My Performance with Shannon Mercer on Classical 96.3FM

It was a huge pleasure performing with Shannon Mercer a few days ago for Classical 96.3FM, and below is the video of the program. Here are the songs we performed:

1) Villanelle - H .Berlioz (from the song cycle Les Nuits D'Etes)
2) Bugeilio'r Gwenyth Gwen (Watching the Golden Wheat)- trad Welsh Folk song arr. Alun Hoddinot
3) Lascia ch'io pianga (Let me Weep) - Almirena's aria from Handel's opera Rinaldo
4) She loves and she confesses too - Henry Purcel

The lovely Hoddinot folk song arrangement can also be found on Shannon's Wales: The Land of Song, which she recorded with the Skye Consort. A huge thanks goes out to the many people who have sent in congrats over the last few days. I would also like to thank Alexa Petrenko for the awesome mention of the blog around the 11:50 mark.

Backpack Studio from Paul and Romann

Here's an interesting improvisation project I just got word of via the duo Paul and Romann:

In the summer of 2010, a cognitive scientist who can play piano and an out of work producer who probably shouldn’t got access to a rehearsal studio at CalTech for reasons we are still looking into. Over the course of five Saturdays they recorded over 17 hours of improvised works for two pianos. Those seventeen were subsequently edited down into this humble one. It is music for dinner parties for people who don’t throw dinner parties. Please enjoy.

The entire project is available on streaming audio:



You can also buy the album for $2.02 on Bandcamp.

Enlightened Pianism, Enlightened Commentary

I'm always in favor of writers developing a wider palette of words to describe the art of pianists working in collaboration, especially in the delicate art of music reviews. Gone (for the most part) are the days of reading "Mr. X. accompanied ably, and with discretion.". The following excerpt from a Chamber Music Today review of a recital by tenor Stephen Costello and pianist Danielle Orlando in Kansas City deserves special mention for its language and imagery regarding the singer/pianist dynamic:

Orlando’s piano provided poignant contrast and astringency to counterbalance Costello’s warm singing. The effect was like that of a third-person omniscient narrator in a novel. Orlando’s piano: theotic; godlike; expressing an all-knowing perspective; telling us listeners things that the main character, Costello, does not know—things that that few mortals (or none) can fully know—the meaning of Life; the mystical depth and transcendence of True Love—short of attaining Buddhahood or assumption into Heaven. Through the piano, we appreciate what the human species feels like and how much we humans stand yet to learn, as this young male exemplar sings his account of, say, what Tosti says ‘Love’s Gift’ is. The almighty Piano has seen it all and knows Everything. The mortal singer is earnest and true, but has only learnt as much as his youth has so far afforded opportunities for him to experience.

Props also go out to CMT for starting the review by talking about the high level of collaboration between Costello and Orlando.

Live Broadcast Tuesday Afternoon with Shannon Mercer

On Tuesday the 29th at around 3:20pm EDT, I will be performing live with soprano Shannon Mercer on Classical 96.3FM in Toronto. If you're interested in hearing us but aren't in range of the FM signal, you can listen live on the internet or download the free Classical 96.3 app from the iTunes store.

The broadcast is also a promotion for an upcoming group of twenty-seven concert happening this Friday at Grace Church on the Hill, featuring Shannon performing works of Hector Berlioz and Toronto-based composer Norbert Palej, with Eric Paetkau conducting. Tickets for Friday's g27 concert are available at Eventbrite.

It's Always Nice to Get a Positive Review

Those who perform a lot will know that critics can be fickle, and one needs to take the positive with the negative all in good measure. Nevertheless, Wendy was glad to see COMMANDOpera's review of Opera Lyra's Lucia di Lammermoor, which praised her in these words:

Mr. Robert Pomakov as Raimondo and Miss Wendy Hatala Foley as Alisa were sensational...Miss Hatala Foley outshone Miss Petrova vocally in any scene they were together. During the culmination of the sextet, Miss Hatala Foley was the only female vocal instrument on the stage which soared over orchestration with tremendous ease. Stunning to hear this instrument so unexpectedly excellent. COMMANDOpera marvels at the talent of BOTH of these artists who virtually managed to overshadow all three of the main characters...

Although the candour of the COMMANDOpera view could be quite harsh at times, it is rare nowadays to see such detail and care taken in reviewing an opera. If only we could see such thoroughness in the traditional press.

9 More Pianists Play the Chopin Butterfly Etude

A while ago, I mentioned a video of 7 historic performances of the Chopin Butterfly Etude in chronological order. Via @intrepidimages, here are 9 more performances of the Chopin Etude Opus 25 #9 by the following pianists:

1. Vladimir Ashkenazy
2. Wilhelm Backhaus
3. Idil Biret
4. Vladimir Horowitz
5. Not sure - any guesses? (Update: Phillipe Cassard - thanks Anonymous!)
6. Murray Perahia
7. Maurizio Pollini
8. Leonard Bernstein
9. Grigorij Sokolov

Breaking: The Carnegie Hall Royal Conservatory Achievement Program Launches US-wide

The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto and Carnegie Hall in New York have just announced a major new partnership today, launching the Carnegie Hall Royal Conservatory Achievement Program, a US-wide study and assessment program for young musicians. Those of you familiar with the RCM examination system will know that there already exists an American version of the exams called the National Music Certificate Program; the Achievement Program is in effect a re-branding and relaunching of the RCM's American presence, albeit this time with much greater marketing presence, clout, and effectiveness, given the power of the world-renowned Carnegie Hall brand as a partner.

