Some people here have looked at my web page (thank you!) and know that I like to do a new photo each time I add a new recording.

Now that I have the recording finished for August's online recital, I decided I should start working on another photo. I was able to get permission to take photos at a community ctr's hall that has a small grand. Then I got the idea to "get my hair done" at a salon. So now it's turned into this big "photo shot."

I'll get up early to go to the hair stylist's, and Mr SK is going to the community center to get the piano moved and drop off all of my outfits! Then I'll go to the community center, and we'll take photos of me at the piano. The piano will be moved into the middle of the room, so there will be a whole bunch of angles, and I'll change my outift at least once.

You'd think I was having my big "first ablum debut" or something! :rolleyes:

Can't wait to see the new pics!!

Shiro, that must be the coolest experience!!! Now you can get a taste of what its going to be like when you are discovered and in the process maybe you could get a little performance in and tell us how that goes. cant wait to see the pics!!! have fun

Can't wait to see the pics Shiro!

Please tell me that one of your outfits is a long evening gown, and you'll take one photo of you reclined on top of the piano!

No, actually all of my outifts are pretty run of the mill, it's just that a few will be a different color. I'm going to go through the dresses I have here and see if there's any really fancy one I can wear. The idea is to get enough different shots (angles and clothes) to use for several different photos, so for example, I might wear a red sweater (with black skirt) so I can use that for a Christmas photo.

I have one "party dress" (cocktail length) but it looks funny sitting down because it has a poofy skirt! I wonder if I can wear that any way.

The "photo shot" is tomorrow, so tonight I plan to go through the wardrobe and pick to take with me.

This whole thing has gotten out of hand! :p Of course, it was all my idea... delusions of grand-eur and all that. Hey, that's punny!

Okay, the poofy skirt dress you can wear while STANDING on the piano, then! :p

Just kidding. What tremendous fun, ShiroKuro! I do hope you'll share all the pictures with us, even if they don't all make it on your web site.

I'd like to see some bikini shots! .................................................................................what?

Mr. S-H-- Bikini?! Even though it's over 90 degrees in the shade here, No Way!!!!

Ok, well the poofy skirt dress might just be the only halfway decent thing I have. I just went through my closet, and I feel like a teenager trying to get ready for a dance. All my clothes are stupid. Who bought these outfits?!!! I'm going to get my hair done by a professional stylist, and then I'm going to be dressed in my pajamas! Seriously, this all got planned sort of suddenly (because the hall was open,) if I had more time, I'd go shopping first!

Ok Shiro - here's what you do - real quick learn any Iron Butterfly or Strawberry Alarm Clock piece, then "dress to fit the music". There, problem solved.

As if, for even a second, I believe you don't look great in any outfit.

gmm1 Very good advice! I think my current outfits would be perfect if I were setting the "poem" about FuzzyWuzzy to music! :p

I really like the picture on your website. You must have had a heck of a time carrying that piano down to the river.

sooooooo........if you could share how your picture shoot went today? did you finally get something to wear? (i hope so, although superhunky may beg to differ) i am interested to know how things went........oh the suspense!!

It was totally insanity. I went to the hair stylists, and because I had to go to work in the afternoon, I asked her not to do my hair the way we had originally talked about (less explosive) so that was a little disappointing. But I'm really glad I had my hair done, because now I know what to ask for (or not to ask for) if I ever want to have my hair done for a real recital.

Then we got to the hall, and at first I thought we weren't going to be able to move the piano, so that gave me a scare. But we finally got the "disks" (which the piano's wheels use sit on to keep it from moving) to move. The piano apparently hadn't been moved in a long time and the disks were stuck to the floor. He would lift the piano at the leg, and I tried to move the disk. Then he'd kick it with his foot while I held my breath, and then he'd have to set the piano back down with no progress. But finally we got the disks unstuck and move the piano without my husband throwing his back out!

Then we took pictures for about 2.5 hours, with me sneaking into a closet to change. I took my laptop so we checked the photos as we went along, and we definitely got a lot of pictures that can be used, but there are so many pictures that I don't have a handle on it yet. Tonight I'll go through and see if there's one I can share here.

Through it all, I would play a bit of a piece, or some chords, so I would be playing when the picture was taken. This piano was donated to the community center a few years ago, and I played it not long after. It sounded crummy. Well, it's been getting a regular tuning now, and sounds really pretty good! I wanted more than anything to just sit there and play, but I couldn't, so that was sad! But the scheduling coordinator said the hall can be used by city residents if it's a non-profit activity, so now I'm even thinking about whether I can organize a Christmas concert there or something!

So all in all, it was pretty good I think, but I'm glad we don't have to do it again any time soon!

Hi Shiro,

Insanity huh? ...thinking about organizing a Christmas concert?

