea every time.

If you could bring one composer back from the dead, who would it be?

Oh, so many.  I would bring back great musicians such as Jimmy Hendrix, Duke Ellington, R.D Burman (India film composer), Chinese pop/folk singer Deng Lijun, and of course Bach and Chopin.... too many.

Curious Listener Note: This and other questions were shamelessly copied from Warwick's blog. Let me know what questions you have for the artists.

Click here to read the rest of the interview.

Chinary Ung received one of five commissions from the La Jolla Music Society this year. Commissioning music is expensive, about $1000 per minute; so my curiousity was piqued. Who are these composers, and why do they deserve a coveted commission? 

The first article about Ung that popped up in my google search had a list of awards and compositions far longer than I am willing to subject my gentle readers to. Take it from me, we can be proud that he is one of our own - a professor at UCSD.   

When talking to Ung, I sensed the kindness in his answers,  along with regret that people are focused on material things that don't matter. As a survivor of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, he knows a thing or two about that.

Malaysiancomposers.com did an interesting interview with Ung which reveals his thinking and composing. enotes.com describes his amazing history. Here are some samples of Ung's work that you can hear. I generally kept my interview to lighter subjects including some advice for newly married Orion Weiss!

Here, Ung gives some tips on enjoying new music:

Don't expect the routine... each new piece can be quite different. Read between the lines or ‘notes' especially when dealing with a piece of music that has clearly originated from a culture other than the west.

Sometimes eastern music is difficult for me. Do you have any suggestions for me to overcome that? Is it like coffee, an acquired taste? 

Not at all. If a piece of music doesn't touch you... that is what it might be and it's not always your fault. Try it one more time or just stay away for good.

Read on for the entire interview.

I met Demarre McGill last night after the Chopin Celebration - which was wonderful.  He's a very nice guy. He's from Chicago, like me, and he's not shy; as you will see.

I, of course, asked him if he was related to Anthony McGill, clarinetist, who played at President Obama's inauguration; and he said that he was. Somebody asked him if he looks like Anthony; and he said, "Well, I'm actually better looking; but he played at the inauguration so he's ahead." See for yourself.