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Donald Isler

Have a good time. Lance!

Donald Isler

Lots of luck, and a quick recovery, Ralph!

Donald Isler

Editorial The New York Times December 5th, 2005 The rules of American democracy say every president may install his own team of like-minded people in the government - even at a place like the Justice Department, which is at its root a law-enforcement agency and not a campaign branch office. But the ...

Donald Isler

The claim that hiring Iraqi "correspondents" to produce articles favorable to the Bush administration's policies is just like the New York Times producing articles to the opposite effect is absurd. The latter is a company which can hold any political position its owners choose. The former is our gov...

Donald Isler

Happy Birthday, Daniel!

Donald Isler

I'd rather have him in Syria, where he can do little harm, than here. That his electoral bids after running for the Louisiana legislature were unsuccessful is true but it should not be forgotten that he was ALMOST elected governor of that state. In fact, the majority of whites voted for him. He lost...

Donald Isler

G.B. Shaw said he could prove that GHOTI spelled FISH. I think he said the GH should be pronounced the same as in TROUGH, the O as in women, and the TI as in transportation.

Donald Isler

A friend who now lives in Texas and is a very fine pianist said Earl Wild was also an excellent teacher. More than 30 years after studying with him rarely does a day go by when she doesn't think of something he taught her. Sometimes he would miss lessons while on tour, but when he returned he would ...

Donald Isler

THE NEW YORK TIMES 90? Who's 90? Just Give Him a Piano By ANTHONY TOMMASINI Published: November 27, 2005 IN 1986, the American virtuoso pianist Earl Wild - a former staff pianist for NBC television, who composed, arranged and played music for Sid Caesar's "Caesar's Hour" in the mid-1950's and wrote ...

Donald Isler

I've had the pleasure of meeting his grandson, Leopold Godowsky III, a few times. Very nice man, and a pianist and composer. But he physically resembles not his grandfather but the other famous musician to whom he was related, his uncle, George Gershwin.

Donald Isler

Wallingford wrote:

"or, rather, Down With PIANISTS."

WHAT???????????????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Donald Isler

Joel Rosen, pianist and teacher. Died November 17th, 1998. Born February 15th, 1928

Donald Isler

I agree with Lance and Teresa. Any mode of producing music, whether the human voice, or drumming, or any other instrument has limitations in range, pitch and timbre. These limitations are also challenges. For example, the piano is officially (though I hate to admit it!) an instrument where the sound...

Donald Isler

Funny that I remembered being there in '74 for the Rubinstein masterclass and forgot that there also was a Hungerford all-Beethoven recital there that year. Saw Brendel in the audience. (Although he became much better known, I always felt that Alfred could learn a few things from Bruce!)

Donald Isler

Terrific! Congratulations, Karl!

Donald Isler

I hope any changes are for the better, as I rather like the hall. In 1969, when I was in high school, I was with a large group of people invited to spend the evening listening to many groups of different sizes try out the acoustics of the soon-to-be inaugurated hall. It wasn't very satisfying musica...

Donald Isler

Well I like them!

Donald Isler

Yes, Ralph. I'm sure she will learn about them. I'm just happy for her that war has not been something she had to worry about thus far.

And Happy Birthday, Johnny!

Donald Isler

The other day I was speaking with a very bright and musical 10 year old student who, thus far at least, is not a great historian. "Do you know which war Veteran's Day comes from?" I asked. "The Vietnam War?" she tried. "No" I answered. "World War I." "Is that when Pearl Harbor happened?" she asked. ...

Donald Isler

I've heard a Fazioli piano on at least one occasion, and liked it. I wonder what the Steingraeber, and Stuart pianos sound like? Has anyone heard either of them? And I wonder what my Australian teacher, Bruce Hungerford, would have thought about an Australian piano? I'm sure he would have liked it i...

Donald Isler

Teresa,

Have you ever played that instrument, or heard it played? How did you think it sounded?

Don

Donald Isler

No.

Sanity is returning to the GOP. They know that they're in trouble, that W's time (even with three more years) is limited, and that the American people as a whole don't want the far-right policies that this administration has pushed.

Donald Isler

Corlyss wrote:

"Composers tend not to be the best interpreters of their own music."

Except that Rachmaninoff was one of the greatest pianists who ever lived, so I think he's an exception!

Donald Isler

I don't see Robertson as having much relevance to this whole matter. because in him I see no evidence of either evolution OR intelligent design.

Donald Isler

I wish he had too, Gregg, but it would have been quite out of character for him. He wasn't one to "stir things up" except musically!

