by Kenneth Woods | Feb 16, 2021 | A view from the podium, Piano, pianists and pianism
Gunnar Johansen was a legendary figure in my home town of Madison, Wisconsin. He retired from the University of Wisconsin in 1976, when I would have been seven, so he was practically the stuff of legend throughout most of my youth (we never met). He died in...
by Kenneth Woods | Dec 16, 2019 | A view from the podium, Piano, pianists and pianism
Notes I wrote for the 6 CD Albany Records collection of live performances by the great American pianist, Howard Karp. These are proper live recordings – taken mostly from archival reel-to-reel 2 track tapes of Howard’s concerts in Madison and Urbana. Give...
by Kenneth Woods | Nov 14, 2019 | A view from the podium, Piano, pianists and pianism
Leonard Bernstein was fond of saying of his friend and mentor that Aaron Copland was almost two composers, almost two men: one the smiling, genial, public composer of Appalachian Spring and Billy the Kid, and the other, more severe figure, “a cross between Walt...
by Kenneth Woods | Aug 2, 2015 | A view from the podium, Piano, pianists and pianism
It was with real sadness that I learned today of the passing of this pianist Ivan Moravec, a man who was widely recognised as one of the greatest pianists of his generation, but who never quite earned the fame or fortune his artistry merited. The many recordings he...
by Kenneth Woods | Jul 7, 2014 | A view from the podium, Piano, pianists and pianism
For the last few weeks, I’ve been meaning to write a blog post titled “If you buy only one recording this year, make it this one.” The recording in question is a new six-disc collection of live performances by the American pianist Howard Karp, released...
by Kenneth Woods | Mar 19, 2014 | A view from the podium, Piano, pianists and pianism
This weekend, I’ll be playing the marvelous transcription of the Goldberg Variations made for string trio by Dmitri Sitkovetsky at the Harborough Music Collective with violinist David Le Page and violist Carmen Flores. Coffee Concerts take place...
Recent Comments