A Different Take

I just had a fascinating talk with one of those young piano students who was in yesterday’s masters class, although he was not on the schedule to play. Edo is from Israel and is currently studying at the University of Illinois.

His take on the severity of the coaching is that Rebecca Pennys is not all that tough on the students. He said they are all well aware of their mistakes and their shortcomings before she ever gives her critique. He seemed to think she was hardest on her students from Eastman who are here for the summer.

I asked whether the students naturally had sized each other up and determined a ranking of their colleagues. He tends to put people in two groups: those who strive for perfection and become somewhat robotic in their performance and those who play to make music. He obviously aspires to be in the latter group.

We talked about my week of amateur chamber music. He invited me to hear his group play chamber music this afternoon at 2 pm, which is when my next practice time is scheduled. There are way too many things to do in any hour of the day here.

I always find it so interesting to get the insight of a young person who is in this for the long haul. I expect to be seeing these students playing as guest artists with the NSO and other big symphony orchestras in years to come.

I learned to inside story on the sudden appearance of air-conditioners (and of course working windows) in the practice cabins this year. Apparently Steinway chose 3 sites to outfit with beautiful pianos at a minimal cost, Chautauqua being one of them. The stipulation was that the spaces where the pianos were housed would be air-conditioned and the rooms with the grand pianos would be locked.

Thank you, Steinway, for making cabin #59 so pleasant this year!

(Later) I went to the student concert and gave up some practice time. It was a good lesson in performance skills. My new friend Edo is on the left in this picture. He and the other young pianist from Brazil played a very modern piece: Celestial Mechanics by George Crumb, during which they spent a lot of time plucking and plonking the piano. The music is so far back so they can reach the strings more easily. These young artists put on quite a show!