To date, there has never been a music certification and achievement program for young musicians to follow in the United States that has gained traction on a national level compared to the RCM in Canada, the ABRSM in Great Britain, and the AMEB in Australia.

That is about to change.

With the CHRC Achievement Program, the already-established RCM Examinations system and the vast catalog of books from Frederick Harris Music will be able to reach a much greater number of teachers, both independent and institutional. At the same time, Carnegie Hall will have a golden opportunity to expand its business model far beyond the concert business and give them a major foothold in the US music education market.

Stay tuned for more details as more information becomes available. You can also check out my Twitter stream for more live information. In the meantime, below are highlights from both the American and Canadian press releases which just went public this afternoon.

The Carnegie Hall press release:

CARNEGIE HALL AND THE ROYAL CONSERVATORY

PARTNER TO LAUNCH

THE CARNEGIE HALL ROYAL CONSERVATORY ACHIEVEMENT PROGRAM

New Nationally Recognized Program Designed To Encourage

Musical Excellence Across The United States

(March 25, 2010; NEW YORK, NY and Toronto, ON, Canada)—Carnegie Hall and The Royal Conservatory today jointly announced that they have partnered to create the Carnegie Hall Royal Conservatory Achievement Program (The Achievement Program), a national system of music study and assessment for students and teachers.

The Achievement Program will create a nationally recognized standard of musical achievement for people of all ages independently studying music in the United States, offering a sequential course of study from beginner through advanced levels. Modeled on the internationally renowned program and examination system developed by The Royal Conservatory in Canada, The Achievement Program will motivate music students, both children and adults, to strive for excellence through participation
in individual student assessments with professional adjudicators, enabling them to celebrate their accomplishments and track their progress. For younger students, The Program will assist parents who seek a better understanding of their children’s level of performance and musical growth. It will also support and empower independent music teachers by providing both opportunities for high-quality professional development and innovative curricular resources.

“The launch of The Achievement Program marks an extraordinary milestone for The Royal Conservatory and for music education in the United States,” said Dr. Peter Simon, President and CEO of The Royal Conservatory. “Our belief in the transformative power and benefits of the arts through greater participation in music study led us to a partnership with the leading icon of excellence in musical performance—Carnegie Hall.”

“Since Carnegie Hall opened in 1891, it has been the aspirational destination for musicians worldwide, a place that has inspired generations of musicians to fulfill their talent,” said Clive Gillinson, Executive and Artistic Director of Carnegie Hall. “Especially through the education and community programs of Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute, we continue to embrace this tradition, encouraging people from all walks of life to engage with great music. With these values in mind, it is a great pleasure to take this next important step in music education with such a great partner—The Royal Conservatory of Music with its own wonderful 125-year commitment to music education—to launch this important initiative designed to support students and teachers nationwide and meaningfully encourage their musical development and spirit of discovery.”

****

The Carnegie Hall Royal Conservatory Achievement Program was created in response to feedback from parents and teachers throughout the United States who said they would welcome a top-quality, nationally recognized program enabling them to measure students’ progress and musical achievement. The Achievement Program is based on the highly successful Royal Conservatory Examinations program, established by The Royal Conservatory in 1886, through which more than 100,000 students (children and adults) are currently assessed annually in communities throughout Canada.

In the United States, The Achievement Program provides comprehensive materials and tools for music educators including sequential program guides, repertoire lists, and online educational resources. Official program syllabi are available for a variety of instruments including keyboard, strings, woodwinds, brass, and voice. The official syllabi outline The Achievement Program’s requirements for each instrument for beginner through advanced levels, including an extensive list of repertoire appropriate for each level of musical development, and a comprehensive bibliography. In addition to its focus on performance, The Program also encompasses sequential learning in the areas of technique, musicianship, music theory, music history, and pedagogy.

Central to the approach of The Achievement Program are periodic assessments for students: one-on-one adjudicator-to-student performance evaluations that also function as valuable teaching / learning opportunities. Students and their teachers work together to choose and prepare a selection of repertoire to perform for the adjudicator and review technical and musicianship requirements appropriate to the student’s level. In each practical assessment, a certified professional adjudicator evaluates a student’s performance of repertoire, studies (études), and musical proficiency skills. Following the assessment, students later receive a detailed written evaluation with suggestions for continued growth and development as well as information about their current level of achievement. Assessments are also offered in the academic subjects of music theory and music history. Once all of the components of a particular assessment level are successfully completed, students are awarded certificates. One of the most important aspects of The Achievement Program is how it encourages students to work from level to level. This sequential course of study is meant to provide a clear, consistent, and meaningful path to recognize achievement and reward excellence across the US, and raise awareness of the value of studying music at the national level.

Teachers and students can participate in The Achievement Program anywhere in the United States. The Program will hold assessments several times a year with upcoming dates and registration information listed on its web site. Students of all ages can currently take assessments in 90 US locations, with the number of locations expected to grow as The Program develops.

For registration information, including details of fees, materials, and locations, please visit
www.TheAchievementProgram.org.

The Royal Conservatory's press release:

THE ROYAL CONSERVATORY ANNOUNCES

PARTNERSHIP WITH CARNEGIE HALL

The Royal Conservatory and Carnegie Hall have partnered to launch the Carnegie Hall Royal Conservatory Achievement Program (The Achievement Program), a national system of music study and assessment for students and teachers across the United States.

“The launch of The Achievement Program marks an extraordinary milestone for The Royal Conservatory and for music education in the United States,” says Dr. Peter Simon, President and CEO of The Royal Conservatory. “Our belief in the transformative power and benefits of the arts, through greater participation in music study, led us to a partnership with the leading icon of excellence in musical performance — Carnegie Hall.”

