I began playing the piano at the age of three,
picking out tunes while sitting next to my father, who only played by ear in the key of C. I started taking lessons at age 6. My first teacher was Mr. Hate (yes, that was really his name). He only lasted one lesson. I then switched to a local teacher named Mrs. Stockman, who taught me all through middle school. When I entered Temple University’s College of Music, my piano teacher for my four years there was the Russian concert pianist George Sementovsky, who began his studies in Hungary with a student of Franz Liszt.
In my travels around the world, I have often visited the homes of famous composers. These homes have been made into museums in the composer’s honor, and usually contain their piano. I always ask if I may play the piano, and am usually declined. However, my request was granted on three occasions.
The first time was on my first trip to Europe
in 1968 with my brother Steven. I visited Beethoven’s birthplace in Bonn, Germany, but was not allowed to play his piano. However, upon visiting Richard Wagner’s (1813-1883) home in Lucerne, Switzerland, I was granted permission to play his 1855 Erard grand piano, on which Wagner completed “The Mastersingers of Nuremberg” and other works. Wagner lived in this house from 1866-1872. Although I understand that there are still concerts given featuring this piano, it was quite out of tune. I played Schumann’s “Arabesque.”
My second experience was in the summer of 2001.
We had met a couple from New York during a vacation in Jamaica the previous New Year’s Eve and decided to visit Italy together. We spent a few days in Rome and then rented a castle in Tuscany for a week. We spent the week driving around to many medieval villages in the region, one of which was Lucca. The great composer Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924) was born in Lucca. The house where he was born home to a museum where fans of “La Bohème” and “Madame Butterfly” can see letters, documents relating to his work. I was allowed to play for a few minutes on his Steinway grand piano. I played “Nessun Dorma”, the famous tenor aria from the opera “Turandot.”
Gloria and I spent the summer of 2003 in Spain, as we usually do.
When we are in Spain, we usually try to visit villages and cities where we have not previously been. One town on this trip was Camprodon, the birthplace of the Spanish composer, pianist and conductor Isaac Albéniz (1860-1909). His former home, now a museum in his honor, now displays a wide range of personal documents, such as his birth certificate, letters, manuscripts of original scores, books from his personal library and the first editions of his works, as well as a large number of paintings and photographs. I played for 20 minutes on his magnificent Beschstein grand piano that the wealthy Englishman Francis Money-Cutts, lyric-writer for his operas, gave to the composer’s daughter, Enriqueta, on her wedding day. I gave a mini-recital of many Spanish works, including “Malagueña.” The piano was in perfect tune, as many recitals are given there.
What a joy it was
to share a few moments with these fabulous composers playing the pianos on which they composed their wonderful music!