Donald Isler

I agree with Lance that Saint-Saens is a wonderful and underrated composer. Recently heard a clarinet sonata and a cello sonata by him. All beautiful, virtuosic works in a romantic idiom. Wouldn't want to do without them!

Donald Isler

I wish her good luck. Vienna can be a tough and nasty town. One of my teachers, a wonderful pianist, played his debut there at age 50. The review of the concert, on which he played the Beethoven Fourth Concerto, said "The old gentlemen has now hopefully played twice in Vienna; that means for the fir...

Donald Isler

I've heard some of the ads for the show, but to me the actress doesn't sound like her. Because she's trying to sound bad. Florence, on her recordings, was trying to sound good; it just didn't come out that way!

Donald Isler

That's terrific, Ralph! I'll be out at that time but will see if I can catch some of it in the car. Hope it goes wonderfully!

Donald Isler

(Over 400 of these have been built, and many of them were purchased by well-known professionals. Sorry the site does not look as impressive here as it really is because the photos could not be reproduced here.) PRACTICE / TRAVEL CELLO PRACTICE / TRAVEL VIOLIN & VIOLA The most compact practice/travel...

Donald Isler

The New York Times November 8, 2005 After President Bush's disastrous visit to Latin America, it's unnerving to realize that his presidency still has more than three years to run. An administration with no agenda and no competence would be hard enough to live with on the domestic front. But the rest...

Donald Isler

Thanks for the explanation, Ralph!

Donald Isler

Actually, the NY NPR station, WNYC, does have classical music at night, but not also during the daytime, as it used to. That, and WQXR are all we've got here, surely a sad state of affairs for a city of 8 million people, and a metropolitan area almost half again as large. Gone are the happy days whe...

Donald Isler

Glad the Democrats did this. You can bet that no Republican followers of this administration want that report to come out anytime soon. But Ralph, what are the rules under which the Democrats were able to get this closed-door session to take place? Can such a session by reqested by either side at an...

Donald Isler

Well then, I heard Vladimir Horowitz "sing" at the Met (in a manner of speaking).

Donald Isler

Congrats, Lance (whatever the real number is!)!

Donald Isler

HAARETZ Tue., November 01, 2005 Tishrei 29, 5766 Israel Time: 18:17 (EST+7) UN unanimously declares Jan. 27 int'l Holocaust Day By Shlomo Shamir, Haaretz Correspondent, Haaretz Service and Reuters NEW YORK - The United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday unanimously approved a proposal to set Januar...

Donald Isler

I have his recording of the Dvorak Slavonic Rhapsodies, etc. from the 30's. The sound isn't great but the playing is terrific!

Donald Isler

I have been very impressed by the virtuosity of Arrau on recordings he made as a young man, but it seems to me that when he was older he felt slowness equalled profundity. I never heard him live (had tickets once to a concert he cancelled) so the closest I came to hearing a live performance was seei...

Donald Isler

Don't think I'll be able to be there myself, but if anyone is in New York this evening Marc-Andre Hamelin is playing a recital of Haydn, Schumann and Liszt on the People's Symphony Concert series downtown at Washington Irving High School. It's a very unglamorous hall, but very large, and the tickets...

Donald Isler

Caught the end of it (encores) in the car, and thought I must be delusional as I was switching back and forth on the radio between WQXR and WNYC and kept hearing the SAME THING!

Donald Isler

Gracious me! The nomination is "damaging the White House and its prospects for a successful second term."??!! And just when everything was going so well!

Donald Isler

Sadly, he's not here anymore. So we can only speculate on what he would think if he were still alive, and if he knew what had happened since his death, and what is going on now.

Donald Isler

Hi Gary,

No, I'm not angry at all. I was just commenting that we all react differently. Actually it was an interesting idea you expressed.

Donald Isler

Gary,

If that's your reaction I can't argue with it. We all have our own taste!

Donald Isler

Hi Gregg, Thanks for your interesting response. Most of the Hungerford recordings have been recently re-released by Artemis on the Vanguard Classics label, so they are once again available. I would not say that Hungerford was "in vogue" here in the 60's and 70's (would that he had been so lucky!) bu...

Donald Isler

Not among any of those pieces, except the slow movements!

Donald Isler

Sorry! I accidentally posted just now under my father's name (Werner). But those are MY favorite Beethoven pianists (and his too, I think!)

Don

Donald Isler

I have never found Backhaus to be terribly deep, but his technical brilliance can be quite thrilling sometimes.

Donald Isler

Teresa,

Do you specialize in the key of E-Flat??!!

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FIXING THE GAME

Re: First Pick: Rachmaninoff Piano Concertos

Saint-Saens

Interesting Practice String Instruments Created By My Uncle

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Occasionally The U.N. Does the Right Thing!

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