“Carnegie Hall is proud to align itself with The Royal Conservatory's 125-year legacy of excellence in music education,” says Clive Gillinson, Executive and Artistic Director of Carnegie Hall. “By establishing a commonly understood set of standards for people studying music across the United States, this national program will create engaging new ways for students — both children and adults — to measure their progress, motivating them to work toward greater musical accomplishments. The Achievement Program will also assist parents who seek a better understanding of their children’s level of performance and musical growth, while supporting teachers through opportunities for high-quality professional development and curricular resources.”

The Achievement Program is based on the internationally renowned curriculum and examination system developed by The Royal Conservatory, which provides a recognized standard of musical success through an effectively sequenced course of study from beginner to advanced levels. Over 100,000 students participate in Royal Conservatory examinations annually in communities across Canada.

The Achievement Program includes elements that have made The Royal Conservatory examination system the most respected in the world, including:
- Practical examinations evaluating a student’s proficiency in music
- Theory and history examinations, which play an essential role in developing musicianship and music literacy
- One-on-one sessions with a professional examiner ensuring consistent assessment standards
- Syllabi, repertoire books, and other educational materials and resources

The Royal Conservatory is one of the largest and most respected music education institutions in the world. Providing the definitive standard in music education through its curriculum, assessment, performance, and teacher education, the programs of The Royal Conservatory have had a substantial impact upon the lives of millions of
people globally. The Royal Conservatory has helped to train a number of great artists including Glenn Gould, Oscar Peterson, David Foster, Sarah McLachlan, Angela Hewitt, and Diana Krall. Motivated by its powerful mission to develop human potential through music and the arts, The Royal Conservatory has emerged over the last two decades as a leader in the development of arts-based programs that address a wide range of social issues. For more information, please visit www.rcmusic.ca.

Founded in 1891, New York City’s Carnegie Hall presents exceptional performances by the world’s finest artists on its three stages — the renowned Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage, the intimate Weill Recital Hall, and the innovative Zankel Hall — ranging from orchestral concerts, chamber music, and solo recitals to jazz, world, and popular music. Extensive music education and community programs developed by Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute play a central role in Carnegie Hall’s commitment to making great music accessible to as many people as possible. WMI’s programs annually serve over 170,000 children, students, teachers, parents, young music professionals, and adults in the New York City metropolitan area, across the country, and around the globe, with more than an additional 100,000 people taking advantage of WMI’s online music education resources. For more information on Carnegie Hall or other Weill Music Institute national/international music programs, please visit carnegiehall.org.

The 2011 MTNA National Conference Opens Tomorrow in Milwaukee

The 2011 MTNA National Conference and NATS Spring Workshop will be opening its doors tomorrow in Milwaukee and running through March 30. This year's focus will be the art of collaborative music making (!!!), with its many voices and proponents. Although I was invited to attend, I've found myself in one of the busiest times in recent memory and am completely unable to leave Toronto this week. If you're  interested in following the conference blow-by-blow, head on over to Music Matters Blog and Color In My Piano, both of whom will be at the conference's many events and blogging about it.

Best of luck to everyone attending or involved with the conference!

Bostridge and Uchida's Winterreise in London

Now that's a concert pairing I would love to see in recital sometime - Ian Bostridge and Mitsuko Uchida performing Schubert's Winterreise. From their recent Wigmore Hall appearance, Martin Kettle writes in the Guardian:

Bostridge's light, high tenor, and his punctilious German, were especially effective in the dreamier, more hallucinatory songs such as The Linden Tree and The Crow, and his account of the cycle became increasingly gripping. It reached a dark intensity in the solemn pairing of The Signpost and The Inn, and ended with a typically bleak rendering of The Organ-Grinder. Some may dislike Bostridge's habit of pacing around the platform in front of the piano, but this is a cycle that compels restlessness. Both the unusual timbre of Bostridge's tenor and the calculated physicality of his stage manner add to the sense of the protagonist as a person on the edge.

By contrast, Uchida's piano-playing became almost mannered in its restraint and introspection. But the control, the mastery of half-tones, and the profound seriousness of her playing of Schubert's chords, especially memorable in The Inn, was music-making of the highest order. As so often in performances as an accompanist, Uchida seemed to be silently singing every word. Not a conventional art-song Winterreise in any way, but an absolutely riveting evening all the same.

Here is the same duo performing the first six songs from Die schöne Müllerin on Japanese TV:

 

Win Two Free Tickets to Opening Night of Opera Lyra's Lucia di Lammermoor in Ottawa

On Saturday, March 26th, Ottawa's Opera Lyra will be presenting Lucia di Lammermoor, the final production of their season at the National Arts Centre. My wife, Wendy Hatala Foley, will be singing the role of Alisa, alongside Lyubov Petrova, Marc Hervieux, Greg Dahl, Robert Pomakov, Graham Thompson and Nils Brown with the National Arts Centre Orchestra conducted by Tyrone Paterson. The production is directed by Henry Akina. Since I'm back to my regular teaching schedule for the rest of the month, I'll be unable to catch the opening night.

Therefore...

Wendy, in her awesomeness, has kindly offered her two orchestra-level comps to two lucky Collaborative Piano Blog readers. Yes, it's time for another ticket giveaway!

As usual, there will be a contest, and Wendy will be judging the entries in order to determine the winner.

Competition Rules and Regulations

1. Write a short synopsis of Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor in 140 characters or less. Be inventive, clever, cunning, witty, or snide. Just be aware you have only 140 characters in which to tell the story of the opera.

