Seattle Symphony: Piano Competition

I brought my mom back with me to Seattle and we had only been here 5 days when she asked if we had plans for September 15th. I told her that the world was our oyster and wondered what she was thinking.

She had been going through the stack of Seattle/Seattle Met magazines in the apartment and read that the Seattle Symphony was holding its first-ever piano competition, in partnership with the Young Concert Artists and the Washington Piano Arts. My mom said that she had listened to broadcasts of piano competitions on the radio for years but had never had the chance to attend one in person. That was it, we were going to the Seattle Symphony Piano Competition at Benaroya Hall in downtown Seattle.

The process began last Spring when a panel of reviewers started listening to audio recordings submitted by applicants worldwide. The panel selected 8 pianists from the submissions and the live competition began on September 15th with a Recital Round. Those who made the cut proceeded to the Semi-Final Round on September 16th. At last, three finalists (Kevin Ahfat, Kenny Broberg and Vijay Venkatesh) performed on Friday night for a ticketed Final Round.

My mom and I attended the afternoon Recital Round on September 15th and heard Peng-Chian Chen, Peter Chuang-Chuang Fang, Vijay Venkatesh and Sean Yeh perform. It was a fabulous experience and it was interesting to see (and hear) the vast differences between the pianists and their interpretations of the same piece of music. 

Vijay Venkatesh was our favorite and I commented to my mom during intermission that I felt like I had actually seen him move out of reality and into the music while I watched. He was completely absorbed and it was moving.

Kevin Ahfat won the competition (congratulations!) and we were happy to hear that Vijay Venkatesh tied with Kenny Broberg for second place - Bravo! The Grand Prize was a $10,000 cash prize, many future opportunities and a performance on the Seattle Symphony's Opening Night concert on September 19th. What a week Kevin had! 

Second Prize was a $5,000 cash prize and a consultation with Young Concert Artists and First Chair Promotion. The competition also awarded a $1,000 cash prize to Audience Favorite, Kenny Broberg.

Once upstairs, we admired the magnificent almost candy-like chandelier "Crystal Cascade" by Dale Chihuly, from the second story overlook outside the Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital Hall where the piano competition took place. 

I know that over the next decade I will spend many nights in this magnificent building and attending a piano competition makes for a fun first memory.

Lipstick Sunset

The night was coming on so dark and heavy - Fall was in the air; the days were shorter and definitely cooler. This particular life day had been gray, then everything changed at sunset and the deep teal of Lake Michigan was offset by iridescent pinks, lavender, apricot and yellow. 

It was a lipstick sunset.

Do you know the song?  I have a lovely memory of working with a woman one summer who was still receiving mixed tapes by an old flame.  They lived in different parts of the country, but every once in awhile a cassette tape full of music would arrive in her mailbox.  Their lives had moved on, but he still thought of her.  

She shared her favorite tape with me, I dubbed a copy (remember tape-to-tape?) and listened to the patchwork of songs all summer.  "Lipstick Sunset" by John Hiatt was one of my favorites.

Art is Personal: Vintage Sheet Music Sets the Mood

I made my own art!  I was given a few scores of vintage sheet music from a friend whose step-grandfather had been an movie theater organist during the silent movie era.   He contributed live music and sound effects to bring the silent pictures to life.  Throughout his life as a pianist and music lover, he amassed a huge collection of sheet music.  

My friend's family inherited his boxes of music and, knowing that I love paper, he chose a few pieces that he thought I would like to craft or decorate with.  I was given free reign to do with them whatever I wanted, but I have been too chicken to actually use the originals.

Being a photographer, I had the brainstorm to photograph the cover art (from the 1906 sheet music) and send it to the printer at Costco.  I ordered a poster of my JPEG made from "museum quality semi board."  It is stiff enough to stand on it's own on an easel (shown here, it is propped on another painting temporarily) and light enough to mount with poster putty.  Neat, eh?  I am so happy with the result and am really pleased that I did all this while still preserving the antique papers.  I love when art and technology collide!

Music Case

Can you see what I have been up to?  I've made myself a custom iPod Nano case.  My Nano is light-years from the latest incarnation of music-on-the-go, but it serves me perfectly well.  It is full of the music I love and lets me escape into familiar rhythms and lyrics whenever my mind needs a rest.

