…when I forsook my classical roots as a pianist and joined David and some of his friends in our annual event helping to raise a (hopefully) considerable amount of money for homeless and orphan children in Vietnam.
$20,000 is quite a considerable amount of money in anyone’s language, and from what I’ve seen will make quite a difference to some people’s lives in Vietnam. The evening was very successful, and despite any misgivings I may have had our music went off very well, and I was (somewhat fatherly, I must admit) very pleased with the way David (and his friends, of course) played. Of particular note were the two brothers of two of my piano students, one who is a superb classical and jazz acoustic guitarist, and the other (only 12 years old) a very good percussionist already. Great stuff all round and unusually for a ‘background band’ (we were playing as the guests arrived) we got good rounds of applause after each number.
I think David may want to do this again, next year…
Now I have a bit more time on my hands to do my ‘normal’ music, the Stuart and ancillary instruments will take centre stage again. I did have a chance to record a piano track for a colleague who wanted to sing this hymn at a memorial mass next week, and I have to admit the recording sound came out very well, with the bass and treble notes very clear and resonant. It does seem that I have the optimum conditions for recording now in my little music room and like all aficionados of Ockham’s razor it turns out, as I have commented before, that the simplest arrangement is the best. I am now using a pair of Rode NT-3 microphones and these are quite brilliant, very sensitive (I use them as choir microphones) and with a great dynamic range.
I wish I could take the piano with me wherever I play, but of course such things are not possible in a practical sense. Last night, the Kurzweil was really good, and I was able to switch between acoustic and electric piano where required with good effect, something I must admit I couldn’t have done with the Stuart. You can’t have everything, I suppose. Now I wonder if I can get a MIDI interface onto the Stuart. I think Wayne would disown me if I asked him for that…