2. Once you've written the pint-sized synopsis, you have to do two things:

a) Email it to me at collaborativepiano [at] gmail dot com - this is so I can reach the authors of the winning entries.
b) Leave it as a comment on this posting so readers can follow the contest entries as they appear.

3. The deadline for entries is Thursday, March 24 at 12pm EDT. Once the contest closes, I'll email Wendy all the entries. Later that evening, I'll announce the winner in an update to this post and email them on how to pick up their two complimentary tickets on Saturday night for the Lucia opening at the Naitonal Arts Centre.

4. Note to Twitter users: if you're entering the competition and you want to rebroadcast your entry on Twitter, be sure to also leave your entry BOTH as a blog comment below this entry and email me in addition to your tweet.

5. If you wish to remain anonymous, you can either comment anonymously or invent a nom de plume for your comment. Just be sure to send me your real email address when you submit your entry to my email address (see 2a).

6. Warning to #operaplot junkies: yes, I follow the contest every year. Below are the Lucia di Lammermoor entries for #operaplot 2010. Anyone sending in the following #operaplot 2010 entries or anything resembling them will be disqualified from the contest:

Third Lady – enrico ashton requests the pleasure of your company at the wedding of his sister, lucia, and lord arthur…oh, never mind...  

Hariclea – Castle-ghost competition following Scottish wedding. Candidates: dead crazy bride, murdered groom, suicide-ex-boyfriend 

Olivia Giovetti -Fragile lass wanders Ravenswood like a ghost. Two marriages later, becomes ghost. Husband No. 1 follows suit for heavenly reunion 

Pierce Lumpkin -Jilted lovers: Man- mope in graveyard, kill self. Woman- marry other guy, go crazy, kill him, sing crazy song, kill self. 

Otterhous – For sale: Wedding ring, never used. Address: Ravenswood, Scotland.

I would like to express heartfelt thanks both to Wendy Hatala Foley and Opera Lyra for kindly making these tickets available to readers of the Collaborative Piano Blog. Best of luck to everyone!

Update: Congratulations to Vicki Mavraganis aka @coolgreekgirl, who has just won the two tickets to Saturday's Lucia opening!

Chopin Deathbed Photo Surfaces

Is the picture in the Reuters video below a daguerrotype of Chopin on his deathbed? Or is the photo a cleverly manufactured fake?



(Via Clef Notes)

10 Questions For Collaborative Pianists Interested In Taking The Career Plunge

Today's guest post is written by Geraldine Boyer-Cussac, a music director, pianist, vocal coach and piano teacher. She holds a M.M. from Western Michigan University, and a D.M.A in collaborative piano from Boston University. She is currently writing a book on music directing, and her excellent blog Geraldine in a Bottle looks at what it takes to become a professional musician.


You've been thinking of becoming a full time collaborative pianist, but is it the right decision? Answer the questions below to find out.

1. You're given one week to learn a brand new piece.
a) How about two weeks instead?
b) Kill me now!
c) I better get payed more.

2. The choir director stops in the middle of the piece.
a) You try to figure out what spot he will start over from
b) You listen to his notes
c) You daydream

3. Your last day off was a month ago, you think...
a) It's been too much work, I need a vacation
b) Well, better working than not
c) I had only had 2 performances, easy month

4. You've just been given a piece to sight read in public.
a) You quickly scan through it to check for trouble spots
b) You focus on your breathing to calm down your nerves
c) You just start playing

5. Someone wants to hire you and tells you the accompaniment is easy.
a) You're relieved, this will be an easy gig
b) You demand to see the score as proof
c) You need the money, so whatever

6. Your singer asks you if you know that Italian word.
a) You look it up in the Italian dictionary you always keep near by
b) Why is the singer asking you? You're a pianist, not a translator!
c) You take an educated guess

7. It's dress rehearsal time.
a) You make sure to play your part as best as possible
b) You make your soloist practice the bows with you
c) You give a pep talk to your soloist

8. You just sight read a piece and are told it lacked musicality.
a) You break down and reconsider your career choices
b) You remind people that you were sight reading
c) You congratulate yourself, it was a really hard piece. Too bad if other people don't understand.

9. Your arms hurt because...
a) You're carrying around way too much music
b) You're playing 12 hours a day
c) You went to the gym yesterday

10. The hardest part of being a collaborative pianist is...
a) Not enough time to practice on your own
b) Finding a keyboard instead of a a piano at the concert space
c) People not showing up for rehearsals

Add up your points by using the following chart, and find out if youʼre ready to be a collaborative pianist.
1- a) 2 pts b) 1pt c) 3 pts  2- a) 3 pts b) 2 pts c) 1 pt
3- a) 1 pt b) 2 pts c) 3 pts  4- a) 3 pts b)1 pt c) 2 pts
5- a)1 pt b) 3 pts c) 2 pts  6- a) 3 pts b) 1 pt c) 2 pts
7- a) 1 pt b) 3 pts c) 2 pts  8- a) 1 pt b) 2 pts c) 3 pts
9- a) 3 pts b) 2 pts c) 1 pt  10- a) 3 pts b) 1 pt c) 2 pts


If you scored above 23: Congratulations, you were born a collaborative pianist! You know what the job entails, youʼre a killer sight reader, and you know how to handle a large variety of personalities. Keep up the good work!

If you scored between 15 and 22: Youʼre not fully there yet, but you're well on your way to becoming a great collaborative pianist. There are certain aspects of the job that you may still have to improve on, such as learning a large amount of music in a short amount of time, or dealing with a lot of different people. Keep at it and you will get there!


