I have always had this fantasy (don't worry, it's clean... my mom reads my blog. Sometimes.) of performing the Rachmaninoff 2nd Piano Concerto in an impressive venue. Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, Eastman Theatre (the last one purely sentimental), you name it, I'd love to perform there. When I was a junior in high school my pride refused to allow me to study the piece because my arch nemesis, Joe K., had just started it the previous year and I would not follow in his shadow. I therefore took up the third movement of the Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto in B-flat minor, much to my own dismay since it was far too difficult to get up to performance level. My one shining moment of high school glory, however, was beating Joe in the annual Rochester Young Artists Audition, even if I was still only first-runner up to Stephen E., my senior year prom date and the only person to beat me in any piano competition (a grand total of three) my entire junior year. He was (and still is, I hope) a darned accomplished musician.
Anyway I digress. I've since sightread through the concerto on several occasions (the copy I own of the Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto being, ironically, combined with the Rachmaninoff 2nd), but will never get those first eight chords down perfectly due to sheer physical constraints. Rachmaninoff could span thirteen notes. I can span nine. Ten if I throw my thumbs out of whack. Maybe I should take a leaf out of this guy's book...
What is it you've always fantasized (clean, please) of doing??
*special thanks to Anna N. for the clip. Visiting teaching IS effective!!
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15 comments:
I too have wanted to play that piece, and with my long piano fingers, I may actually be able to pull it off...but unlike you, I never even tried.
A fantasy of mine is also piano-related. I always wanted to play the background music on one of those grand pianos at the bottom of the escalator in Nordstrom. Not quite as ritzy as Carnegie Hall, but hey, I aim low.
I, have tried that piece as well. Consider a foolish and feeble attempt after seeing "Shine".
My music fantasy: rockin' beethoven 9 in any of the places you mentioned above with a world-class group (though, even being in a 'world-class group would be enough).
My cooking fantasy is that somehow the White House will think I have great talent in cooking and invite me to cook in their kitchen for fun. Not going to happen since I'm not famous and I'm not in the Navy. (Most of their chefs are from the Navy except for their top chef.) Here's to dreaming!
Jen R
JenR, you need to hook up with doctorj for Navy connections! (btw, welcome doctorj! All comments, snide or otherwise, always welcome... well maybe not the *snide*...)
Once I was recruited to play background music in the Ritz (or some similar hotel, I forget) on the day of the Presidential Inauguration back in oh, what, 2004? I played as people filed by to get their tickets to stand outside the Capitol. There was lots of Enya, Jon Schmidt, and a little Clair de Lune thrown in. My one moment of politically related glory...
Jen,
As your former visiting teacher, if you want me to be the schmoe in the back handing you the "helping hands" so that you can realize your dream, I'd be happy to. Just as long as I can dress as casually as the guy in the clip. What are friends for?
Anna
Thanks Anna. Gosh, provide awesome clips and help out with huge chords? I'm so lucky to have amazing friends like you!
no fantasies here that i'll share. just wanted to say thanks for the distraction when i should be studying!
My fantasy is to eat Chinese food and then go duckpin bowling.
I am working on my communication skills. I need to be less judgmental.
Jen R- I too want to work in the White House as the Executive Pastry Chef. I've also dreamed of being a big time pastry chef in Europe, or just cool enough to have some food journal or magazine do an article of my life story.
PS...I can span like 10 keys easy and it's really not gotten me much of anywhere in life. Mass Frani still had to restrain himself from hitting me over the knuckles with a golf club.
UPC, you would have the most entertaining Food Network show out there. I'll totally come be a judge on your Iron Chef panel any day.
Mass Frani never hit me over the knuckles with a golf club, per se, but once he nearly shoved me off the piano bench whilst screaming "whaat do you theenk you are doing?!" And CHECK IT OUT. He wrote his own mini-biography on imdb.com. Aaaaahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.
This is the best clip ever. Period. The part I like best is the guy's arms flying over his head, cause you know how exagerated Asians have to make everything (take Mom for example...) Having actually played this piece at the tender young age of 13, and still able to play it on whim out of the sheer superiority of my memory abilities, I can attest that this piece is probably the main reason why I can reach 10 notes with my left hand alone (but am small enough to be dubbed the "kengling"). Anyway, my biggest fantasy has been to see three places in the world: Machu Picchu, Victoria Falls, and Petra. There you go :)
my fantasy is to play "mary had a little lamb" as jen's opening act!
OR have a great husband (preferably a pilot) that will fly me to all the clinics i establish throughout the world.
save the world, spawny!! Can I get a footnote shoutout on your first international bestselling publication?
AK-my favorite part of Mass Frani's IMDB bio is the fact that he quotes himself. I bet you anything he has never said those things ever. He just made them up for that site.
I had the same fantasy (and the same book). Perhaps I'm another evil twin? I hope not!
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