And now for something quite different

I can't say completely different because I know and enjoy spoken word and I've done 10 albums of the stuff anyway, but this was poetry with jazz tune accompaniment from a capable classical player.  So quite different.  Stuart Long played the piano and Rohan Buettel wrote the poetry and performed it and presumably they chose the accompanying tunes to some degree together.  Rohan also sings in a choir so has some songster skills but here it was recitation.  16 songs with 16 short poems on any manner of topic.  First class went with Nice work if you can get it, which seems apt: apparently Rohan once got upgraded.  Electricity wars went with My heart stood still, so two with some thematic relevance.  I hear your voice with Skylark; Fruit bats with Someday my prince will come (?) and This too shall pass with Alice in wonderland.  Plenty of others.  Turnings was about a couple sleeping together intertwined and matched well with Tenderly.  Trace spoke of leaving none and was matched with Suicide is painless; considerably more tragic then Wisteria with La mer and Cicadas with Summertime.  Urban haiku took us back to the 70s with Red Baron, that catchy and popular tune from Billy Cobham's Spectrum album with Jam Hammer, Tommy Bolin, Lee Sklar, Joe Farrell, Ron Carter, Ray Baretto and others.  I didn't catch all the lyrics live but revisited in my recordings.  I was very impressed with joy and playfulness and some seriousness and the general response to language.  The poems were short but Rohan's written more for several journals.  A fascinating and somewhat unusual outing at Wesley.

Stuart Long (piano) accompanied Rohan Buettel (poet) at Wesley.

Domestics

It was a fascinating approach to a concert.  Stuart Long played a personally influential album, essentially in order.  His father had purchased it as part of a music collection, then on record/LP (now nominated vinyl), to hear on his stereo from Duratone.  How's that for a Canberra story?  The music was relatively short pieces, immensely popular and lyrical, a "best of" of piano of the time.  I too had played a few as a young piano student.  Amusingly, he even interrupted as half-time to "turn the record".  So what did he play?  A Bach prelude, Chopin Fur Elise, some tango and latin, Grieg, Rach, Chaminade, Ibert and some others.  Perhaps my fave was Poulenc Mouvements perpetuels no.1.  Then an encore of Debussy Girl with the flaxen hair.  So the music was entertaining and varied.  I liked also that we just listened.  Stuart asked for no applause except before that little interval and at the end.  We heard more that way and the experience was less interrupted.  Then a meeting of mostly friends and acquaintances over some nibbles and champers for a lovely Sunday outing.  Capable playing and pleasant company.  I guess those domestic concerts in the paintings were something like this, in the days before stereos.

Stuart Long (piano) performed the works of the album John Ogdon Popular piano favourites (1972) at Wesley.

Movies and more

I caught Stuart Long doing a lighter piano concert than normal.  This was music of films and Satie and Glass and Nyman and Morricone and Ye.  Ye?  Yes, a tune from when he was Kanye West.  It a change from Prokofiev and Schubert and Beethoven that I'd heard from him before.  And from from the compositions of Alan Hinde that we'd recorded recently and that we will complete sometime soonish.  Some film tunes are deeply moving and melodically inviting, like Nyman form The Piano and Morricone from Cinema Paradiso.  Just lovely.  Then an encore from Sally Greenaway which was again lyrical and luscious.  Nice outing.

Stuart Long played film and other musics at Wesley.

Released

I've worked with Alan Hinde and Stuart Long for many months to achieve this album and then I was in Japan when the release happened.  Too bad but unavoidable in the circumstances.  Nonetheless we remain pretty chuffed with the outcome.  Alan is a composer and has released considerable music before.  This album comprises the first 12 of 24 preludes in all the major and minor keys, plus one added tune.   Another album is coming (mostly already written) with the remaining 12 preludes/keys.  Stuart performed the preludes and I recorded, mixed and mastered.  The delay was a function of Stuart's time to practice the tunes amongst his other matters.  And they were not all so easy; some were positively challenging.  But they came into being, the CDs have been printed, the preludes are in the process of being made available as printed music and the recorded versions are about to be distributed to a music-hungry world.  Perhaps a music-hungry world with a surfeit of calories.  CDs are available from Alan and the album will soon be available on the various streaming services.  Check it out.  Stuart describes Alan as our local Chopin and he's the one who'd know.  A lengthy and satisfying project. 

