Piano Hands

At this point, we're pretty much ready to go.  So we're relaxing today - we slept in and made crepes for brunch.   I'm going to gather all my books & sheet music, and head to the piano.  I can think of no better way of spending my last lazy day at home than playing my way through Beethoven, Chopin & Mozart, with a little Elton John thrown in the mix!

Being a classical musician is unique.  Some of the greatest minds in history have put some symbols to a page that we get to bring back to life.  No one interpretation is ever the same, which makes the performing arts so exciting, and risky.  I say risky because a musician has to maintain an effective balance between being true to the score while also infusing a performance with one's own personality.  Of course, it's also risky because of the nerve-wracking element of playing from memory, which was a tradition that developed because of Franz Liszt, composer and pianist extraordinaire.  His compositions (as opposed to someone like, say, JS Bach, who wrote many of his works as teaching aids) were written simply to showcase his own exceptional talent.  He also decided that the piano should be turned such that the audience could admire his chiseled profile while he played!  There's no doubt that this was an arrogant man.  But do me a favor, google his hands to see how huge they were; a most helpful trait for playing this instrument!  Last year, when I was choosing some new repertoire to work on, I had a tough conversation with my teacher, who strongly recommended that I don't injure myself trying to play Liszt's "La Campanella".  This piece is absolutely incredible, and one of the Holy Grails for us pianists.  But it's not in the cards for me. 

I will be scanning & copying some music to bring with me, in the hopes that I'll run across a piano from time to time.  It will be hard not to have an instrument at my disposal every day.  My lessons started at age four; I don't even remember a time in my life where I didn't play.  It's part of who I am.

I know I'll be a little melancholy when I shelve my music for the last time, but my teacher had some wise words for me.  She believes that everything we will see, learn and discover will only add to my artistry.  A broadened mind will translate into a more interesting & diverse musician.  As Oliver Wendall Holmes has said, “A mind, once expanded to the dimensions of bigger ideas, never returns to its original size."