As the hectic concert season winds down and the hot, long, sunlit days and warm nights of summer in Madrid open up before me, a hazy, slightly melancholic nostalgia imbues my life. It is the faint, forlorn feeling when something has come to a close, when one realizes that another chapter has finished, and that time is continuing its inexorable march forward. I am left with a cluttered collection of blurry memories from the past season — the music, the sights, the sounds, the places, the people, the challenges, the struggles, and the beauty which have coursed in and out of my life over the past nine months.

Yet, as the quieter (and somehow more introspective) days of summer begin, as I tie up loose ends and try to get organized with all of the little matters I had neglected to take care of because of my performance schedule, the relentlessly bright Spanish sun seems to also shed a new light on everything around me. A freshness, a feeling of sparkling enthusiasm, seems to brilliantly reflect off of everyone and everything. I feel an electric excitement and anticipation in planning my programs for next season - the thrill of delving into the depths of Beethoven, Schumann, Chopin, and Berg; of exploring the sharp edges of Cage, Crumb, Ligeti, and Carter; of the new discoveries and the new memories to come.

This entry marks the beginning of something new as well - my entry into the internet’s blogosphere. I decided to start blogging after maintaining a “travel journal” on my professional website became too cumbersome and time-consuming. The immediacy of blogs appealed to me, and I thought it would be an interesting medium to explore. I am sure that the form of this blog, and the kinds of entries posted, will grow and evolve over time.

I have just returned from London, where I played my last recital of this season, and I cannot think of a better way to end the season than with my recital debut at one of the world’s warmest and most beautiful halls - Wigmore Hall. The piano and the incredibly resonant and accomodating acoustics, made the concert one of those rare, satisfying experiences for me as a performer. I don’t know if people realize just how vulnerable musicians (especially pianists) are to the conditions of the hall and instrument. When a hall’s acoustics can honestly carry my “voice” to speak to each seat in the audience, and when the instrument allows me to be able to “say” every envisioned nuance and inflection, I feel as though all things are possible, and the performance takes on another dimension.

At this concert, I also had the great pleasure of meeting Georgina Ginastera, the daughter of the great composer Alberto Ginastera (whose Danzas Argentinas I had performed on the program) as well as pianist Alberto Portugheis who knew Ginastera very well, and directs the Ginastera Festival in London. In addition, the concert promoter, Nigel, (a natural, warm, bright, and all-around fantastic person) not only did such an amazing job organizing everything, he also took us out for a marvelous post-concert meal, and provided us with stimulating and animated conversation about everything from music to literature, poetry and film. I cannot think of a better way to close what was an already fulfilling and immensely satisfying day for me — thank you, Nigel!


Click on the picture above to view some pictures from London.