Water Works (album) is a series of 12 preludes (and an additional odalisque) composed by Alan Hinde (composer), performed by Stuart Long (piano) and recorded by Eric Pozza (mix/master).

Yamaha workout

Stuart Long appeared at Wesley with a collection of melodic gems.  Thus was the concert entitled.  It was a forceful grouping, played with plenty of energy and dynamics.  First up Beethoven with Andante favori, apparently a second movement that was too long for his Waldstein Sonata.  Attractive as ever.  Then Grieg Piano sonata E min op.7.  Stuart explained this is unusual as a longer piece by Grieg, comprising four movements and interestingly featuring his initials (E,H[=Bb],G) as the first notes of the first movement and also appearing otherwise through the work.  Memories of the Bach motif.  Then two nocturnes by Faure with notable melodies.  Stuart is committed and strong in his playing and no less here.  This was handfulls of volume and massive presence.  The Yamaha C6 got a solid workout.  Loved it.  And note the mics.  Paul turned up and we ended up with 3 stereo recordings for comparisons.  Fascinating for some!

Stuart long played Beethoven, Grieg and Faure at Wesley.

Premiere

It was a first performance of a piano trio made up of local mates that I know through Wesley and MdCC  and NCO.  It's a small local musical world and a small group but very satisfying.  Also satisfying to hear a Beethoven trio, apparently his first published work, the Piano trio Cmin op.1 no.3 in 4 movements.  You think Beethoven is everywhere but I haven't heard too much recently and it was a happy revisit.  And nicely played.  Stuart seemed to lead much of the work with various intros and eyes opening to the others and busy piano parts that always seem to determine a piano quartet or trio, but there was considerable awareness throughout.  I particularly enjoyed some of Katherine's cello melody lines, too.  Nicely done.  Then, to finish, an arrangement of the tear-jerking Piazzola Oblivion.  Much shorter but again a huge pleasure with its relatively simple but touching melody and considerable repetition.  So a very satisfying first outing, even if a bit problematic given some unexpected recording glitches on the day.

Arawang Trio are Stuart Long (piano), John Dobson (violin) and Katherine Wilkinson (cello).  They performed Beethoven and Piazzola at Wesley.

A walk in the park

Well, actually it was a stroll in the garden in bygone times of Schubert and Schumann and the like.  Saralouise Owens sang songs of lost and found loves and the like with piano accompaniment from Stuart Long and it was quite beautiful if much of another era, a very erstwhile era.  Maybe it's the advent of the pill in the '60s or a few world wars, but things are different now.  The romance seems florid and unreal to our ears even if the Schubert Serenade seemed to suggest suggestiveness and that's common enough.  I didn't follow the German lyrics, but I did the translations, and it was interesting.  Mostly this was German, from Schubert and Schumann and Mahler and Hugo Wolf and one French from Henri Duparc, but Benjamin Britten was in English, as was a significant early female composer out of Melbourne, Linda Phillips, with lyrics lauding Ash trees and the cedars of Lebanon.  It's a complex music, these short classical songs, rich in imagery and structurally and harmonically following the lyrics, unlike simple pop tunes where lyrics follow melody.  So a lovely sound and a historical visitation as well.  Lovely.

 Saralouise Owens (soprano) sang with accompaniment from Stuart Long (piano) at Wesley.

