Congratulations to the PPNY performers!!

Last weekend, a handful of my piano students participated in the Performing Pianists of New York Youth Festival.  I was lucky enough to be on the judging panel (although I was NOT able to judge my own students), so I got to listen to my students as they played.  They all did a wonderful job, and I couldn't have been more proud of each one of them.  In the weeks before the audition, they practiced so well in preparation of the big day.

Although all of my students did an exceptional job, Sophie Ming, Kai Franks, and Lea Trauzzi were selected to play in the Honors Concert the next day.  A big congratulations to all!!

Recital pictures!

This year's winter recital was a blast!! I was extremely proud to be represented by such wonderful young pianists.  Even the Steinway reps had said that our group was one of the best they've seen in years!! (I'll bet they say that to all the piano teachers.)  For everyone's enjoyment, I've uploaded my set of recital pictures to my website, so go check 'em out.  There is at least one photo of each student performing, and a few others from before and after the performances.  And they are downloadable from the site.  Enjoy!  www.maryprescott.com/studio

Congratulations, Curtis!!

A giant congratulations to my piano student, Curtis Green, who was accepted into the prestigious LaGuardia High School instrumental program!!  Curtis was selected from a pool of over 15,000 applicants to become a student at their school.  Great job, Curtis!

Interesting upcoming concerts

Want to see a great concert at Carnegie Hall?  I've personally gone to see both of these artists in past years, and they are quite something.

Mariza, singer, Saturday, Nov. 21 at 8pm
http://www.carnegiehall.org/article/box_office/events/evt_14502.html?selecteddate=11212009
Mariza is the current Portuguese fado queen.  She has an unbelievable voice!  If you don't know what fado is (most of us in the states don't), check it out here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fado

Here is a clip of Mariza from youtube:


I fell in love with fado music about 5 years ago when I took a trip to Lisbon, and my host brought me to a fado house.  The music, melancholy and soulful, grabbed my heart immediately.  When I got back to the states, I saw that Mariza was singing at Carnegie Hall, and bought tickets right away, and was not disappointed.  What  a great performer!!!  She came back a couple of years ago, and I saw her that time, too.  This past summer, I revisited Lisbon, and the only request I had for my host was to bring me back to a fado house!  I will for sure try to make this concert, and hope some of you check it out, too.


The other concert is:
Vladimir Feltsman, pianist,  Friday, Dec. 4. at 8 pm.
http://www.carnegiehall.org/article/box_office/events/evt_12778.html?selecteddate=12042009

I had often heard his name, but didn't know much about his playing.  I stumbled across his concert when he subbed for the great Krystian Zimerman at Carnegie last season.  I was not too happy when I found out that Zimerman wasn't playing that night, but was pleasantly surprised (REALLY surprised, actually) by Feltsman.  He played the best Pictures at an Exhibition I've ever heard!  Quite a feat!

His program this season is a great one.  He's doing two of my favorite sonatas of all time:  Schubert B flat Major, and the Liszt in b minor.  Also a few Schubert/Liszt transcriptions.  Gotta love 'em!

Welcome!

After a tedious month of trying to move, and worrying about how to get my 7 foot grand piano in to my new apartment, I’ve finally managed to get the new website and blog up and running.  (The piano moving is another story!)

A few notes of what’s been going on:

Most of you know that I was in Switzerland over the summer, teaching at the Goppisberger Music Festival.  It was an intense three weeks, very challenging, but altogether very rewarding.  Aside from meeting and teaching many students from around the world, I worked with a couple of my native New Yorker students who came with their families as well.  I think we would all agree that our time in Switzerland opened their eyes to a whole new level of music-making!  We had a wonderful time, made many new friends, practiced and performed a lot, and got to stay in the glorious Alps!!  Above is a picture with an adult student from Switzerland, Verena, who was an absolutely lovely woman, and a delight to work with.  She was one who’s beauty sparkled in everything that she said and did.

After his first “professional” performance in Lenk, Switzerland, my student, Curtis Green, was mentioned in the city’s local newspaper.  You can read about it by clicking here... 

... that is, if you can understand Swiss German.  Below is a picture of Curtis at the performance.

After spending time at the music festival, I was inspired to offer more musical activities for my students in the city, so I have come up with chamber music classes, music listening classes, and practice coachings.  You can read about any of those in the main part of my teaching website by clicking on their headings at www.MaryPrescott.com/studio .  

I also thought it would be great for the students to see how pianos are built.  So, on a beautiful fall morning, a few of my students and their families joined me at the Faust/Harrison piano factory in Dobbs Ferry.  Sara Faust did a wonderful job explaining the painstaking process of rebuilding a grand piano, so that no shortcuts are made.  7 months and thousands of dollars later, the final result is one pristine instrument that sounds and feels like butter!  After the tour and playing some of the pianos in her showroom, I was convinced.  She’s got the right people for the job! 

Signing out for now, I wish you all the best, and extend a very warm welcome to the new site!

~Mary