If you scored below 14: You are not yet ready to take the plunge. Spend more time honing your skills, and talk to collaborative pianists to get some insights. You want to make sure you do a job that matches your life and personality best.

Eddie Rabin, Ninja Audition Pianist

Wednesday's Wall Street Journal features a fascinating article about Eddie Rabin, one of New York's top musical theatre audition pianists. About Eddie's skill set:

Unlike many other audition pianists, "Eddie can follow the singers wherever they go," said James Nadeau, casting director at Stiletto Entertainment, whose clients include the cruise line Holland America. "If they skip an entire bar or speed up and jump to another page of the song, he is right there with them. He can also play anything these singers put in front of him as if he has played it his entire life."

Mr. Rabin, a compact man in his 60s, can familiarize himself with 32 bars in less time than it takes a singer to clear her throat. "But," he said, "the more you play auditions the less you have to sight-read, because at this point I know 85% to 90% of the songs people bring me."

One thing about long-time audition pianists is their uncanny ability to tell within a few bars whether or not a singer will be in contention:

After almost 30 years in the business, he can tell within three bars if a performer has what it takes. "I'm sometimes tempted to say, 'Kid, you haven't got it,'" Mr. Rabin admitted. "But it's not my place. And I figure they'll find out for themselves in a few years."

Didn't Get That Role? Don't Blame the Piano Player by Joanne Kaufman

Creating an Open Source Goldberg Variations

Image under Creative Commons
Attribution/ShareAlike license

Today's guest post is written by Robert Douglass, who enjoyed a brief but wonderful career as a hornist before following a deep passion for open source software. He remains connected to music through his wife, pianist Kimiko Ishizaka, and is the Director of the Open Goldberg Project.



In a Nutshell:

The Open Goldberg Variations project is creating a new score and a new studio recording of Bach’s masterpiece. Both the score and the recording will be given to the public domain (free free free!) A Kickstarter project is running to raise funds for the project.

The Details:

The problem with Bach is that his music isn't free enough. Although the Goldberg Variations have been published for over 270 years, scores and recordings that are free are hard to find.

The Open Goldberg Project aims to solve this problem, at least in the case of the Goldberg Variations, while exploring the exciting intersection between open source software, the public domain, crowd sourced funding, and emergent web technologies for music. The primary goal of the project is to create a new edition of the score of the Goldbergs, as well as a new studio recording, played by award winning pianist Kimiko Ishizaka. Both the score and the recording will use the Creative Commons Zero tool to place them into the public domain, assuring that they'll both be free (gratis and libre) forevermore.

The whole effort is being financed by a currently running Kickstarter.com campaign which turns to crowd sourcing to provide the funding. When a supporter pledges $25, for example, they will receive a CD or a printed score of the work when it's finished. Pledge levels span a range, including a $300 level that lets the donor write a dedication for one of the 30 variations; the dedication will then appear in all digital and printed forms of the score and recording.

The score will be created with MuseScore, an awesome open source notation software program (itself free, both gratis and libre). The team behind MuseScore.org (the open source project) and MuseScore.com (the newly founded company which supports the project) is using the Open Goldberg Project to demonstrate the power and flexibility of their notation software. By releasing the first ever "open source edition" of the Goldbergs, they hope to turn more people on to the power of MuseScore, thus bolstering the project while bringing Bach's notes to a wider audience. Since the document format of MuseScore scores is MusicXML - an XML variant suitable for describing music notation - the music will truly be open source when completed.

Once both score and recording are produced, MuseScore.com has some neat technological tricks up its sleeve. They're pioneering new ways to embed music notation into websites, and then synchronize the scores with other media, such as YouTube videos. Since the new Goldberg Variations score and recording will be devoid of usage restrictions, they will hopefully be the raw clay for many derivative artistic works and mashups.

The Creative Commons Zero tool will be used to remove all copyright and usage rights from the works. This will make them suitable for distribution by sites like IMSLP which can be seen as the Wikipedia of scores and recordings. Overall, the goal of the Open Goldberg Variations is to bring the music of Bach to as wide of an audience as possible.

In all, the convergence of open source, cutting edge web technologies, and fund raising tools such as Kickstarter is opening up a vast new range of possibilities for artists such as Ishizaka. It's exciting to see music and open source cross pollinating each other and generating mutual goodwill.



Best of luck to Robert and the Open Goldberg Project! Check back here in the next few weeks to see how the Kickstarter initiative is progressing. If you're interested in backing this project, you can do so at the OGP's Kickstarter page.

Picture of the Day

A great bokeh shot by olvych on Flickr.

Collaborative Works Is Now The Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago

A few years ago, I mentioned Collaborative Works as an interesting Chicago-based startup which organized as a limited liability partnership. Since then, times and priorities have changed and Collaborative Works have now re-organized as the Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago, consisting of Executive Director Shannon McGinnis, Director of Education Nicholas Hutchinson, and Artistic Director Nicholas Phan. About the new organization:

...as we began the process in spring 2010 of clarifying our vision and redefining our mission, it became apparent that our existing business structure and model were limiting our ability to serve our musical community as effectively and economically as possible. Our new, improved vision for our organization demanded a new, improved organization, and in September 2010 we filed Articles of Incorporation for Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago (CAIC).

CAIC is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization and, as such, will operate solely for the benefit of its community - its supporters and its clientele. What this means is that any income generated by fees for services or tickets to events will go back into the programs that support CAIC’s mission. It also means that financial contributions to the organization are tax-deductible; we’ll be seeking financial and material support from foundations, government grants, and, most importantly, from individuals like you.

