Semi-serious thought: a BOOK could be done with stories like these.

If someone feels like it.

The stories here are (IMO) wonderfully interesting, and wonderfully frank.

And often pretty funny, whether we like it or not.

A few years ago at a school talent show dress rehearsal, I forgot to bring my sheet music for a duet- I left it at home. I had everything memorized though, so I thought it'd be ok. In the middle of the performance, I completely blanked out and repeated a bar several times... I went out of sync with my duet partner and she had to make something up...
Good thing that was just the dress rehearsal! I guess it wasn't that embarrassing, but it's something I won't forget. I bet my friend will make sure of it... after the performance she made sure I knew it was all my fault

Zara Nelsova, the late cellist, told a story about a dress she had that buttoned up the front. During a concert, it started to unbutton. She kept trying to hide behind her instrument as the disintegration slowly progressed, to little avail. Finally, when she reached the last chord, it came completely undone. I believe she never wore the dress again during playing.

someone with more energy than I have (it's midnight) may find this story on line.

Once again.................






P.S. The bottom portion of this page briefly refers to a slightly different version of the story.

I attended a performance by my city's symphony orchestra. The players were all in black; smart, elegant and monochromatic. As they were seated, a certain violinist's trousers slipped down a little due to the change in posture. Not usually a problem, except in this case a slim strip of flesh became uncovered. That wouldn't have beeen a problem either except that the hot pink strap of her g-string (not on her violin) was exposed. It was easily visible half way back in the auditorium. And it's funny how one tiny flash of the wrong colour catches the eye. You couldnt not look at it all the way until interval.

Always road-test your underwear.

Mark! - you'll get a reputation haha!

One more time..........




BTW.......Our proposed "book" would be copiously illustrated.

But as you have read it twice now, you must have noticed I said its 'ONE' thing they sure did better. They also did very weird surgery in that time, I'm not saying the whole time was better. Just that they did that ONE thing better.

3 years ago, I performed in front my teachers and many stundents (each students had to do their own performance). I walked on the stage (that was my first time on the stage). I started well, but the I forgot what notes to play. I stood on the stage without playing for a while. Finally, my teacher told me to return to my seat, read the sheet again and calm myself down. I did it, the other stundent took my turn. Later, I came back on the stage again and performed pretty well . But it was still embarassing. I later quit playing for more than 1 year. I shouldn't have quit that year...

I think it has to be the time where I played the Franck violin sonata, and after missing the last high note of the last run in the 4th mvt, I swore loudly. Ever since then I've written "don't swear" at the top of the page! Thank god it was only for class.

Also when I swore loudly right after going off stage, and unfortunately I had to go and bow again, and later I found out that a lot of people had heard me go "OH F---!!!!" off stage hahaha..

You mean you really think this little slip was an accident?

I think you have just won the thread! I couldn't stop laughing after reading that (sorry :D)

hearing two ladies in the front row saying: what tram do you take home tonight?

starting the wrong program, though they liked it...

....especially if we picture the person who said it.

I was 14 and had been learning cello for less than 2 years; I wasn't very good. I joined my teacher's string ensemble and was allocated (with 2 others) the bottom/easy part. But in one piece even that was considered beyond us, in which case we just sat.

A filmcrew for a TV travel show decided to film a performance in the entrance hall of a bank. The filming took about an hour although only 15 seconds of footage was used in the final show. Although we three of little proficiency played in all pieces except one, that was the piece that was eventually seen on national television. But the filmcrew didn't like the look of us sitting still and had asked us to pretend to be playing, which we quite enjoyed doing, sometimes playing our cellos left-handed and giggling silently.

Six months later the show went to air. When friends and relatives phoned to congratulate me on my TV appearance I had to explain, many times, that I was only miming. "But why?". "well you see um... I wasn't very good so our teacher told me not to play".
That was the only "cool" piece that our ensemble played.

Sooooo embarrassing

Lol, I'm really starting to like this thread more and more. It makes you realize that life could get worse.

Great thread pianoman there are so Many ways to be embarrassed.

Pogorelich - LOL!
Piano*Dad - Hmmm I have to give her benefit of the doubt, I mean it's very wrong to stand out that much in an orchestra - isn't it?

oooh, I just remembered another one, though I think I did post it on some other thread long ago.....

