SUMMER 2008

I will direct The Balanced Pianist Wisconsin 2008, hosted by Viterbo University. This will be a 6-day program of intensive and interactive work with piano instructors Susan Nowicki and myself, Alexander Instructor Diane Foust, and a special evening workshop by Gulchin Tarabus. The program will run from July 25 through 30 at Viterbo University in La Crosse, Wisonsin. For program information and registration, click here.

In Cooperation with Colorado Christian University, I will direct The Balanced Pianist Colorado 2008. This will be a 6-day program of intensive and interactive work with piano instructors Susan Nowicki and myself, and Aston-Patterning specialist Judy Huston. The program will run from July 10 through 15 in Lakewood, Colorado, near Denver. For program information and registration, click here.

SPRING 2008

I will present Assessment of a retraining program in improving pianists' involuntary movements, a retrospective study I did with Nina Scolnik of our students with dystonia, tremors, and other involuntary movements, on May 9 at the 12th European Congress on Musician's Medicine/3rd International Congress on Musician's Medicine at the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatory of Music in Milan, Italy.

Jamie K., Sarah G., Sarah H., Rachel G., and Catherine H. will perform at the Suffolk Piano Teachers Foundation Festival Recital at 1:00 pm on Sunday, April 13 at the Sachem Library. As Catherine says, they will "rock it!"

WINTER 2008

Mary Ellen Haupert performed the Shostakovich Quintet for Piano and Strings with the Artaria Quartet on a concert beginning at 7:30 p.m. on Friday February 29 in the Fine Arts Center at Viterbo University in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. There was not only fine playing, but also an a la mode dessert at intermission! Seriously, it was worth going for the music alone.

Paul Baumgartner and his wife Helen performed a duet recital in St. Peter MN at Gustavus Adolphus College, Bjorling Recital Hall, on Friday February 29 at 7:30 p.m. These two have the kind of ensemble and unity of interpretation only available to the married, always worth hearing.

Paul Baumgartner and his wife Helen performed a duet recital in Minneapolis at at Our Saviour's Lutheran Church, 2315 Chicago Avenue, Sunday February 24 at 3 p.m.

Paul Baumgartner and his wife Helen performed a duet recital, in Mankato, MN on Saturday, February 16 at 10 a. m. at Pathstone Living.

Sarah H. and Catherine H. performed at the Suffolk Piano Teachers Foundation Formal Recital at 3:00 pm on Sunday, January 27 at the Sachem Library. Fantastic!

Paul Baumgartner and his wife Helen appeared on January 17 at noon on a Thursday Musical program at Landmark Center, St. Paul, playing Mozart's Sonata in F, K. 397.

AUTUMN 2007

Tom Stuart, with baritone Brian Weber presented a recital, “The Popular Rage: Music from the Turn of the Century" at the Montauk Library in Montauk, NY, on September 9 at 3:30 pm. Tom played a Joplin rag and "The Alcotts" from Charles Ives' Concord Sonata, and the rest of the recital was devoted to songs like "Harvest Moon" and "Meet me in St. Louis, Louis." There was audible sniffling from the audience during "On the Banks of the Wabash, Far Away," and we even got a chance to sing along at the end. Thank you!

SUMMER 2007

I presented a poster on Habits Common to Pianists with Dystonia and other Involuntary Movements at the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy in Oakbrook, IL (just outside Chicago), on August 2-4, 2007.

The Balanced Pianist Wisconsin 2007 was a 6-day program, July 23 through July 28, hosted by Viterbo University in LaCrosse, Wisconsin, of intensive and interactive work with pianists Teresa Dybvig and Susan Nowicki, Alexander Technique teacher Diane Foust, and Yoga instructor Chris Saudek.

The Balanced Pianist Colorado 2007 was a 6-day program, July 12 through July 17 in cooperation with Colorado Christian University in Lakewood, Colorado, of intensive and interactive work with pianists Teresa Dybvig and Susan Nowicki, and Aston-Patterning specialist Judy Huston.

SPRING 2007

Hanna B., Sarah G., Rachel G., Sarah H., and Catherine H. performed at the Suffolk Piano Teachers Foundation Festival at 1:00 pm on Sunday, April 15 at the Sachem Library. Lovely!

