Well it's Friday night. I'm having a glass of wine and thinking about my week.

I had the house to myself last weekend - I played/practiced as much as I felt like without competing with the TV! (very cool). I had two music lessons as one was cut short. At today's lesson we mostly chatted "music" (also very cool!) I learn as much from discussing technique as from a regular lesson. I went to a symphony that featured a solo Chopin piano performance by my teacher's university professor (Jane Coop, if any of you Canadians ever heard her), and a master class by the same performer the next day (master classes are amazing if you have an opportunity to go!!). AND my new book from Amazon finally arrived! CHOPIN - A listener's Guide to the Master of the Piano. With CD.... It's awesome by the way!! Took forever to arrive but was worth the wait. I'm going to order others.

Anyway.... Just wanted to share my week and remind everyone who is struggling with this journey, why we love it so much!

It's the journey - not the destination!!

Have a great weekend!!

Sandy, your week was a dream. It's days/weeks like the one you described (even though they may not come very often) is what keeps us going.

I am interested in the book you referred to. I've never heard of it, and it sounds wonderful. Did you just go on Amazon and enter the word Chopin? Who is the publisher?

Thanks for the tip and thanks for sharing a week that we all wish we could have?

Regards,
Kathleen

Sandy, you sound like you have had the pianists dream week!! were you on wheel of fortune and win this special week:) i am sooo happy for you!!! i hope you have many more weeks like this!!! thank-you for sharing!!!

Sounds wonderful Sandy, Did you ever get the information on the head set for the tv with a wireless ear piece that you can get a Radio Shack. My husband wears it when I want to practice and sometimes when I am sleeping. It works wonders and he can wonder around the house with it and hear what is going on with his program and it allows me the silence to read, practice etc. Great Christmas present.

I'm going today to check out the headphones. One little problem is our new High Definition TV with surround sound...aaahhhh The effect isn't the same with headphones apparently... Santa's bringing them anyway

The headphones won't impact the HD- that's mainly visual. Well, unless he's "wandering" around the house, of course!! LOL And as for the surround, well, for the most part, the only time that makes a difference is with a movie or DVD. Most made-for-TV stuff really doesn't take full advantage of surround, anyway. But he is right- where good surround is used well, it isn't the same with headphones.

Sandy, any chance I can ship my husband and kids off to you for a while so I can have the heavenly kind of week you just described?

i moved all the comfy furniture upstairs. no wants to be in the living room anymore.

alleluia

Got the headphones! Really good ones with a long range. Now though I'm feeling a little guilty because perhaps it's really a Christmas present for me?

That is okay. Get him another small one as well recognizing that indeed it is for you but really for both of you. You will be much nicer to him if you can get on that piano more.

Hi Kathleen,

The book is by Victor Lederer the series is called "Unlocking the Masters". The whole title is CHOPIN, A Listener's Guide to the Master of the Piano - including Full-Length Naxons CD. I ordered it from Amazon.ca. It has a brief well-written history and then following chapters talk about his different works and there are a couple of samples on the CD of each with a guide to specific seconds and what is going on! It's really educational for me - as someone who is still very unsophisticated in my classical knowledge. There are others in the series that I plan on ordering soon.