In high school I sometimes played for our choir, as did another gal. We both were trained to read music only and had zero improv. skills. One day in jazz choir the teacher invited the combo guitar player, a fantastic player who read very little music, to "jam" the blues with us two pianists for a few minutes. He dived right in and we sat at the bench kinda staring at each other. Finally at one point I launched into a few notes of "Mary had a little lamb" just to be doing something. The scathing look of disdain I got from the drummer makes me shudder to this day....

Not long ago, I was playing in my school in front of an audience of students and parents (and other people).
As I went to sit at the piano, I violently hit my right foot on the grand's foot. It hurt like hell, and I could feel my face contorted with pain as I managed to sit.
When I finished playing and stood up, my foot was still in pain, I could hardly bow and walk away.

So embarassing...

This thread is really cool... It should be made sticky!

And just by chance, a young Charlotte Moorman was in the audience that night . . . .

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Moorman

Ha! I couldn't help having her flash through my mind too.
So to speak.

In the late 60's I was paid ( not much) to dedicate a new piano at my church. I borrowed a dress from a neighbor that I had admired. It was a lightweight red wool with tiny shoulder straps so I wore a Merry Widow Strapless top foundation). As I was playing a Rachmaninoff Prelude the dress started to slip off of my shoulder and down my arm so my bra was somewhat exposed. What were my choices?? to keep going and be bare down much further than I wanted...or just keep going and hope for the best. I kept going.

Once again.................






In church?

(Good job.)

A few years ago my department organized a "talent" show of sorts. I decide to enter and on the night of the event invited this beautiful pianist I was courting to come along. When it was my turn to perform my hands began to tremble even as the announcer was introducing me. When I sat down to perform the Allemande from Bach's French Suite #4 my mind went completely blank and I couldn't remember how the piece began. As I sat there with my trembling hands hovering over the keys the silence seemed interminable. Finally I decided to play some random notes in the hope that some sound would trigger a memory. After what seemed like an eternity, my fingers suddenly remembered the opening and I played through the first half of the piece somewhat shakily. When I got to the second part my mind went blank again and my fingers didn't know where to go. So I go back to the beginning, do it all over, and guess what...I blank out again at the exact same spot in the second part! At that point I gave up, got up, bowed, and slunk back to my seat. For months afterward I couldn't look my date in the eye! I would like to think that my epic failure that night has nothing to do with why we're not together.

Haha, wow. Sorry for your bad luck. Well at least we learn from these things. Keep your cool around the ladies

I've got another embarrassing moment to confess. In one of my very first 'big' competitions I was confronted for the first time with having to fill out one of the bio/information sheets that the MC reads to the audience while you come out on stage and settle yourself.

I was a youngish teenager - pretty naive in the world of competition etiquette - and so I filled this thing out and submitted it not letting anyone read my answers.

Amongst the questions were "Who is your favourite composer?" "Who is your favourite musician?", "Who is your favourite arranger", "Who is your musical role model?"

To the first question - I answered Bach - and my teacher Peter B. (who had composed the piece I was about to play).

Now I had some serious hero worship of my teacher going on at the time - so of course to the next question - who is your favourite musician - I answered - Peter B.... To who is your favourite arranger - I answered - Peter B... and you can guess what I'd written for who my musical role model was

My answers had sounded fine written down - I had no idea that all this would be read out as I was on stage preparing to play. Of course the MC (who knew my teacher) thought this was all rather funny - as did the large audience - who by the time I was ready to play were all laughing loudly at my answers.

I was so embarrassed and was as red as a tomato and just wanted the stage to open up and swallow me. But I eventually won the competition - and had given the audience a laugh in the bargain - so all's well that ended well But it was one of those cringe-worthy adolescent moments that I would rather forget.

jazzyprof: that was hilarious.. I mean, must've been painful at one time! She was a pianist too? Hmm maybe you should've asked HER to perform something for you then.. see if she can do it =P

LOL!! And that's nothing to be embarrassed about.
I think it was GREAT!
I'm pretty sure they weren't laughing "at" you. They thought it was charming, and that it was more than fine. But it's understandable that you would have heard it the other way.

I can laugh at it now...sorta. And yes, she's a real pianist (unlike me). She did help me out later by teaching me to have several different starting points within a piece so that I can resume at some other spot if I suffer a breakdown in one place. I also joined a group of amateur piano lovers who meet once a month to play for each other so I'm getting lots of "performance" experience.