Wednesday, December 25, 2019
Merry Christmas!
Woke up at 7 and went to Diamond Heights for a Christmas hot tub soak. Back at 9:30 and prepared a crustless quiche for lunch with Austin, Sharon and Alice's father Charles.
The rest of the day we hung out, relaxing by the fire listening to Christmas tunes. I caught up on the journal, read a little, and took a nice long nap. What a wonderful, quiet Christmas. Not my usual thing, but very enjoyable and relaxing.
Had this pic sent to me later in the afternoon. Wow, what a great family pic:
For dinner we were invited to James and Gary's house. James's mother was there as well. We had a wonderful crab dinner with baked ham, corn bread, vegetable, steamed chicken, and pecan pie for dessert. She good! The real treat of the evening, however, was hearing all about Gary's new purchase of the Bosendorfer piano his former teacher, Adolf Baller, once owned.
Gary studied piano with Adolf Baller in the 70's at Stanford. Born in 1909, Adolph Baller was a virtuoso child prodigy from Vienna. When the Nazis occupied Vienna, soldiers arrested him and crushed his hands because he was Jewish. After many years of rehabilitation, he resumed his playing career in England and then America where he met Yehudi Menuhin and became his accompanist for many years. He has recordings with Menuhin and the Alma Trio, along with cellist Gabor Rejto.
Adolph Baller died in 1994, and for the next 25 years his daughter Nina kept his Bosendorfer grand. Constructed in the 1950s, Baller's Bosendorfer was known throughout the piano world as being one of the grandest instruments around, and Adolph Baller was considered something of a gold standard for loose, authentic, fully musical play. Gary said watching him play was like watching the most relaxed fingers in the world perform wonders only imagined in dreams. The piano went up for sale this past fall. Nina, 75, was downsizing and wanted only a suitable buyer for her father's beloved Bosendorfer. So Gary made an appointment and took along a virtuoso friend of his from the San Francisco Conservatory. Gary's friend played Schubert on the piano and Gary said Nina broke down in tears. Afterward on the way home, Gary asked his friend what he thought of the piano. "It's heaven," his friend said. "The piano has a soul. You must buy this piano." So Gary did. He now owns two grand pianos, his Steinway in the living room and the Baller Bosendorfer downstairs. Gary played some Debussy for me on both his Steinway and new Baller Bos. Not only does the Baller piano have a soul, it also has the most brilliant and distinguished sound, the same sound heard on Baller recordings (he played his Bosendorfer in recordings). Aside from needing replacement bushings, the piano is in impeccable condition. It's such a treasure to own. I'm so happy for Gary and delighted to hear him play. I can't wait to hear stories of today's greatest pianists coming over to Gary and James's house to have a go at the Baller Bosendorfer. Their minds will be blown away!
Merry Christmas!
Woke up at 7 and went to Diamond Heights for a Christmas hot tub soak. Back at 9:30 and prepared a crustless quiche for lunch with Austin, Sharon and Alice's father Charles.
The rest of the day we hung out, relaxing by the fire listening to Christmas tunes. I caught up on the journal, read a little, and took a nice long nap. What a wonderful, quiet Christmas. Not my usual thing, but very enjoyable and relaxing.
Had this pic sent to me later in the afternoon. Wow, what a great family pic:
For dinner we were invited to James and Gary's house. James's mother was there as well. We had a wonderful crab dinner with baked ham, corn bread, vegetable, steamed chicken, and pecan pie for dessert. She good! The real treat of the evening, however, was hearing all about Gary's new purchase of the Bosendorfer piano his former teacher, Adolf Baller, once owned.
Gary studied piano with Adolf Baller in the 70's at Stanford. Born in 1909, Adolph Baller was a virtuoso child prodigy from Vienna. When the Nazis occupied Vienna, soldiers arrested him and crushed his hands because he was Jewish. After many years of rehabilitation, he resumed his playing career in England and then America where he met Yehudi Menuhin and became his accompanist for many years. He has recordings with Menuhin and the Alma Trio, along with cellist Gabor Rejto.
Adolph Baller died in 1994, and for the next 25 years his daughter Nina kept his Bosendorfer grand. Constructed in the 1950s, Baller's Bosendorfer was known throughout the piano world as being one of the grandest instruments around, and Adolph Baller was considered something of a gold standard for loose, authentic, fully musical play. Gary said watching him play was like watching the most relaxed fingers in the world perform wonders only imagined in dreams. The piano went up for sale this past fall. Nina, 75, was downsizing and wanted only a suitable buyer for her father's beloved Bosendorfer. So Gary made an appointment and took along a virtuoso friend of his from the San Francisco Conservatory. Gary's friend played Schubert on the piano and Gary said Nina broke down in tears. Afterward on the way home, Gary asked his friend what he thought of the piano. "It's heaven," his friend said. "The piano has a soul. You must buy this piano." So Gary did. He now owns two grand pianos, his Steinway in the living room and the Baller Bosendorfer downstairs. Gary played some Debussy for me on both his Steinway and new Baller Bos. Not only does the Baller piano have a soul, it also has the most brilliant and distinguished sound, the same sound heard on Baller recordings (he played his Bosendorfer in recordings). Aside from needing replacement bushings, the piano is in impeccable condition. It's such a treasure to own. I'm so happy for Gary and delighted to hear him play. I can't wait to hear stories of today's greatest pianists coming over to Gary and James's house to have a go at the Baller Bosendorfer. Their minds will be blown away!
No comments:
Post a Comment