Without fail, something unique happens at every Community Outreach recital. This time we had an impromptu performer! Young Daniel Jeon and his father were visiting a relative at Sunrise Senior Living in Virginia on the afternoon of April 12th. Daniel stopped by to listen to our recital which started at 3:30 p.m. Near the end, he came and asked if he could play a piano solo. We readily agreed and included him in the program just before the final singalong. To the delight of the 12 residents in the audience, Daniel sat at the piano and played a fast and fiery rendition of Scott Joplin’s “Maple Leaf Rag” — from memory. In three years, Daniel will be eligible to join the AMSF!
Pianist Alberto Gamez opened the program with three short pieces. They were Minuet in G BWV Anh 114 by J.S. Bach (1685–1750) followed by two Preludes in E minor and A major by Frederic Chopin (1810–1849). Alberto displayed his versatility by adding the Minuet at the last minute and performing it from memory. As always, his performance was very musical.
Instrumentalists Kit Chan and Mary Lewers added variety with a French horn/flute duet. They played Bach’s “Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring” which is the English name of the last movement of his German Cantata No. 147 titled “Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben” (Heart and Mouth and Deed and Life). Kit and Mary were well rehearsed, and they seemed to enjoy playing this familiar music that is often used at weddings.
Returning to the piano, DuEwa Kamara played Beethoven’s well-known “Fur Elise” and Chopin’s Nocturne in Eb major Op. 9, No. 2. Her playing was controlled and sensitive and, as Chopin intended, she was able to make the melody truly sing in the nostalgic Nocturne.
Mary Lewers then played a flute solo named Capriccio in D by Danish composer Friedrich Kuhlau (1786–1832) who was a contemporary of Beethoven. The melody was dance-like and sprightly with several ascending scale passages which Mary mastered with ease. The piece is written in a light-hearted unstructured form and is well suited to the flute although Kuhlau himself never played the flute.
Russell Munk followed with two highly contrasting pieces. He first played “Elegy for the Victims of the Tsunami” by blind Japanese pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii (b. 1988). This was a soft and tranquil piece that required a tender touch which Russell delivered perfectly to capture the sadness and grief it conveyed. His second piece was “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” by English-American songwriter Jule Styne (1905–1994). The song was written in 1959 for the Broadway musical Gypsy. It is performed at the end of the first act by stage mother Rose upon learning her daughter June has eloped and abandoned the vaudeville act. Russell adeptly transformed his touch from serene to spirited and energized the audience with the lively music.
After Daniel, our guest performer, played his Rag, we ended the recital with a lively singalong led by Carol Henry accompanied by Russell Munk on the piano. Words were distributed for the American folk ballad “Oh My Darling Clementine” written by Percy Montrose in 1884, and the 20th century American standard “Irene Goodnight” written by Huddie ‘Lead Belly’ Ledbetter in 1933. It was very encouraging to see that everyone participated in singing the catchy tunes including the residents, the performers, the visitors, and even some of the Sunrise staff! It was a fun-filled atmosphere for the residents as we took our group photo and packed up to leave because there was another group of local school children waiting to perform for them in the next hour.