It was my good fortune to play Beethoven's Spring and Kreutzer Sonatas and other works for violin and piano with the fantastic violinist Linda Sinanian on Friday, March 30, 2007 at 7 pm at the North Shore Public Library.

WINTER 2007

My article on similarities in habits among pianists with dystonia, essential tremor, and other involuntary movements appeared in the February issue of Clavier magazine. You can find it under the vague title, "Moving Naturally." The article contains some photos of coordinate and incoordinate alignment, and descriptions of habits among these pianists of alignment and movement in the shoulders, wrist, knuckles, and fingers, and some suggestions for correcting them. I hope you will let me know if the information is useful or interesting to you. You can read some questions and answers generated from the article by clicking here.

I played solo piano music by Messiaen and Janacek, and music by Beethoven and Vaughn Williams with fantastic violinist Linda Sinanian on Margarethe Maimone's creative concert series,Ridotto, on Sunday January 7, at 4 pm.

AUTUMN 2006

Paul Baumgartner and his wife Helen performed a duet recital, at the University of Nebraska in Omaha on Sunday, November 12 at 7:30 p. m. This will be a big program, of all four Mozart 4-hand sonatas! These two have the kind of ensemble and unity of interpretation only available to the married. They also performed this recital at the following locations and dates: Saturday, October 7, at 7:00 p.m. in Winona MN at Central Lutheran Church; Sunday, October 15 at 4:00 p.m. in St. Louis Park MN at Westwood Lutheran Church; Thursday, October 19 at 10:30 a.m. in Bloomington, MN for Thursday Musical, at Bloomington Center for the Arts; Saturday, October 21 at 4 p.m. at St. Petri Lutheran Church in Toledo, OH; and Sunday, November 5 at 2:00 p.m. in Mankato, MN, at Bethany Lutheran College. Whew!

Mary Ellen Haupert and her colleague Timothy Schorr performed a piano duet recital featuring music for four hands and one piano by Mozart, Schubert and Ravel. The concert is at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 29 at the University of St. Francis in Joliet, Illinois. The concert, part of the university’s Homecoming/Reunion and Parents and Family Weekend celebration, will be in the Moser Performing Arts Center Auditorium.

Tom Stuart, with baritone Brian Weber presented a recital, “Simple Gifts: British and American Folksongs.” at the Montauk Library in Montauk, NY, on September 10 at 3:30 pm. Tom played a Joplin rag to get everyone in the mood and then Brian joined him for more than an hour of songs. It was a great success -- they even got a rave review! Congratulations!

SUMMER 2006

The Balanced Pianist Colorado 2006 was a 6-day program, July 6 through July 11 in cooperation with Colorado Christian University in Lakewood, Colorado, of intensive and interactive work with pianists Teresa Dybvig and Susan Nowicki, and Aston-Patterning specialist Judy Huston. 3-day and 4-day program options were also available on a limited basis. Judging from the growth of the participants in pianistic (and all sorts of other) ways, this was a great success. Thank you to all who attended! See our scrapbook. (opens in a new window).

SPRING 2006

Paul Baumgartner and his wife Helen performed a short duet recital, as a benefit for Global Missions (a program of Luther Seminary in St. Paul) at Advent Lutheran Church in Anoka, on Sunday April 30 between services, starting at about 9:50 a.m. They played music by Mozart and Faure.

Sarah G., Rachel G., Sarah H., and Catherine H. performed at the Suffolk Piano Teachers Foundation Festival at 2:30 pm on Sunday, April 23 at the Sachem Library. Their playing was enthusiastic and inspired!

Yung-Eun Choe performed a faculty recital at 7:30 pm. on April 20th at the Sam Houston State University Music Hall. The program included works by Beethoven, Schumann, Rachmaninoff, and Brian Herrington. Yung-Eun is a wonderful artist. I hope you got to hear this recital.

Congratulations to Celeste Johnson, who received First Place in the Piano Division of the Rochester Music Guild Scholarship Competition in early February!

SUMMER 2005

I presented a poster on Strengthening Musical Memory Using the Dunn & Dunn Learning Styles Perceptual Modalities at the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy in Oakbrook, IL (just outside Chicago), on August 3-6, 2005.

SPRING 2005

I performed a recital of works by Bach, Messiaen, Haydn, and Schumann on Sunday, April 10th, 2005 at 2:30 pm at the South Huntington Public Library on Pigeon Hill Rd. in South Huntington, NY.

