Kirbstone - This is for you

[Uncle Al]

Hi Tom

This is for you
(And any Billy Joel fans)
A Vanderbilt Student accompanies Billy Joel

Enjoy

Uncle Al

[Kirbstone]

Jolly interesting clip, Uncle Al. That young guy Michael Pollack is destined for a career in music, that's for sure.

The really good guys need to use so few neurons playing piano that they've got plenty of real-time brain power left to deliver a song as well. This guy has it in Spades.

It takes up all my neurons just driving my stubborn fingers, so I can neither talk nor sing as I play, so You'll never see my name up there in lights!

Recently at a Bridge weekend at a country hotel they happened to have a really decent grand in the bar area, so after the bridge on both evenings we had a sing-song. While I accompanied everyone else, when it came to me to deliver a funny song I had to do it with no accompaniment. I'd really like to be able to deliver like Tom Lehrer or Flanders & Swann, but I can only manage bits of their material from the mouth only.

Tom.

[Kirbstone]

I agreed to thump organ on Easter morning and it's only recently been confirmed that the service is being taken by our brand-new female Bishop, an honour for me, so Muggins here is practicing his 'programme' ad-nauseam at home on piano so I don't do a boo-boo with the Bishop listening.

Speaking of which, the wifey has said she will attend just to hear her speak, no doubt she'll deliver an interesting Easter Day sermon. Problem for the wifey is that the music will bore her to tears as she has had to listen to it so often.

Tom.

[Jack Williams]

Thanks for sharing that Billy Joel track. I've added it to my "likes" which means I can always find it.
I was just browsing on the laptop, but I paused and plugged it into the HiFi, reorganised the lighting, got it onto full screen on the proper monitor, sat back on the couch, put it back to the beginning and started again.

[Kirbstone]

I am also a Billy Joel fan. The guy's such a compleat professional and a great entertainer, to boot. I bet you cracked open a nice cool beer, Jack, when you had all your hi-fi set up.

Back to my (first) encounter with our female Bishop. True to her gender she's highly organised and she questioned me about my prepared music programme, so that a few bars before the close of Beethoven's Pathetique Andante she strode out of the vestry on to the chancel steps and kicked off with her welcome.

The same at the end of the communion, she waited until John Stainer's 'God so loved the World' had closed and then resumed the service. She didn't ask me about my finale as she would by then be outside the front door chatting to emerging punters. It was my Bach-style Partita on the basis of 'Easter Parade', (easily recognisable) which had been revised for that instrument.

When I got to her she admitted she didn't know the recessional hymn that I played, chosen by my Beloved only two days beforehand ! The printed hymnal music was gruesome, so I had done an intensive hasty re-write so it sounded half decent on the day. The things we do for our spouses........

Tom.