My biggest problem with having a small Nano, was that I couldn't keep track of it easily.  When I was on an airplane and I wanted to listen to music, the device was hard to manage and often slipped off the tray table or my lap.  I decided the solution was to make a hanging case for it.

I used an office supply store retractable name badge holder and fashioned a narrow sleeve out of a plastic-coated map (to support my travel theme), lined it with felt (to cushion the Nano) and sewed it together.  I used a hole punch to make the opening for the name bag clasp.  By trimming the excess off with pinking shears, I had a pretty finished edge.  Voila!  The construction is so simple, there is no need for a pattern or tutorial.  Just layer the map and felt and sew - just use a sturdy needle (like one for jeans) to help ease through the layers. 

Now when I travel, I can clip the name badge holder to the "seat pocket in front of me" (or to a beach tote, car pocket, bicycle basket) and my Nano is safe and easily within reach.  When I pack up and move on, I just clip it to my pants pocket and I know exactly where my music is until I deplane and can get organized again.

I hope this simple (but super cute) craft inspires you to fashion your own mini music case. 

Player Pianos

Can you hear the music?  My friend had Auld Lang Syne playing on her antique player piano on New Year's Eve.  So nostalgic!  Look closely and you can see that a white key is being played...this is an action shot!

When my friend Kim and her husband bought their house, the previous owners offered to leave this Story & Clark player piano in the basement.  It didn't play, mind you, but my friends could see the potential. 

When the time was right, they found an expert in player piano restoration (a blind man with an incredible ear for music) and the piano was taken off site for a complete overhaul. 

Voila!  This historic piano plays like a dream now and based on the serial number we think it is from between 1924-1931.  It came with a large selection of music (paper rolls with a pattern of holes that triggers the keys) with dreamy names like "Midnight Waltz", "1924 Rose Marie Fox Trot" and "Oh Boy, What A Girl!" 

Kim's basement holds a time capsule of romance.  Is your dance card full?

Imogen Heap

Normally "delight" follows along the lines of things to see, taste, smell. But music is a huge part of my daily happiness and it is time to tell you about my favorite musician ever: Imogen Heap.

She is a British singer/songwriter who writes and sings exactly what I want to hear. How's that for an endorsement?

You know how when you eat a piece of chocolate and think - yes, that's it. I feel that way when I hear her music - yes, that's the pitch, tone, layers of sound that I want to hear.

I have followed her career for years (nominated for "Best New Artist" in 2007 and won a Grammy for "Best Engineered Album - Non Classical" for Ellipse in 2010) and love how she connects music and technology. You can hear a terrific interview with Imogen about her creative process here on National Public Radio.

YouTube had lots of her videos - this link should show you one titled "Headlock." It is a perfect example of my mantra - Beautiful and Interesting.

She was in concert last weekend (she hadn't been back to Detroit in three years) and it was wonderful. She had offered ticket holders the chance to vote online for the 12 songs they wanted to hear "live." The website tallied the votes and each city gets a custom playlist based on their votes - isn't that modern? I love stuff like that.

She also solicited nominations for charities in each city. After reviewing each one online, she chose one charity per city to receive the proceeds from the sale of an "improvisational track" created during the concert. She explained onstage that she didn't want to come to a city, perform and then leave - she wanted something good to be left behind. Neat, eh? When the track is released online, I will put a link here.

The Detroit, Michigan charter of Urban Farming (planting gardens on un-used land) will benefit from the sale of the track composed by her on-stage in Detroit.

Plain and simple - Imogen Heap is a delight!

Mood Music

Wear earplugs and sing your heart out.

That is my concert-going advice. Music plays such a big part of my life - I like many different styles and seem to having music playing all the time. I think the right song can do a lot for our mood.

With just a few days notice, my friend Polly called and asked if I wanted to go with her (and another friend of ours, Ann) to the Elton John & Billy Joel "Face 2 Face" concert. Another friend of theirs was unable to go to the concert and Polly said she had a ticket "with my name on it" - joy!

We had so much fun - there is something to be said for going to concerts where you know all the words. I loved it. We sang our hearts out and I felt so grateful that this "moment of delight" had fallen right into my lap.

And did I mention that we ate Sanders Hot Fudge sundaes as our concession fare? Beer and nachos didn't stand a chance when we saw that Sanders had a "sweet treat" booth. I'm sure we didn't look like we were "with the band," sitting shoulder-to-shoulder eating ice cream and catching up with each other, but it was the perfect concert experience.