So, what’s different? Collaborative Works is winding up its business, and CAIC is taking its place. CAIC will offer the same first-rate coaching and accompanying services that Collaborative Works is known for and will expand its individual services to include master classes, workshops, group classes, and other educational programs. In addition, CAIC will provide performance opportunities for singers in the Chicago area, with specific emphasis on art song and vocal chamber music, an area of the repertoire that we are particularly excited to promote.

Best of luck to the CAIC as they embark on their new journey. If you're in the Chicago area and want to see the new organization in action, you can attend a house concert at the home of Bob and Judy Freilich on March 26 featuring soprano Juliet Petrus, tenor Matthew Newlin, cellist Michael Freilich, with Shannon and Nick on piano. This is an RSVP event, so click on the above link for contact info if you plan on being there on the 26th.

Huge Collection of #accompanisthaiku

"Accompanist" is
a dated term. I prefer
"Collab'rative pack mule."
(@geor3ge)

Oh, the life of an
accomp - er - collab'rative
pianist. My bad.
(@chrisfoley aka me)

The anthology of collaborative pianist-inspired haiku below was sent out via mailing list by Tom Diamond, taken from the popular #accompanisthaiku meme on Twitter.

When a singer falls
off pitch, off rhythm, off beat
I just play louder.

No need to turn and
Nod as if I'm the butler
I'll play when you breathe.

Paul Hindemith wrote
sonatas for everyone.
I wish he hadn't.

Critic in Row M:
I accompanied ably.
Last sentence is done.

No really, it's fine.
I'll just guess what those notes were
on the last system.

Sonatas sometimes
have spots where the piano
has the tune - not you.

Here goes the applause
but don't mind me over here
-I don't need to bow.


Did you want me to
transpose down a half step
or were you just flat?

Score is in E flat
Playing in B flat as asked
Why are you in C?

I can play softly
even with the lid way up.
It's not a loud switch.

The Franck Sonata;
so versatile, it even
works with viola.

Sure, I'll play that piece
from manuscript open score:
once the check has cleared.

Hal Leonard page turns
turned me into a fan of
IMSLP.

Why is my music
more difficult than yours is?
Damn you, soloist!

A whole orchestra
reduced for only two hands
or maybe for three

At a certain point
A reduction of "Wozzeck"
Defeats the purpose

Nobody panic
The measures you just skipped
Didn't matter much

I know my music
Do I have to teach you yours?
I'll have to charge more.

Improvise while the
Soprano makes up German?
All in a day's work

Sure, I can transpose
Your aria down a step
But it'll cost you.

You think you are
conducting the choir yourself.
The organist leads.

It may "be easy"
but give me the music now
because I'm not you

What to wear today?
Another day performing
-black, black, black, or black?

I need a favor...
Can you play Rachmaninoff?
Why are you twitching?

For those of you who need to experience a performance in order to properly engage with #accompanisthaiku, here are Dave McDonald, Patrick Gullo, and Ty Forquer performing some of these gems on YouTube:



If you have another #accompanisthaiku gem, leave it in the comments...

Outback piano

From merewetheroz on Flickr, just the type of piano you might expect to meet while hiking the Australian outback...

The Collaborative Composer Part 2

Today's guest post is written by Martha Hill Duncan, an award-winning composer and piano teacher living in Kingston, Ontario. She is also an examiner for the Royal Conservatory of Music, conductor of the women’s choir She Sings!, and a founding member of Red Leaf Pianoworks, a self-publishing composer’s collective. For more information, sound clips and score availability, please visit Martha's website.

I grew up in Texas and moved to Canada as a young adult, so when I decided to write songs for my daughter, it seemed only natural to concentrate on my new country’s poets. The songs eventually found a home in the collection Singing in the Northland. Although the songs had enjoyed many performances, they had never been professionally recorded as a complete set. With the formidable talents of soprano Elizabeth McDonald, First Nations mezzo soprano Marion Newman, and pianist Kathryn Tremills, we finally released the complete CD this year. Since my daughter Claire Duncan was the original inspiration, she joined them in the trio Lullaby of the Iroquois. What a joy to work with such generous and expressive performers. Of course hearing one’s music so sensitively performed only makes one want to compose more…

Singers want to sing new music!!! Who knew??

Elizabeth McDonald had been singing and teaching several of my Northland songs, but was looking for more challenging performance repertoire, so with her shimmering voice in mind, I took my marching orders to heart. Thanks to my husband’s academic job, we’ve been blessed with occasional travel and sabbaticals. These are magical times for me as I’m able to immerse myself completely into writing projects. So, during a fall stay in England/Scotland I began to write Florals: Art Songs for Medium High to High Voice, finally completing the first five this January. Thanks to a keyboard donations from a London astronomer and Elizabeth’s e-mail comments, encouragements and careful warnings from across the Atlantic, I was off and running. Florals includes Flowering (a tango of betrayal) poetry by writer and pianist Carla Hartsfield, two with poetry by E. Pauline Johnson: Fire-Flowers (grief & joyous rebirth) and Wild Asters (finished in Edinburgh – so an interesting mix of Canadian & Scottish landscape!), the crazy antics of a jealous gardener in Double-Red Daisies, with poetry by Rennell Rodd and a miniature - The Daisy by Canadian poet Marjorie Pickthall.

Looking towards the future….