More war

Stuart performed a piano concert to carry on Robert last week.  Another Prokofiev War sonata as the main work of the day, this one no.7 from 1939-1942.  (Robert's was no.8).  The years say it all: premiered as the Russian Army gained the upper hand in Stalingrad.  Three movements, first up brutal and unsettled then sorrowful and dark, then violent and tumultuous.  And that was just the first movement.  The second was more emotional, sentimental; the third was a toccata in 7/8, explosive and drenched with chromaticism.  All suitable for a war work and heavy and demanding.  Especially for Stuart.  Prokofiev was sandwiched by Scriabin.  To start, 9 preludes in 2 opuses.  All short, perhaps 1-2mins, but wonderfully expressive.  These were from a time of his influence by Chopin.  To end, an etude written at age 16, expressive and melodic.  A worthy pairing with Robert's concert of the previous week and some admirable playing throughout.

Stuart Long (piano) performed Scriabin and Prokofiev at Wesley.

Not a waltz in sight

Chopin means waltzes to me and to lots of others who did piano as a kid, but Stuart Long opened my eyes and ears.  I should have known better.  Well, it was still solo piano, virtuosic and perhaps showy, romantic, but this was  a string of works that were much more demanding, even despite the inconsequential titles.  Lots sounded like dances like my waltzes, mazurkas or ballades or somewhat related  nocturnes, but then the preludes and fantasies and etudes suggest something else, even if only something pianistic and technical.  Certainly the etude was technical but one Ballade (op.2 no.38 was taken from a heroic ballad and had intriguing internal movements and developed big emotional power and one Prelude (Dbmaj op.10 no.15) was supposedly a translation of nature's harmonies.  But the biggie of the day was a Fantasie (op.49) which was a response to a Russian invasion of Poland, perhaps his finest work, with patriotic Polish song and meditation and tragic emotions and FC (=Frederic Chopin) as its first notes.  And then a finish on a famous and hugely pretty Nocturne (Ebmaj op.9 no.1) which we all know and deservedly love.  So, a different Chopin played by a mighty local player with commitment and passion and skill.  Thanks to Stuart.  Another winner from such an obvious source.

Stuart Long (piano) played Chopin at Wesley.

Honesty and French revelations

France is in the news recently, as is Covid, so a first Wesley post-lockdown concert of French piano music seemed so apt.  Stuart Long was playing solo piano on Poulenc, Satie, Ibert, Debussy and Chaminade and he's an Aussie and no liar so this was a wonderfully expressive outing and an eye/ear-opener for me.  I hadn't heard a whole concert of French music before, so it suddenly took on a new sense of investigation, playfulness, lightness, modernity with tradition.  So it was an education.  Now this fascinates me.  I've visited Paris and travelled in France, but my Australian experience is subtly coloured (by Anglo/Franco history, Henry IV Pt.1, French/US revolutions, Italo/Franco variations) and I always feel this is not a culture I really know.  So this was quite a revelation.  Stuart did a great job and has obvious love and respect for this music, treating it with gentleness and intimacy.  And being a return concert, this was doubly significant.  Too bad about our Pants on fire bad manners of late.  But nothing unexpected there.

Stuart Long (piano) played French music at Wesley.

C20th repertoire

Stuart Long may be quietly spoken but he's anything but behind the keyboard.  He played a concert of C20th solo piano, partly to display the vibrancy of this repertoire.  Certainly it was alive, demanding, strongly rhythmic, varied and harmonically challenging.  For this, read virtuosic.  This was no slouch outing.  I was not the only one dumbfounded at the end.  He played three pieces, but each was a set of smaller works.  Carl Vine Five bagatelles had five works (obviously); Prokofiev Visions fugitives contained 20 much varied works; Ginestra Danzas Argentinas had three.  They were all demanding to play and to hear, much varied in dynamics and feels, and Stuart exposed them with committed approach and intense dynamics, respectful always to the music.  So impressive.  I'm in awe, of the music and the musician.  I wasn't alone.

Stuart Long (piano) played Vine, Prokofiev and Ginestera at Wesley.