Students of Elmhust College (Elmhurst, IL) performed for me in a master class on Saturday, April 2nd, 2005, 10 am to 12 noon.

I performed a recital of works by Bach, Messiaen, Haydn, and Schumann on Friday, April 1st, 2005 at 7:30 pm at the Buik Recital Hall in Elmhurst College, in Elmhurst, IL, north of Chicago.

I presented a program on Avoiding Performance Anxiety at the March meeting of the Suffolk Piano Teachers Foundation, March 2, 2005, from 10 am - noon at the Middle Country Library Cultural Center on Rte. 25 in Selden, NY.

Suffolk Piano Teachers Foundation President Frances Hanlon and I presented a program on Rhythm and Pulse at the February SPTF meeting, exploring the use of Dalcroze and other tools to help bring our students' playing to life, February 2, 2005, from 10 am - noon at the Middle Country Library Cultural Center on Rte. 25 in Selden, NY.

I performed a recital of works by Bach, Messiaen, Haydn, and Schumann on Sunday, January 30, 2005 at 2 pm at the North Shore Public Library on Rte. 25A in Shoreham, NY.

Elmhurst College (near Chicago) presented The Balanced Pianist, a three-day workshop in Elmhurst, IL from January 7 through 9, 2005. For program information, please visit BalancedPianist.com (opens in a new window).

AUTUMN 2004

Richard Lange, head of the Piano Department at Northwestern College, will performed Rhapsody in Blue with the Northwestern College Orchestera at 7:30 p.m. on November 19 in Maranatha Auditorium on the Northwestern College campus. Please attend and enjoy the performance!

I directed The Balanced Pianist, a weekend seminar on Long Island on November 20 and 21. For program information, please visit BalancedPianist.com (opens in a new window).

Recitals in Japan by my student Paul Baumgartner and his wife Helen Baumgartner, duet pianists: Saturday, October 23, at the Kamiuma Harmony Choral Concert, playing Brahms Waltzes Op. 39. at 14:00 at the Komazawa Church in Kamiuma Setagaya-ku, Tokyo. On Sunday, October 24, a recital for children at 14:00 in the Tokyo Children’s Library. On Monday, October 25, a Piano Duet Recital, at 14:00 in Kanagawa Kenmin Hall in Yokohama. On Thursday, October 28, they presented a Piano Duet Recital at 19:00 at Musashino Lutheran Church in Tokyo. They finished their exhausting tour with a private home recital for Miyagi College alumnae on Friday, October 29.

SUMMER 2004

Paul Baumgartner and his wife Helen performed a duet recital at 4:30 p.m. on August 1 at Cross United Church of Christ in Berne, Indiana. These two have the kind of ensemble and unity of interpretation only available to the married. Please attend and enjoy their playing!

SPRING 2004

My students Megan H., Rachel G., Cole C., Catherine H., Kristen R., and Kristen D. performed in a Festival sponsored by the Suffolk Piano Teachers Foundation, at 12:15 pm on Sunday March 28, at Sachem Library in Holbrook, New York. They were knockouts!!!

I presented a weekend seminar, The Search for Balance, using tools from Dorothy Taubman's approach to Piano Technique on balanced movement at the piano in a balanced state of mind, on February 28 and 29, at Frank and Camille's Keyboard Center of Huntington on Route 110 in Melville, New York.

I performed a recital of works by Bach, Messiaen, Haydn, and Schumann on Thursday, February 12 at 7:30 pm, in the Fine Arts Center Recital Hall at Viterbo University, 900 College Dr., La Crosse, Wisconsin.

I taught in a Master Class on Upper Level NYSSMA material at the January meeting of the , January 7 at Frank and Camille's music store in Melville, NY.

AUTUMN 2003

I was on a panel exploring issues of teaching Mastery at the December meeting of the Suffolk Piano Teachers Foundation, December 3 at Family Melody music store in Patchogue, NY.

I was the Guest Artist/Clinician at the North Dakota MTA Convention, October 31 through November 2, giving a recital of works by Bach, Schumann, Messiaen, and Haydn at the Belle Mehus Auditorium on October 31, at 4:00 pm, and speaking about, and giving clinics and master classes on, Dorothy Taubman's approach to Piano Technique, on November 1 and 2.