Category: music

175 posts

12/29/2015Accidentally discovering and performing some music by Brazilian composer Ernesto Nazareth: Coração que Sente
6/13/2015How Ornette Coleman changed my life
6/11/2015Revisiting Bach's Air on G String, from a singing and dancing viewpoint
6/1/2015The many faces of "Stella by Starlight"
2/19/2015Discovering the Eolina, a beautiful musical instrument
12/13/2014Thoughts on Cuba while watching Cuban musicians performing the 1947 bolero "La gloria eres tú"
11/5/2014The single greatest performance of Bach's Goldberg Variations: Pierre Hantaï with rhythmic drive and life
11/2/2014Lessons to learn from pianist Dejan Lazić's attempt to remove a critic's bad review
10/8/2014Pittsburgh Code and Supply: Making music with Overtone in Clojure; Conveying information through sound
8/29/2014I just saw and heard the most amazing performance of Schumann's Fantasy for piano by Alexandre Moutouzkine
8/22/2014Discovering the beautiful keyboard playing of Robert Hill by accident on YouTube changed my life
7/23/2014The growth of loyalty after seventeen years
7/13/2014The one thing I remember Lorin Maazel for
7/4/2014Third year at July 3 music party and finally participated in jamming
6/11/2014Celebrating the 150th birthday of my favorite second-rate composer: Richard Strauss
5/29/2014Copland's Appalachian Spring danced by the orchestra musicians: confronting my memories of boredom four years ago
5/18/2014Pittsburgh Recorder Society: discovering the beauty of Alonso Lobo
5/8/2014Tchaikovsky's 174th birthday: I'm finally coming out as a lover of his music
4/27/2014Pittsburgh Recorder Society: Palestrina, Gombert, and Dolly Parton cookies
4/18/2014The perfect music for Good Friday: some favorite interpretations of Bach's "Erbarme dich" from the St. Matthew Passion
4/18/2014RIP Cheo Feliciano: wonderful singer of salsa and bolero
4/17/2014Charlie Chaplin, a daughter, a granddaughter: changing my perception of "Smile"
4/5/2014Review of edX 8.01x: Jazz Appreciation
4/1/2014My third year of celebrating Johann Sebastian Bach's birthday: who was this guy anyway?
3/30/2014Life: cooking, eating with friends, music jamming, dancing
3/20/2014Steel City Ukuleles: navigating a challenging playlist
3/16/2014Pittsburgh Recorder Society: Something new recently: recording our practice sessions
3/8/2014Thoughts on attending the Duquesne Young Artist Performance Awards Winners Showcase
3/8/2014Happy 300th birthday, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach: still underappreciated after all these years!
3/6/2014Thoughts on returning to ukulele after almost two months off: returning to piano was the reason
2/16/2014Pittsburgh Recorder Society: 7-part Gabrieli and coconut chocolate cookies
2/11/2014Many faces of the bolero "Dos Gardenias"
12/28/2013Are you familiar with the Nutcracker story? Check out ETA Hoffmann's other creepy tales!
12/20/2013Appreciating the unique singer La Lupe
11/20/2013Chamber music concert at CMU featured Bach's Goldberg Variations arranged for string trio
11/18/2013Pittsburgh Recorder Society continues to add members
11/7/2013Steel City Ukuleles: a nice session on playing by ear
10/22/2013I never expected my first wooden recorders to be Renaissance recorders
10/20/2013The biggest Pittsburgh Recorder Society meeting I have attended in two years!!
10/17/2013Steel City Ukuleles: back to plain good fun, including the cups song
10/12/2013Neil Newton on the harmonic structure of atonal music
10/11/2013Finally learning about Carnatic music
10/6/2013Was that a ukulele I heard in Frick Park? No, a cavaquinho
10/5/2013Performing with the Steel City Ukuleles at the Wilkins School Community Center Ecofest 2013: with videos
10/5/2013Final rehearsal for my first ukulele gig: and some hard decisions about music in my life
10/4/20139 things you could be doing in Pittsburgh on Saturday, October 5
10/3/2013Rubber Duckie and Steel City Ukuleles rehearsal
9/29/2013An erhu player and a tuba player at a party said "Let's jam"
9/27/2013First rehearsal for my first ukulele gig: dealing with anxiety
9/24/2013Finally got a nice new ukulele: Mainland Classic Mahogany Concert
9/19/2013My third meeting of the Steel City Ukuleles: finally ordered a new instrument
9/16/2013New goals for a new season of the Pittsburgh Recorder Society
9/15/2013Back to French dance: potluck and party
9/14/2013Finally playing Piazzolla's "Oblivion" on flute
9/13/2013RIP Ray Dolby: yes, I still have cassette tapes!
