Friday, January 22, 2010

Once in a lifetime!

I attended a concert by Itzak Perlman tonight. A friend found tickets on Craig's list a few days ago for this concert that sold out in less than a day. Her husband didn't want to go thanks to a recent surgery and she invited me to go with her. We loved every note!


Winter is back in Reno and for a few days the event organizers worried that Mr. Perlman wouldn't be able to get into Reno because of the snow. In reality, today it rained almost 24" in Phoenix and that is where he flew in from. His plane was one of a handful that departed Phoenix today because of the rain. Who'd have thought? So we were thrilled that he made it to play for us.
Call me star-struck, but when they opened the door for him to enter the stage I felt so excited! He wheeled onto the stage with his pianist, Rohan de Silva, and the audience went nuts. He uses a motorized chair with a seat that rotates around so he can place his feet on the floor and play. First he had to wait for the applause to die down and then the piano just launched in and away we went.
He played three pieces - a Mozart Sonata in A Major, K. 526, Beethoven's Sonata No. 7 in C minor, and after intermission Stravinsky's suite Italienne. He played for an hour before the intermission and it felt like half of that. In excitement and enthusiasm for our performer, many in the audience began to clap after the first movement of the Mozart piece, others joined in and by the third movement most everyone was clapping between movements. After the Mozart piece they left the stage momentarily and upon returning we received a wonderful lesson in humor and grace. Mr. Perlman hadn't spoken yet, but he paused there and announced that while he was backstage he had received an urgent call - from Mr. Beethoven. Beethoven told him that he had enjoyed the Mozart piece a lot and could tell that the audience did as well. However he was hopeful that when Mr. Perlman played HIS piece that he would play it without applause during the space between the movements. Mr. Perlman said that he asked Beethoven, but why do you care if the audience claps between movements and Beethoven told him that the space between the movements is as much a part of the music as the notes in the movements. The space allows one movement to linger and prepares the audience for the next. His approach was kindly, taught an important musical idea and got the point across with a great deal of humor - not diminishing in the least the audience's appreciation, but ensuring an great musical experience for everyone. I was almost glad about the audience faux pas, because it allowed us a quick glimpse of Itzak Perlman. After the Stravinsky piece (which was very short by comparison to the other two) we gave a standing ovation and they left the stage. When they returned, the pianist carried a stack of music about 12 inches high. Together they would consult about which piece to play for us next, leaf through the music to find it, announce it from the stage and start to play. As he announced each piece he would share a little about the composer and in the end the story would have a great punch line that brought lots of laughter. He played two compositions by Kreisler and another by Reis - which of course brought a little joke about a single "Reis Piece" (think Reese's Pieces). In another joke, as he announced a piece by Tchaikovsky he told us that the composer had written it for a Russian friend who spent many years in a Russian prison after being convicted of a minor misdemeanor, so he titled it "Chanson sans Paroles" (literal French translation: Song without Words - NOT Song Without Parole. This is only funny in English.) He played two very technical pieces - fast as lightening and so amazing that people were actually gasping as he ended them. I think the favorite though was when he announced that he would play John Williams Theme from Schindler's List. Mr. Perlman actually collaborted on and played the violin for the movie soundtrack. I sat there thinking, "I am watching Itzak Perlman play the Theme from Schindler's List" and listened as this music from his heart filled the auditorium and touched everyone there. An unforgettable evening.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Whoooo's there?

I was awakened last Sunday morning before dawn to a chorus of owls calling out to each other from the branches of the trees outside our bedroom windows.  Shifting from haunting to almost racous, their individual voices combined and wove together in a rhythmic counterpoint.  Since moving to this neighborhood we've been treated to owl seranades before, but never this close, at a moment so quiet, and for such a duration.  I lay quietly for minutes listening until I could restrain myself no longer.  Quietly I moved to our door and inched it open hoping for a glimpse of nature's neighbors.  Upon hearing my intrusion, one by one the voices silenced as the birds slipped away into the still-darkened sky.  Disappointed that I had hastened the end of nature's reveille, I returned to the warmth of my bed where Brian and I shared our thoughts and impressions about what we had just experienced in the last few minutes. 

Late that afternoon we stopped our activities around the kitchen to listen carefully -- the birds had returned to our trees to offer a reprise of our morning's melody.  We stepped to the windows and in the fading light we saw two of them sitting in an evergreen just 30 feet from where we stood.  We watched them as they called back and forth - first a melodic hooting and then a rhythmic bass reply.  As the performance lengthened we grabbed a camera and from inside our window used a telephoto lens to see them more clearly.  They gazed directly as us and then looked away to continue their conversation.  This happened repeatedly letting us know that they were aware of us and unafraid.  Feeling somehow invited to the party, I quietly stepped out the back door and listened amazed as I took photo after photo of two great horned owls.  Eventually they moved from the shelter of our evergreen to the top of a broken cottonwood and then the peak of our neighbor's home.  During all of this they occasionally looked our way, gazing calmly into the lens of my camera.  As light faded entirely, they took flight and began their nocturnal hunt.  We haven't seen them again this week, but here's hoping they return for an encore. 

You can click here to listen to owls calling - ours sounded like a combination of the pair calling and "Alice".


Our first glimpse...



...there's two!



They're so big!



Great shot.



In plain sight.



Now you're just showing off.



Ready for flight.

707 Days - but who's counting?!

Conspicuously missing from my 50th birthday party, Brett now resides in the U.S. after returning  from a two year mission to Budapest Hungary.  I loved being a tiny part of his mission and loved the opportunity to support him as he worked to share the restored gospel with the people of Hungary.  I did however miss him every day he was gone and am adjusting nicely to the idea of his proximity to family and friends.  We text frequently and talk when he has time.  He has returned to his studies at BYU in Neuroscience and Psychology after spending three weeks with us and being the best Christmas present Brian and I received this year.  Brett served well, loved the work, grew in a multitude of ways (I swear he is an inch taller), made so many friends among the Hungarians and his fellow missionaries, and learned Hungarian - which is more impressive than it sounds.  I know that walking away from such an amazing experience can be a difficult thing, but all good things come to an end (and none too soon for this mother).  Welcome home, son.
Waiting...



He's home!

Merry Christmas!