Updating!

I've been rather backward in keeping the blog up to date and I notice that 6 months has flown past since my last posting. It's been quite hectic for me - various concerts, rehearsals, organising fund raising for the purchase of a new Kawai grand piano for the Swellendam High School, various Bahá'í activities, bookkeeping jobs, teaching etc. etc. In the last few months it has been necessary to get down to some heavy practising for a solo recital at the new concert venue, Wahnfried, in McGregor on 2nd December. I have resuscitated my old programme called "Sylvia Schulman Plays Piano Music for You (from W.A. Mozart to Billy Mayerl)" which I have not played for several years. It consists of 15 pieces with a fair amount of talking in between, sometimes linking different pieces by a common denominator, but generally giving some interesting information about them and/or the composers. Then I decided to present the programme as one of the Country Classics series in Swellendam, this time at my house, a week beforehand. For singing and flute the acoustics here are not good because the room has wall-to-wall carpeting; so we have used other venues for the Country Classics concerts which have been with Marcelle Volckaert, soprano, Brad Liebl, baritone and Chris Nicholls, flute. However, the acoustic is satisfactory for piano so it is very convenient for me to do the solo recital on my own piano! On 9th December Brad Liebl and I will be giving a recital in Barrydale - that lovely drive from Swellendam through the beautiful Tradouws Pass - which includes a Christmas Fantasia on a Theme of Debussy, arranged by Brad Liebl. Going forward into next year, Brad and I will be performing at Wahnfried on 10th February, the programme for which will include songs by Wagner and Verdi as 2013 is the 200th Anniversary of their birth. Later in the year, as near winter as possible, we will do a recital in Barrydale to include some of Die Winterreise of Schubert at the request of our hosts, Tim Teale and Clive Strawbridge. Marcelle Volckaert and I will also be performing in Barrydale with  Turina and Berlioz song cycles. No doubt these recitals will also be presented in Swellendam.

More Concerts Coming Up

Concerts in November and January are being planned in Swellendam and Barrydale, following the success of the Garden Route Concert Series in Heidelberg. Marcelle Volckaert, soprano, and I will be performing in November in both towns, and in January it will be Brad Liebl, baritone, and myself at the same venues, both being in beautiful private homes with good pianos! When exact dates have been confirmed all round,I will post another notice. Beautiful programmes have been planned by both singers. I will add about 2 piano solos to each programme, giving the singers a bit of a breather!
By the way, to be informed about concerts or to advertise them go to www.mstring.co.za. Everybody who registers with them receives an email to announce events for the following two weeks. One can also advertise instruments and jobs, make announcements, join the forum etc.

Garden Route Concert Series

There are three concerts in this series. The first one was on Saturday 18th June with Marcelle Volckaert, soprano. They are taking place in Heidelberg, 50 kms from Swellendam, at the home of Chris Nicholls and his wife, Sally Presant. I am accompanying all three artists. We had a very small but most appreciative audience for this first concert which included Aria Antiche, Schubert, Berlioz and Villa Lobos for voice, and Chopin, Rachmaninov and Frank Bridge for piano solo.

The second concert will be on 16th July with Chris Nicholls, flautist. French composers predominate with Fauré, Poulenc, Debussy and one could include Chopin as French as well! But there are also Bach and Mozart in the programme.

The last of this series is with Brad Liebl, baritone. A good variety of composers in this programme: Schumann, Strauss, Liszt, Mozart, Menotti, Copland, Gershwin and Foster!

Tickets for more than one concert booked in advance are discounted but the opportunity for a really big reduction was for three concerts and now only two are left!

Anyone interested in booking for these last two concerts, contact me by email - sylbenat@futurejhb.co.za or phone 028 514 2904 or cell 082 855 0534 (in South Africa, of course!)

Recital for the Wagner Society of South Africa

Some news about last night's recital:

6th March 2011 - Well, it came and went but what a wonderful experience. Brad Liebl and I gave a recital for the Wagner Society of South Africa last night in a private home in Cape Town which housed a super Yamaha grand piano. Such a joy to be able to use an instrument with a lovely tone, a great action and over which one can have complete control. And then to be making music with such a top-class super baritone - a great privilege. As an accompanist one does not often have the opportunity to be free to interpret at the same time as being sensitive to the needs of the soloist and allowing him also to be free. The programme consisted of 5 Heine Liederkreis songs by Schumann, Morgen and Heimliche Aufforderung by Richard Strauss, the E minor (posthmous) Waltz by Chopin, a Figaro recitative and aria by Mozart, O Du Mein Holder Abendstern by Wagner and Lieben, Hassen, Hoffen Zagen from Ariadne Auf Naxos by Richard Strauss, a Rachmaninov Prelude in G# minor and three outstanding songs Op. 10 by Samuel Barber - After the Rain, Sleep Now and I Hear an Army. As an encore Brad sang "Not While I'm Around" from Sweeny Todd by Stephen Sondheim. The small but appreciative audience were full of praise for the performance which was followed by drinks and snacks. I also managed to sell a few of my CD's! Here is what the Chairman of the Wagner Society wrote to me today:

"First of all let me say how much I (and everybody else, without exception, I am sure) loved yesterday’s recital. It was one of those magic evenings where everything went well. Brad sang so beautifully, you are a most sensitive and attentive accompanist with a fabulous feeling of timing and nuances. And your solo pieces were played so freshly as well." Brad himself wrote the following to me, "The concert went so smoothly and I felt so very comfortable with you!" This is what I had written to him: "What an inspiration you are! I can’t remember when last I felt so able to really perform! This does not easily happen working with lesser artists than yourself. Thank you so much."

As you see, we are a mutual admiration society!!!

Someone else said it was a "memorable" evening - so all in all, although it was exceedingly warm weather and pretty uncomfortable whilst performing, I am very pleased with the success of the recital.

The owners of the house where it took place have two lovely dogs, one of which sings when the piano is played. Whilst I was practising before the recital I heard her howling in another room and wondered where they would put her during the recital. They must have found another place because we had no doggie accompaniments when the time came!