Inspired simultaneously and erratically by the blog thoughts of both Stanley Lee and Ned Rorem.
Nov 4, 2005
Manhattan and classical music: Like the histrionic dwelling of an intangibly emotion-saturated sport; where the overwrought performers of the insane former fit into the latter, tighter than a crab to a shell.
Juilliard: an eerily sanitary-looking madhouse where reputation unabashedly contorts reality like an adulterated media story.
Schubert B-flat: a halo in the midst of hellish insanity - like a hidden trap door to daylight in the middle of a dark serpent-reptile-animal chase from a good Indiana Jones movie.
New Haven: see above.
Juilliard: an eerily sanitary-looking madhouse where reputation unabashedly contorts reality like an adulterated media story.
Schubert B-flat: a halo in the midst of hellish insanity - like a hidden trap door to daylight in the middle of a dark serpent-reptile-animal chase from a good Indiana Jones movie.
New Haven: see above.
Nov 3, 2005
David Dubal.
So much hype surrounding this colossal giant; the legendary foremost scholar of piano history - having now spent a considerable time with him, the figure is larger than life. Cynical, arrogant, haughty, cocky, pessimistic, insulting, racist, offensive, and otherwise rude - and without a doubt, next to Lowenthal, the single most brilliant intellectual I've met at Juilliard.
A lot of people are put off by Dubal - understandably; aside from being prone to making gigantic generalizations and insulting statements ("Schubert had no idea what he was doing" "All old men over the age of 70 should be required to get botox"), Dubal is downright rude. A lot of people are automatically put off by a cocky know-it-all; without ever really getting know if he actually knows it all or not. Most assume that he doesn't. Well....Dubal knows it all.
Today was the fourth time I played for his evening division audience of rich, octogenerian socialites - the most supportive audience I've ever played for. Next to me, an 80-year old woman whispers "I hate this guy! He's such a dumb asshole! I only come for the piano playing!".
Heh. Woman; you're in the presence of genius and you don't even know it.
So much hype surrounding this colossal giant; the legendary foremost scholar of piano history - having now spent a considerable time with him, the figure is larger than life. Cynical, arrogant, haughty, cocky, pessimistic, insulting, racist, offensive, and otherwise rude - and without a doubt, next to Lowenthal, the single most brilliant intellectual I've met at Juilliard.
A lot of people are put off by Dubal - understandably; aside from being prone to making gigantic generalizations and insulting statements ("Schubert had no idea what he was doing" "All old men over the age of 70 should be required to get botox"), Dubal is downright rude. A lot of people are automatically put off by a cocky know-it-all; without ever really getting know if he actually knows it all or not. Most assume that he doesn't. Well....Dubal knows it all.
Today was the fourth time I played for his evening division audience of rich, octogenerian socialites - the most supportive audience I've ever played for. Next to me, an 80-year old woman whispers "I hate this guy! He's such a dumb asshole! I only come for the piano playing!".
Heh. Woman; you're in the presence of genius and you don't even know it.
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