Admit it, you had a BLAST!

Well, it was kind of fun. But truly, all the picture taking was tedious, especially after the first hour! :p I really wanted to just play.

Now the Christmas concert, that would be ... not insanity, but a lot of work and a lot of pressure. And potential an incredible experience. What would I have to do...

1) Get permission to use the hall without out doing open-advertising- i.e. a public, free concert but one that's not really publicized so I could keep a handle on attendence and make sure that people didn't think it was a professional-quality free concert, or a concert geared towards children.

2) Decide if there are any other performers that I want to ask to participate, and convince them to let me play first! (going first is good for the nerves!) And then deal with people saying they'll do it and backing out, or changing what they want to do, showing up late etc etc etc.

3) Recruit several friends who would agree to do all the set up (esp the chairs) so that I wouldn't have to exert myself physically beforehand. Afterwards is fine, but no chair moving before a concert is one of my rules.

3) Make, print out and distribute invitations.

4) Make and print out programs.

5) Avoid catching a cold for the entire months of Nov and Dec (an huge challenge for an elementary school teacher.)

6) Oh yeah, lest we forget, practice and polish a huge chunk of music so that I could actually play more than one piece of music.

Hmmm... doable? Maybe. I just have to decide if I can handle the stress of being both organizer and performer. At least the one good thing about being the organizer is I would have all the decision-making power!

Well, I went through aaaallll the photos, and my first reaction was "what a colossal waste of time! But on reconsideration, there are some that will be useable. Unfortunately, we didn't take hardly any face/smiling shots, which now I realize is too bad. But here's one, nothing spectacular but not too bad either.

Funny side note, the kanji on the side of the piano (enclosed in a circle) is "men" and means exemption, as in tax exemption. This piano was donated to the hall, but what a sad thing to have to do to keep it tax exempt! Couldn't they have put that inside the piano or something.. gee whiz. At least it's not on the stage-side of the piano, but still!

Shiro - your hair and the dress are fantastic! You really do look like a pro. Its a shame about the marking on the piano, I don't suppose it can be taken off at a future date?

I like the idea of a Christmas concert - but you forgot the most important thing...

1) Get the use of the hall
2) Get other performers
3) Get help with set-up
4) Invitations
5) Programmes
6) Keep well
7) Repertoire

AND 8) Get a friend to film the night's performance so it can be shown on PW and your own website!

Shiro, picture looks GREAT (to me it looks like you are actually playing, and not just posing)! Now I'm anxious to see the rest of them.

I think the Christmas concert is a very good idea. Getting permission to use the hall will probably be simple enough. How many other performers do you think you might be able to enlist? Having them not back out on you will be more effective if you use guilt judiciously and preventively...ask them to realize at the time they agree to perform that this is an important committement and that you and other will be counting on them.

The other items on your list are easily done or delegated (you ARE a master organizer aren't you?)

And by all means, Euan is right. Do get someone to film the performance!

Glad you had fun during the photo-shoot, even if there were tedious moments.

What a great idea!


You can photoshop away the kanji easily. (The easiest way would probably be to send it to Chickgrand/Rick, though.... ) and for that matter, you can add the Steinway lyre or the Boesendorfer B or whatever grabs you....

WOW!!! great pic.!!! i am sure your hubby can photoshop the tax exempt thing. but you look great!!! and NOW a christmas concert??? WOW, that will be some work, when you do it i definitly would love to hear about it!!! that all sounds wonderful!!!and fun!!! please keep us posted!!

I rushed it but it looks ok at close examination


http://www.box.net/browse#mybox hope you didnt mind me cleaning the image a little as the loo is not too good

born2die, I clicked on your link but it was asking me for a login and password?

You can insert the actual picture into your post if you've already uploaded it somwhere by clicking on the "full reply" options and then on the little "IMG" box; then copy and paste the URL for the photo.

Great picture, ShiroKuro! Your hair looks terrific!

And don't sweat the head/smiling shots; you can always have your hubby take some at home against a neutral background and you can pretend it was taken during the photo shoot.

oops lets try this



My tip of the day for the mess up is

to avoid keyloggers etc go to yor start menu click on run and type in osk you will then get the on screen keyboard use this to mouse click type sensitive data in

ShiroKuro, you look perfect.

Thanks for the compliments everyone! You all sure know how to make a gal feel great! Born2die, thanks for the photoshoppery!

In looking at the photos, there are a lot of "nonstandard" angles (like the one here) that you usually don't take when someone's playing in a concert, since there's usually a stage wall behind them. But we put the piano smack-dab in the middle of the room, so it's kind of interesting to see all those different shots. Stay tuned for my recital-photo because it's going to be in an interesting place.