There’s nothing like a deadline to get the creative blood flowing, so I decided to attend the National Opera Association’s Convention in San Antonio this past January to display my latest offerings with Graphite Publishing. Founded by the married team of award-winning composers Jocelyn Hagen and Timothy Takach, Graphite brings increased exposure to new composers while making it easy to purchase and download new vocal music.

In San Antonio I enjoyed attending the great seminars and hearing all of the new works, but I was truly inspired by actually meeting and talking with the singers, teachers and new composers. I can’t wait to collaborate with the gorgeous mezzo Bonnie Cutsforth-Huber, a Saskatoon native and “sometime poet”. I’m also looking forward to working with Phillip Seward, a talented singer, pianist and opera composer out of Chicago. He’s in the throes of setting up Musica Voce, a vocal composer’s collective which will soon be online.

I was encouraged to attend the conference by singer and teacher Kimberley Wolfenbarger-Nakamoto, the director of the El Paso Youth Opera. This talented group, aged 12 – 18, performed the children’s opera Brundibar at the convention and to my surprise and delight, included some of my Northland songs in their presentation. I was absolutely stunned by the depth of study these young singers had already embarked upon and was so impressed with the amazing talent, teaching and promise coming out of one of the poorer cities in the US. It had never occurred to me that my little art songs could bridge a gap from folk songs to youth opera and suddenly my totally selfish act of composing immediately took a deeper and more altruistic turn. So you can imagine what I’m up to now – yes – you guessed it - writing a children’s opera with writer Janet Windeler Ryan as my partner in crime. I’ll keep you posted!

Greg Anderson and Elizabeth Roe Play Michael Jackson's Billie Jean

80's enthusiasts will love practicing their moonwalk to this amazing duet transcription of Billie Jean by the Anderson & Roe piano duo...

The Collaborative Composer Part 1

Today's guest post is written by Martha Hill Duncan, an award-winning composer and piano teacher living in Kingston, Ontario. She is also an examiner for the Royal Conservatory of Music, conductor of the women’s choir She Sings!, and a founding member of Red Leaf Pianoworks, a self-publishing composer’s collective. For more information, sound clips and score availability, please visit Martha's website.



Driven by the deep and intimate workings of a tortured and convoluted mind, I once believed that I would always compose alone. Recently, however, and especially with my vocal writing, I’ve had a change of heart. By drawing poets, singers, teachers, artists, and recording engineers into my creative machinations, the results have been surprising and productive. They say that it takes a community to raise a child; well apparently it also takes a community to keep this composer happy and motivated.

Songs need words…

Always on the prowl for little-known texts from long-dead poets, I was thrilled to be approached by living poet, Janet Windeler Ryan, who was offering expressive and contemporary texts. This collaboration has recently culminated in a collection for the developing singer, Searching the Painted Sky. Through this highly enjoyable and entertaining process, I learned that a living poet (especially one who doubles as a pianist) can stroke your ego - “I love this!” , have strong opinions - “You’re not going to keep that note are you?” and keep you going - “When are you going to start the next song???” Working with an active writer also forced me into unexplored stylistic territories: “impressionistic pop” in Petal Waltz, “Broadway soundscape” in Searching the Painted Sky and “lounge singer meets art song” in Deep Winter Snowfall. The two of us have yet to actually meet, but somehow with words and notes hurtling through cyberspace, have managed to make quite a connection.

Composers need muses…

Often when I need a title, a sounding board for a new idea or often just a “reality check”, I call on my dear friend, Linda Jacques. She has a wonderful sense of style, imagination and a wicked sense of humour and most importantly, loves me and my music. So, I had this crazy notion that she should write a collection of poems about her childhood on Georgian Bay. Then I’d set them for young, eager and dramatic singers. The only snag was that she’d actually never written any poetry…

Ask and you shall receive! Her images, natural phrasing and word choices were amazing. The first hint that we were onto something was when our Nightlights was chosen as one of four songs published by Alberta Keys in the inaugural 2009 NATS Calgary Art Song Competition for junior voice works.

This year our crazy idea came full circle with our finished set Summer - Imaginative Songs Art Songs for Medium High Voice:

Sandfleas: “Until your toes dig underneath and those nasty sand fleas are ready to eat!"
The Swimmer : “Something in the water is following me, but I don’t need to know…”
Cloud Dreams “Do you see the tiger? He’s looking down at me. Oh, no, off he goes to become a tree.”
Queen of the North: “She waves her colorful silk draped robe across the sky”
My Cedar Canoe: “As the bow slices through the glassy surface, straight as an arrow and silent as the breeze.”

Recording early and often….

Thanks to a generous, wise and patient recording engineer and friend, Duncan Holt, I have been recording many of my works during this recent vocal writing extravaganza. Recording early and often inspires me to see projects from several different angles, saving myself countless hours of self-doubt, editing time and hopefully producing a more realistic and performable creation in the end. Fortunately I know several talented and willing victims, I mean, singers… who humor and cajole me, lending their talents to these “progress reports”. Sometimes they’re exceedingly diplomatic, bur often they’re simply honest. My typical flaws lie in too long of lines at too slow a pace, which when sped up, can really create a nightmare in the piano accompaniment. Then it’s back to the drawing board!!!

A picture’s worth a thousand words…

I’ve always been a little jealous of visual artists. There’s no digging through complicated musical notation, taking the time to dissect and practice challenging passages to get across their ideas and vision. What you see is what you get! I’m convinced that if I have evocative artwork alongside my self-published scores, potential performers will want to dig deeper and hear what I have to say. So, in the last few years I’ve been attaching myself to artists who are willing to feature their artwork alongside my music. My latest collaboration is with fellow composer and graphic artist Susan Griesdale who has created all of my recent vocal covers. As composer and artist, she seems to have a sixth sense about sound and visual cues. Lucky me!