For posterity, or at least for radio

I've recorded literally hundreds of jazz and classical performers but these have all been live shows.  It was something a bit special to track original compositions and to be asked to do it by the composer.  Alan Hinde recently provided a piece for Maruki Orchestra that we played as its world premiere.  A few weeks later I recorded Stuart Long playing four of his piano compositions.  The titles mean little and there was some discussion over apt titles (other than Nocturne or Prelude no.x).  These were seriously interesting tunes.  At one time, Stuart spoke of Alan as our Canberra Chopin.  Megan mentioned Satie when she heard some takes.  Alan himself spoke of the influence of jazz harmonies.  I enjoyed that the three of us could talk jazz as much as classical, with Alan and Stuart having a jazz background along with their classical present.  It's all music and each has its fortes.  We recorded on a new Yamaha grand at Wesley Music Centre, in that acoustically correct space.  What a pleasure and a privilege.  Let's now see what comes of it.

Stuart Long (piano) played and recorded four pieces by Alan Hinde (composer) at Wesley.  Eric Pozza tracked.

Missing

I can little comment on Stuart Long and his latest concert. I set up a recording, heard a first piece by Prokofiev, then had to leave. That Prokofiev was a pleasure. Short, but sweet; recounting, in four short movements, a grandmother in front of a fire in a bitter Russian winter telling fairy tales to her grandchildren. So this was quite delicate. It was Old grandmother's tales op.31. He then played Scriabin 24 Preludes, but I was gone. Wish I could have stayed. That Prokofiev was a lovely entree but the main course went missing.

Stuart Long (piano) played Prokofiev and Scriabin at Wesley.

Workout

Stuart Long said he's been fascinated by variations and it showed. Variations are works of musical exploration, so a composer looks at a theme, perhaps just 32 bars, then delivers a string of approaches to that set of chords or melody. Stuart mentioned that melody and rhythm and the rest are essential, but interestingly, that the movement of variations and their resolution is key. It's easy enough to take in the early variations, but they can become more tangential before the return and all this is fascinating in a musically playful and exploratory way. Stuart played three sets of variations for this concerts. Firstly by Brahms and Mendelssohn and these were variations on their own themes and busy and full handed in form. The last was certainly tangential. Muczynsky Desperate measures (Paganini variations). It's a modern work (1996) and shows it. Initially more relaxed and open and playful with blues and jazz tonalities and idioms, but increasingly intriguing with varied harmonies and intervals and dissonances of last century. So a great concert of deep exploration and huge musical commitment by Stuart: fascinating and unrelenting and a work out of both physical and musical vigour. Emotionally and intellectually fabulous.

Stuart Long (piano) played variations by Brahms, Mendelssohn and Muczinski at Wesley.

Concert for Cancer Council

It was the day of the big morning tea, supporting the Cancer Council, and the concert was attached to the morning tea at Wesley and it was also big and varied. I guess it was brought together from those who were available for the gig. Horn player Chris Griffiths was in town from the UK (he plays with the Royal Northern Sinfonia and studied under Barry Tuckwell at the Royal Academy of Music) but then I discovered his sister is here so a family visit. Stuart Long supported Chris on piano, and both Stuart and Chris played with Louise Keast, and Louise also played with pianist Colleen Rae Gerrard. And Jonathan Lee sat in on organ to play a surprisingly jazz-inspired piece. Not a long concert but rabidly mixed. First up was JS Bach Ave Maria on horn and piano. The some songs from Brahms, Wolf and Bellini and notably Gounot's Le soir from Meditations poetiques. Then Ravel Pavane pour une infante defunte and Jonathan's performance of Ad Wammes Miroir with its distinct jazz-like melody and chordal movements. And to finish, two movements of Mozart Horn concerto Eb. Some tunes were distinctly well-known and popular but always a pleasure. Chris played a good bit from memory. So, mixed an d popular but also interesting and well played. A pleasure, unlike cancer.

Chris Griffiths (horn), Stuart Long (piano), Jonathan Lee (organ), Louise Keast (soprano) and Colleen Rae Gerrard (piano) performed at Wesley.

This is CJBlog post no. 1800