Saturday, February 15th, was a drab cold rainy day, but nothing could dampen the spirits of the six participants in this recital. They came prepared and excited to entertain the 16 residents of Grace House Assisted Living who attended. There were two pianists, a violinist, a trio of horn/violin/piano, and a singalong on the program. Regrettably, our faithful flutist Sharon Atteh-Chi, fell ill and was unable to attend. After a brief introduction about the AMSF, the recital began at 4:00 p.m. with the trio.
With Kit Chan on the French horn, Stephanie Dailey on the violin, and Lori Wagner on the piano, this trio played “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” often referred to as the “Black National Anthem.” The song was originally a poem written by James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938) that was set to music by his brother J. Rosamund Johnson in 1900. It was later adopted as the official song of the NAACP and became a symbol of the African American identity and struggle for civil rights throughout the 20th century. This uplifting piece in 6/8 time was an excellent choice to perform for the seniors who were familiar with both the melody and the words. Given the eclectic combination of instruments, the trio did a commendable job.
Pianist Jodi Lipson followed with a touching rendition of Chopin’s Andante Spianato. Composed between 1830–1836, the Spianato is a nocturne-like introduction to Chopin’s Grande Polonaise Brillante. It was originally written for piano and orchestra, but the piano part was often performed on its own. Jodi’s sensitive and accomplished playing provided just the right atmosphere, and the room was filled with a quiet serenity as her arpeggiated left-hand notes flowed freely under the gentle tuneful right-hand melody. The residents clapped appreciatively after her performance.
Violinist Stephanie Dailey changed the mood with a bossa nova medley of three songs including “Fly Me to the Moon” written by Bart Howard and made famous by Frank Sinatra, “What a Wonderful World” written by Bob Theile and George Weiss and made famous by Louis Armstrong, and “Wave” written by Brazilian composer Antonio Carlos Jobim (who also wrote “Girl from Ipanema”). She followed the medley with a special piece in honor of Valentine’s Day called “My Funny Valentine” written in 1937 by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart. Accompanied by her Bluetooth speaker, Stephanie had the residents dancing in their wheelchairs. As she finished playing, one smiling gentleman seated on her right loudly shouted, “That first song was beautiful!”
The next performer was pianist Gregory Riviello. He played “Sheep May Safely Graze” from the “Birthday Cantata” by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), Prelude in F# major Op. 28, No. 13 by Frederic Chopin (1810–1849), and “I Got Rhythm” by George Gershwin (1898–1937). The Bach piece was originally a soprano aria that was transcribed for piano, and Gregory carefully highlighted the lyrical right-hand melody. He played the Prelude next. Chopin wrote preludes in every major and minor key, and the F major is one of his most solemn. It is marked “Piu lento e molto espressivo” and that is exactly how Gregory played it — slow and with tremendous expression. In stark contrast, he ended with a delightful and energetic performance of the jazz classic “I Got Rhythm” that really woke up the audience as he nailed the challenging rhythms to the last note. When he ended, there were broad smiles on every face as the residents applauded enthusiastically.
Gregory remained at the piano to accompany the finale, which was a singalong of two songs led by Carol Henry. They were “Climb Every Mountain” from The Sound of Music written by Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), and “It is Well with My Soul” with words by Horatio Spafford (1828–1888) and music by Philip Bliss (1838–1876). Horatio wrote the words in 1873 while aboard a ship crossing the Atlantic Ocean. He was on his way to England to retrieve his wife who had been rescued from a tragic accident at sea and taken there. Days before, he had sent his family (wife and four daughters) ahead of him for a planned vacation in England. He himself was detained in Chicago on business and had intended to follow his family there at a later date. Unfortunately, tragedy struck when another ship collided with his wife’s vessel, and it sank killing his four young daughters and leaving his wife unconscious. After her rescue, she sent him a cryptic telegram with the words “Saved alone.” Grief-stricken, Horatio wrote “It is Well with My Soul” to reflect both his unfathomable grief over the tragedy and his unwavering hope in the Lord. As Carol conducted, the residents sang heartily from the printed words that had been previously distributed for each song.
After the recital, we gathered near the piano for a group photo holding red tinsel hearts to commemorate Valentine’s Day. In addition, we celebrated the oldest resident in the room who was a 99-year-old lady named Virginia. On December 24th she will be 100 years old! We gave her a gift of one of the tinsel hearts and she was thrilled. Earlier in the recital, another resident wanted to see and touch Kit’s French horn. Kit willingly handed over the horn and patiently explained its different parts to the lady as she held it and slowly ran her fingers along its coiled shiny brass tubing. She seemed fascinated with the instrument. It was a real joy to interact with the residents and to hear how much the music meant to them.