PIANO PIANO PIANO: Piano Possible!
(*This post is actually more or less by Cynthia Young. Edited by me, Bonnie but sometimes it’s hard to get the software to actually believe how much we all work together!)
Did you know the vast majority of “chamber” music includes the piano? Why is that? The piano is the only instrument that can effectively stand in for the orchestra, playing all the notes that might appear in an orchestral score. In the late 18th and 19th century, the piano became the household instrument of choice. Unlike an orchestra, it could fit in the living room of a comfortable middle class home, and it only required one musician to play it. The piano evolved not only as a solo instrument, but also as support for instrumentalists and singers in small ensembles of one, two or three other players.
The modern piano can range from the kind of upright instrument most of us have seen in private homes and sometimes public spaces to the modern concert grand. That’s the big long, usually black instrument you see in concert halls. In between there are smaller grands – same set up as the concert grand, but scaled down. These instruments are meant for smaller halls, studios, and living rooms. My piano is a “Boudoir Grand” – exactly the same as a parlour grand, but with a sexier name.
The piano is central to Chamber Music. However it is no longer easy to find venues, particularly in rural areas, where a professional quality concert instrument is available. An upright piano won’t do – the action nor the sound capability does not allow for the full expression of which a professional pianist is capable. Nor does an electronic instrument offer what is required to make the magic happen.
QSCM could fix this: We have been offered the donation of a high quality grand piano on more than one occasion, an instrument vetted and certified for quality by a registered piano technician, an instrument that any professional pianist would be delighted to perform on.
The instrument, donated, comes free! However, as we all know, nothing in life is free, except admission to our events! A piano is kind of a like a pet: getting it is only the beginning. Caring for a piano suitable for professional performances includes moving and set-up fees, climate controlled storage and ongoing maintenance (tuning, regulation, adjustments). The anticipated annual expense is estimated at anywhere between between $3000 and $5000.
QSCM can do this: we know where the right piano can be found; we know who would donate it. We know how it needs to be set up and we know how to manage it’s care. But we need people to undertake the tasks involved.
We are looking for people to help with
Researching and determining the most cost effective way to cover the associated expenses.
This includes connecting with those in charge of local community venues where the piano might be stored and used for events.
Exploring, initiating and facilitating ways of acquiring the funds to cover expenses
Supervising a professional standard of care in the servicing and maintenance of the instrument to ensure its quality as a performance instrument.
If you can see yourself helping with this work, contact us at info@qscmusic.com with “PIano Committee Volunteer” in the subject line. We welcome people of all sorts and abilities and interests, from all walks of life and experience. Whether you are skilled already in what you would like to do with us, or want to learn something new, we are delighted to have new people on board to help us learn, grow, and get things done.
On a classical music score you will sometimes see a marking of 3 p’s, as in this excerpt from Claude Debussy’s “Reflets dan l’eau” (Reflections on the Water)
I’d like to tell you Debussy is telling us “A Piano IS POSSIBLE!!! for QSCM because – well that’s what we’re talking about here: Making professional piano performances, solo and in chamber music ensembles, possible; making amazing piano events available to all in our rural community.
PPP actually stands for the Italian, “Piano Possible”, and tells the musician to play as quietly as possible. But hey – why take my word for it? Let’s get together, get organized and show everyone just what piano possible means both in the playing and in the possibility of beauty made accessible to all in our rural communities.
If you’d like to be part of the QSCM volunteer community in any capacity, contact us at info@qscmusic.com . Let’s talk!
