~ The Lady with the Very Special Voice -

I always think of Sarah as having a built-in musical instrument, rather than just a voice. This video says it all, and I wish that it was longer.   You can see lots more on You Tube.......

~ A MEMORABLE EVENING with JON NAKAMATSU ~

My wife and I went to a North State Symphony concert Saturday night and were both blown away by Mr. Nakamatsu's inspired performance. He played the Third Concerto of Rachmaninoff. It was dazzling, and we had a chance to meet him at a party afterwards. Kyle Pickett's conducting skills were tremendous and I had the feeling that he was aware of every microscopic musical nuance generated by this amazing North State Symphony Orchestra.

Jon is a natural, without majoring in music (his major was German and he was teaching this in high school when he entered the Van Clyburn and won the Gold Medal in 1997). This You Tube clip is from another concert.

Hiromi and Chick Corea play "Summertime"

I found this on You Tube and was blown away. It's like hearing one pianist with four arms, amazing technique and lots of soul mixed in. They seem to read each other's thoughts. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

AN INTERVIEW WITH MARIAN MCPARTLAND

I've been a fan of Marian McPartland for a number of years. In fact, I learned her arrangement of "Emily" from one of her early lps.
Billy Taylor is in charge of this interview. Enjoy.........

~~ MY NEW CD ~~

I've been working on a CD, "Reflections - Classical Improv" that is improvised, and is classical and lyrical in style, and I just sent it off for distribution. If you'd like to take a look at it and hear some samples, you can click on the album cover below and it will take you to the CD webpage. It is available for purchase on that page and will be available for download from Itunes, Amazon, etc. in a few weeks.

~~ MY NEW CD

- As Time Goes By -

I hadn't realized how long it had been since I posted - I've been working on a couple of CD's since my last post. One is called "Songs for Valerie", (my wife) and the other is called "Quiet Elegance" which is synthesized harp music. Both are on CDBaby.com. CDBaby.com is a great resource for unknown artists, like myself, to reach a broader audience and they even have resonably priced hosting for music websites.

- The Keith Jarrett Trio -

I first got turned on to Keith's music when I was working with a guy named Mel in 1976. I bought a couple of lp's: The Koln Concerts" and "Arbor Zena". These made me an instant fan and since then I've bought several others. Here is one of his videos and he's playing "My Funny Valentine".

Glen Gould - Goldberg Variations 1 - 7

I've never heard anyone play Bach with more feeling than Glen Gould.

[the following is a quotation from his biography at www.sonyclassical.com:]

In 1981 Gould departed from his custom of not rerecording a work and, twenty-six years after his first recording of the Goldberg Variations, went into the same New York studio for his second recording of the work with which he had become so closely identified. Gould viewed the two interpretations as substantially different because he came to see the variations not as separate and distinct exercises but as belonging to a larger whole, with one rhythmic pulse, harmony and ideology underlying the entire work and forming a definite unity of composition. Always acutely aware of the possibilities technology offers, Gould was also motivated in his decision to rerecord the Goldberg Variations by the vast changes in recording technology during the previous twenty-five years.

Click here to see his full biography