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It's Fun to Play the Piano ... Please Pass It On!
Monday night and Tuesday morning I practiced tuning the Mighty Lester, my beloved 1940 36" spinet. I'm using a Sanderson Accutuner with Bill Bremmer's EBVT III settings.
Recorded this last night when it was quiet, after the snowplows finished making noise:
Also, here's a bonus track, (recorded last night, as well)... Not quite ready for prime time, but I got it all in one take!
If you had a tip jar, I would have filled it. I've heard many a professional lounge pianist butcher these pieces. Your playing was just wonderful. Thank you for sharing.
Every day we are afforded a new chance. The problem with life is not that you run out of chances. In the end, what you run out of are days.
A nice rendition of "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes", Andy!. This is for me a good example of what the original song accompaniment will reveal in expression when it is played "straight", with no "jazzification". The pizzicato in the bass line adds a certain poignancy that IMO beautifully underscores the lyric. And, as with so many Kern songs, the "bridge" material, with its shift in key and texture, is just elegantly conceived, again encapsulating the content of the lyric. Along with Rodgers, Gershwin, Arlen, and Porter, Kern was unquestionably one of the American "Schuberts" -- and I would say the one closest to Schubert in his approach to song composition.
I've never heard the Fox-Trot before -- for me, it's quite reminiscent of Victor's Herbert's "Indian Summer". It was written in the late '20s, but hearkens back to the '10s and '00s for me.
Thanks for the reminder bear ... this is my 'party piece' ... so I proved it by dashing out the Kern classic on my Grotrian Steinweg ... even recorded myself to remind myself where I need a little smoothing out of the tempo ... but after some 5 attempts, I think I can perform in front of the grandchildren ... it's when my dog does a wolf howl that I know it's not the piano that needs tuning.
Thanks again for the lead ... this was my first tune in my repertoire ... next came Beethoven's Ye Olde Moonlight.
If you had a tip jar, I would have filled it. [...]
@Derelux: Since our economy is largely imaginary, anyway, I gratefully acknowledge your generous tip!
@Tim: I always enjoy learning from your comments! You know, I am smitten by the American pop music of the 20s and 30s. So much of it is so finely crafted! I was truly struck by the poetic efficiency on the sheet of "Smoke gets in your eyes." It's almost like conversational haiku in song.
@PattyP: Thank you for that! I decided a while ago to leave the adreneline pumping to the virtuosos! (BTW, happy birthday!)
@btb: Wow! You made tracks pretty fast! Is it the same arrangement?
(BTW, happy birthday!)