Music played, December 9, 2018

Eleven enthusiastic pianists showed up at Jeff's new condo for an afternoon of fun.  We all got to enjoy the wonderful view across the Ottawa River and over to the Gatineau Park. Then, we had the chance to play Jeff's newly renovated Steinway - a real treat.

The music played was 'epic' in scope - the first round lasted nearly 90  minutes.  We had sonatas, a violin sonata with pre-recorded violin solo part (thanks to Sachie's daughter)  and a range of romantic era pieces.  We also welcomed first time member Perry.

The race for the most popular composer was very exciting this month. Debussy took an early lead with a strong sprint off the starting line, only to be tied in the mid-race by Schubert who pulled into the lead by the end of the first round. However, Scriabin saved the best for last, making a strong closing run to tie Schubert for the lead at the finish line with three performances each. Unfortunately, the final performance of a piece by Scriabin was disqualified from counting since it constituted a third round of performance. So, this month, the coveted prize will be shared by F. Schubert and A. Scriabin.

Round 1:

#	Performer	Work
1.	Gregory (duet)	Serenade, by F. Schubert
2.	Gordon	Sonata #14 K457, 3rd mvt, by W.A. Mozart
3.	Christopher	Claire de Lune, by C. Debussy
4.	Nick	Prelude Book 1, #10: La cathedrale englouti, by C. Debussy
5.	Sachie	The Prophet Bird Op. 82 #7, by R. Schumann
6.	David	Sheep May Safely Graze, by J.S. Bach, transcribed by Mary Howe, SoundCloud recording of David playing this piece is here
7.	Janice S.	Moment Musical #2, by F. Schubert
7.	Adrian	Three KlavierstückeD946,#2, by F. Schubert
9.	Perry	Prelude Op. 23 #5 (in G Minor), by S. Rachmaninoff
10.	Jeff	Preludes Op 17 #3 and Op. 11 #10, by A. Scriabin
11.	Erin	Sonata in D+, Hoboken XVI:24 (all movements), by F. J. Haydn

Round 2:

#	Performer	Work
1.	Adrian	Sonata 18, “the Hunt”,1st movement, by L. V. Beethoven
2.	Gregory	I’m in the Mood for Love, by Jimmy McHugh
3.	Sachie	Violin sonata in D+,mvnt 2 (Fugato) (with violin recording), by Anonymous arr. By Kathleen Wood
4.	Gordon	Prelude Op 17 #6, by A. Scriabin
5.	David	Plaisir d’Amour, by J.P. Martini, transcribed by R. Strobl
6.	Jeff	Prelude Op. 11 #12, by A. Scriabin
7	Gordon	Prelude Op. 17 #13, by A. Scriabin

Music played, November 18, 2018

A smaller group of dedicated pianists met at John's house for an afternoon of piano playing. The group welcomed first-time member Adrian, who has a special interest in Ludwig van Beethoven.

The music covered a diverse range, with only one composer (Beethoven) contributing more than one piece.  So, the winner of the most popular composer for October is out long time friend Ludwig.

And an oddity: there were more performances played in round 2 than round 1.

Round 1:

#	Performer	Work
1.	Karin and Nancy (duet)	“Rockin Chair”, by E. Rocherelle
2.	Gregory	Maple Leaf Rag, by Scott Joplin
3.	Gordon	Cantabile, Op. 19#1, by F. Mendelssohn
4.	Jackie	To a Wild Rose, by E. MacDowell
5.	Caryn	Aria from the Goldberg Variations, by J. S. Bach
6.	Adrian	Sonata #24 in F#, 1st movement, by L. van Beethoven
7.	John W.	Chorus of Morning Glories, own composition

Round 2:

#	Performer	Work
1.	Karin	Polonaise in G Minor, by F. Chopin
2.	Nancy	Claire de Lune, by C. Debussy
3.	Gregory	Of foreign lands and people (from scenes from Childhood), by R. Schumann
4.	Gordon	Preludes Op. 11 No. 22 and Op. 11 No. 13, by A. Scriabin
5.	Caryn	Danza de la Moza, by A. Ginastera
6.	Jackie	Ave Maria, by JS Bach/ Gounod
7.	Adrian	Bagatelle #4 in A, by L. V. Beethoven
8.	John	Free improvisation on the black keys.

Music played, October 21, 2018

The group enjoyed the wonders of Felix, Ottawa Pianos’ showpiece grand. Many thanks to Mitchell and Ottawa Pianos for giving us this great opportunity.

The music played ranged from frenetic to meditative, with everything in-between. This included two improvisations at the keyboard. And a vocal piece.

In the 'most popular composer' race, we had a four way tie: Beethoven, Chopin, Bach and Rocherelle. In the interest of encouraging new composer, the tie goes to the one person on this list I had never heard of: E. Rocherelle. Congratulations. For those of you who don't know Rocherelle, Wikipedia provides this information: Eugénie Ricau Rocherolle is an American composer, pianist, lyricist, and teacher who began her composing career with choral and band music. She was born in 1936 in New Orleans. She released her first piano solo collection in 1978 with great success and soon established herself as one of the leading American composers of piano repertoire

Round 1:

#	Performer	Work
1.	Gordon and Gregory (duet)	Overture to the “Barber of Seville”, by G. Rossini
2.	Karin	Autumn Leaves, by E. Rocherelle
3.	Janice G.	Bouree, Minuet and Gigue from the French Suite, by J.S. Bach
4.	David	Adagio from Concerto in D Minor,, BWV974, by J.S. Bach/Marcello, SoundCloud recording of David playing this piece is here
5.	Brent	Route 66, by Bobby Troup
6.	Jorge	Sonata op 13 (“Pathetique”), 1st movement, by L. van Beethoven
7.	John W.	Free improvisation
8.	Caryn	Danza de la Moza, by A. Ginastera
9.	Mitchell	Own arrangement of his own improvisation (in a minimalist style)
10.	Sachie	Prelude in f# Minor Op. 28, by F. Chopin

Round 2:

#	Performer	Work
1.	Gregory (playing) and Gordon (singing)	Climb Every Mountain (Sound of Music), by Rogers and Hammerstein
2.	Karin	Goodbye Block Island, by E. Rocherelle
3.	Jorge	Intermezzo, by M.M. Ponce
4.	John	Norwegian Folk Melody (traditional)
5.	David	Sonata op 14,#1 (Moonlight), 1st and 2nd movements, by L. van Beethoven
6.	Gordon	Two preludes: Op 11, no 10, by A. Scriabin
		AND Op 28, no 6, by F. Chopin