9/5/2013My second meeting of the Steel City Ukuleles: why I already signed up to perform before being ready
8/24/2013Celebrating Claude Debussy's 151st birthday through unusual performances of Syrinx
8/24/2013Another unexpected life change: one month of learning to play ukulele
8/11/2013RIP, Eydie Gormé
8/9/2013A haircut leading to my playing "I'll Always Love You" on flute
7/5/2013More summer musical partying, and another ten-year-old dream fulfilled!
7/4/2013Second year at July 3 music party: still only listening without playing
6/9/2013Pittsburgh JazzLive International Festival 2013: dancing salsa to Eddie Palmieri
5/30/2013100th anniversary: remembering the first time I heard Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring"
5/26/2013Learning the Congo de Captieux traditional French dance
5/22/2013Reflections on Richard Wagner's 200th birthday: beautiful music without a future
5/21/2013Attending a meeting of the Washington DC Recorder Society while visiting
5/13/2013Chatham Baroque: The Pleasures of Purcell
5/8/2013Happy birthday, Johannes Brahms! 3 takes on a musical favorite
5/4/2013Playing violin music on flute
4/19/2013Pittsburgh OvreArts concert "Art songs and interludes"
4/13/2013Singing and playing tango and jazz at an unexpected music party
4/7/2013Alia Musica concert including flutist Robert Dick
4/5/2013Energetic Robert Dick solo flute recital in Pittsburgh with Alia Musica
4/5/2013Attending a fascinating Robert Dick flute lecture and master class
3/26/2013Flute master class: becoming a great ensemble player
3/23/2013RIP Bebo Valdés, master pianist of Cuban music
3/22/2013My second year of celebrating Johann Sebastian Bach's birthday: a tale of accidental love
3/18/2013Finally doing some Latin music jamming on flute; also Irish and French
3/1/2013Another exciting concert at Bar Marco: Chris Norman and the Chatham Baroque playing a tasty assortment of dynamic music
2/26/2013Stepping it up at the French and blues jam
2/24/2013Celebrating two years of playing recorder
2/11/2013Attending J-Jam in Squirrel Hill but not playing music in it
1/29/2013My first blues music jam happened after the regular French music jam
1/27/2013Music I just played for the first time: recorder sonata, tangos
12/22/2012Playing tango on melodica and singing Christmas carols
12/19/2012Special treat: Dutch jazz trumpeter Eric Vloeimans performed in Pittsburgh!
12/15/2012East End Food Co-op Winterfest 2012
12/14/2012Pittsburgh Contras and Squares Holiday Ball 2012
12/10/2012RIP Charles Rosen, pianist and scholar
12/9/2012Playing music on recorders at a Phipps Conservatory "candlelight evening"
12/2/2012Oblivion obsession: time to start playing melodica!
11/25/2012Dan Possumato and friends playing Irish, Scottish, French music
11/24/2012Preparing to play Irish flute in the Holiday Ball
11/19/2012Preparing for December 9 recorder performance in Phipps Conservatory
11/18/2012Report on CMU Baroque Ensemble concert, with Stephen Schultz on Baroque flute
11/17/2012A childhood dream come true: I am now finally singing for real!
11/14/2012Classical Revolution: Pittsburgh's AquiTango delivers passionate traditional tango
11/3/2012Attending the annual Pitt Jazz Seminar for the first time: day 2
11/2/2012Attending the annual Pitt Jazz Seminar for the first time: day 1
10/28/2012Singing and playing bossa nova favorite "Chega de Saudade" at Dunkin' Donuts for J-Jam
10/21/2012Playing recorder in a group
10/15/2012French music jam with unexpected new musicians
10/10/2012Musicians' workshop by the contra dance Great Bear Trio at the Pittsburgh Fall Dance Weekend
10/7/2012My first contra dance workshop: unexpected fun!
10/4/2012Chatham Baroque: thoughts on playing new non-Baroque music on Baroque instruments
9/28/2012Another French music jam; also, announcing CATS Dance
9/25/2012Thank you, Glenn Gould, for introducing me to Schönberg!