Call for Pianists: Instrumental Collaborative Piano at the Orford Arts Centre

Yi-Fang Huang (faculty at the Perlman Music Program and collaborative pianist/sonata coach at The Juilliard School) just sent me the following message about a new Collaborative Piano Program at the Orford Arts Centre this summer:

Five pianists will be selected to participate in a new program connected to the North American Viola Institute (NAVI), at the Orford Arts Centre. The Collaborative Piano Program of Orford’s NAVI includes student recitals and performances in viola master classes for the viola faculty (Heidi Castleman of the Juilliard School, David Holland of the Interlochen Arts Academy, Jutta Puchhammer-Sédillot of the University of Montreal, Daniel Sweaney of the University of Alabama and Rebecca Albers of Minnesota Orchestra), playing in performance classes, daily rehearsals with violists, and lessons with myself on collaboration. The dates for this summer are June 10-17.

The Orford website contains application information, as well as more about the faculty and program.

To audition, please submit a CD of one movement of a concerto (orchestral reduction) and one movement of a chamber sonata (duo) of your choice. Collaborations with violist are preferred but not mandatory. Application deadline is April 6, 2011.

Please forward this to any pianists who might be interested in furthering their collaborative skills and exploring the viola repertoire. Feel free to contact me directly any time if further information would be helpful. 

All Best,
Yi-Fang Huang
yfhpiano [at] gmail dot com

This program sounds like a great opportunity for pianists who are looking to expand their viola repertoire and get some experience working with string players at one of Canada's finest music music festivals. There's also a Vocal Accompaniment Workshop going on from July 24 to August 13, which many of you might want to take a look at. The deadline is fast approaching, so make sure you send your materials in before the end of the month.

Singers: Should You Be Working with a Vocal Coach or Collaborative Pianist?

Noted collaborative pianist, teacher, and fellow Eastman grad Anne Breeden has just written a fabulous article on Operagasm looking at the choices available to singers shopping for pianists entitled "You're Going to Breathe There???" and Other Musings from the Singer-Pianist Collaboration Front. At stake is the choice regarding what type of pianist a singer should choose to work with: vocal coach or collaborative pianist? About these distinctions:

“You should go to a coach to get info that you don’t already have,” says Emily Sinclair, Soprano. Coaching usually entails a teacher-student type of relationship, with the pianist focusing on diction and stylistic issues. The coach should send you away with new tidbits of information.

With a collaborative pianist, things are trickier, because the singer and pianist make decisions as a team. Ms. Sinclair gives the example of intimating to an excellent coach she had worked with for years: “Sometimes I miss working through musical issues with a pianist who is a peer, not a coach.” “I know exactly what you mean,” said the coach. “It is a really different experience to work through voicings, phrasings and gestures with a collaborative pianist. It’s a very equal experience,” she says.

You might think that most pianists are able to wear their vocal coach and collaborative pianist hats at the same time, but I've noticed that there is a subtle distinction with the way that both types of pianist handle ensemble and tempo situations with individual singers.

Vocal coaches who have done their time as repetiteurs in opera companies are often apt to play a lot like orchestras in that they tend to push a singer through a phrase much like a conductor would. In other words, if the singer is singing with slightly less direction than they should be, many coach/repetiteurs will simply barrel forward in tempo through the phrase.

On the other hand, a collaborative pianist with more recital experience will work at developing a mutual vocabulary of collaboration, delving into the nature of the phrase and working at how pianist and singer can both generate the phrase through a delicate dance of leading vs. following.

The above descriptions are a bit of a generalization, but I notice these differences, both in the vocabulary which pianists use and their instincts while playing.

So which type of pianist should a singer be using?

A lot of it depends on both the type of specific preparation that a singer needs (role, audition, or recital?) and the type of pianist that fits in with their musical needs and instincts, and whether they are able to bridge the gap between the many facets of what a classical singer needs to prepare these days. Above all, pianists need a sense of empathy. From Anne's article (emphasis is mine):

Ms. Maultsby loves a pianist who knows not just the diction, rhythm and pitches, but the background, emotion and story behind what the characters are feeling, and that the pianist is on his/her own emotional journey. “The most rewarding work relationships come when I feel comfortable with my pianist as a person, and when that coach genuinely likes my voice and says so,” she explains. Dr. Harris adds that both pianist and singer need to complement the music that the other produces, though always making sure that it is an honest compliment. “Let them know what their music meant to you.”

Singers want really good chops, musical guts, a trust that you’re on our side, explains Dr. Patricia Thompson, mezzo-soprano. “We want to know that you have a vested interest in making the music sound great. It’s not fun to play with a pianist who’s jaded and playing for a paycheck. A singer wants a good friend and confidant and someone they can trust at the piano.”

And how valuable it is for singers to work with pianists who are able to understand the differences between coach/repetiteur and recital pianist in order to engage fully with both the needs of the singer and the needs of the repertoire.

Quote of the Day

From Eileen Huang's new collaborative piano-oriented blog, a Recipe for Learning Contemporary Music. This is totally à propos, given the difficult new music I've been working on the last few weeks:

1. Combine 2/3 cup unusual intervals with 1/2 cup challenging rhythms.
2. Sprinkle liberally with accidentals. (Double-sharps and double-flats optional.)
3. Add sprightly tempo marking.
4. Bake until your brain is melted with a golden brown crust.