9/23/2012Living Appalachian music of Southwestern Pennsylvania: Mark Tamsula and Richard Withers with Ellen Gozion
9/23/2012Celebrating the birthday of John Coltrane, the Beethoven of jazz
9/21/2012My first time singing bossa nova; also, a temporary farewell to Baroque flute
9/20/2012My first bobblehead doll: guess who?
9/16/2012Excited by the new season of the Pittsburgh Recorder Society
9/14/2012The passion of Bach's Air on the G String: three very different interpretations
9/8/2012Finally performing some sonatas for Baroque flute
8/27/2012My second French music jam: playing my Irish flute in public for the first time
8/26/2012Latin jazz in Pittsburgh: Puro Queso
8/12/2012Playing Baroque flute at my friend's wedding reception
8/2/2012The paradox of practice: it's harder to go slow than go fast
7/30/2012Got my new Casey Burns Small-Handed Irish flute!
7/28/2012My first appearance on a music recital program
7/21/2012Mideast Early Music Workshop 2012: a life-changing experience!!
7/7/2012Another terrifying music jam session but I played a little bit of blues and old time
7/3/2012Petrified at a music jam session so I didn't play but watched and listened
7/2/2012My first French music jam: anxious but excited
6/15/2012Preparing for my first solo flute performance: notes on perfectionism and high standards
6/12/2012Ordered the new Casey Burns Small-Handed Irish flute
6/8/2012Heinz Hall Memories: at the Pittsburgh Symphony, being shocked out of my mind upon experiencing Prokofiev's second piano concerto for the first time; also, a note on human memory
5/28/2012Visiting the House of Musical Traditions: looking at instruments including Irish flutes
5/18/2012Got my new and more ergonomic flute
5/14/2012Playing French music for the first time, and dancing blues for the first time
4/29/2012Attending my first CMU Baroque Ensemble concert: enjoying Bach's Brandenburg 2
4/27/2012Baroque jam session at CMU: first time my parents ever watched me perform music
4/21/2012My first time in a public music jam: intense fun with Chris Norman and David Greenberg
3/30/2012A delayed St. Patrick's Day party: playing tin whistle and alto recorder
3/21/2012Flute update: celebrating Bach's birthday, using a Thumbport, improvising to bossa nova
3/18/2012The joy and challenge of making beautiful sounds together
3/17/2012St. Patrick's Day party: playing tin whistle and flute
3/12/2012Quitting the CMU All-University Orchestra: one of the hardest decisions in my life
3/10/2012Flute: loving it again, remembering why I dance, and how I met my wife!
3/7/2012Flute: taking a break while clarifying my goals
2/27/2012Flute practice: dealing with burnout and injury
2/23/2012Saying No in order to say Yes
2/22/2012Flute progress after one month in orchestra: still hanging in there
2/14/2012Flute progress report: day of reckoning approaches
2/1/2012Joining an orchestra: learning in the face of terror
1/27/2012A new friend's very musical birthday party changed my life
1/8/2012Finding and using my childhood flute books
1/3/2012Ignoring branding: the double-blind test
12/20/2011Much progress playing flute
12/17/2011Playing recorder and flute at the Holiday Ball!
12/12/2011Why go to concerts by amateur music groups?
12/11/2011Learning another instrument: the tin whistle
12/5/2011Busy evening: performing at Phipps followed by rehearsal for another gig!
12/1/2011I'm going to perform music much sooner than I expected: Monday
11/30/2011Bought a Baroque flute
11/22/2011James Galway made me hate flute, but Emmanuel Pahud made me love it
11/20/2011The beautiful, melancholy Indian Summer of Chet Baker
11/18/2011I want to sing
11/17/2011Flute versus recorder: why do I play both?
11/15/2011On duets with dead musicians
11/13/2011Back to piano too
11/11/2011On not reading concert program notes
11/9/2011Taking up flute again after decades?!
10/30/2011Harder to play music in a group than alone
10/22/2011Happy 200th birthday, Franz Liszt!
10/18/2011Disagreement on the use of time?
10/7/2011Staying Excited About Learning By Being Flexible
10/6/2011Singing Through Traffic
10/3/2011My New Bass and Sopranino Recorders and Having Fun
10/2/2011I Love Music but Rarely Listen to It Now
10/1/2011Run Shadyside 5K: Outrunning Mickey Mouse and Lending a Trumpet
9/29/2011A Musician's Best Friend
9/26/2011I Don't Feel Like Practicing; but I'm Gonna Do It Anyway
9/22/2011Byron Janis on Overcoming Adversity