For the past twelve summers, I've had BPI, that wonderful fortnight where dreams are made and musicians find rebirth in a new—or rather old—way of doing things. For me, the magic was in finding the fortepiano after years of frustration as a pianist; then, in subsequent summers, finding myself as a full-fledged harpsichordist and organist. In other words, I have BPI, along with its brilliant and encouraging faculty, to thank for my renaissance as a musician.
While every summer in Oberlin has its own special magic, there are isolated moments for all of us individually that are exceptionally memorable. Some of those moments for me, of course, have been my own personal successes in performing; but today I'm interested only in a handful of magical moments of which I was only an observer. These four experiences I will carry with me forever:
- Die schöne Mullerin. A few years ago, my dear friends and colleagues, Max van Egmond, baritone, and Penelope Crawford, fortepianist, collaborated on performances and a recording of Franz Schubert's song cycle Die schöne Mullerin. The BPI community that summer had the once-in-a-lifetime experience of hearing these two amazing musicians perform the cycle in an early afternoon recital. Making the experience even more memorable was Penny's Conrad Graf fortepiano (c. 1835), which she had brought with her that summer for the sole purpose of playing this recital with Max.
- Weinachts Oratorio. During another summer, one of BPI's Bach years, I had the privilege of hearing my beloved Incontesta sing "Schlafe, mein Liebster" from J.S. Bach's Christmas Oratorio on the faculty concert. It was hands down some of his most beautiful singing and a moment I will never forget. An added bonus was that I was sitting with our dear Florence, who held my hand as we both cried through the entire aria.
- C.P.E. Bach Cello Concerto. Within the last couple of years, Catharina Meints wowed us all with a spectacular performance on another faculty concert with C.P.E. Bach's Concerto for Cello, Strings and Basso Continuo. Cathy's playing has always impressed me, but on this particular day, her playing was transcendent.
- Goldberg Variations. Again, a number of years ago, Lisa Goode Crawford, harpsichordist, took us all to that otherworldly place with a performance of J.S. Bach's Goldberg Variations. That same summer, she recorded the work. Much to my delight, the recording was released this year.
Moments like these are rare. I can only imagine the other magical moments musical that have occurred during the 25 years of BPI before I started attending. Many of my friends there who have been at the institute for many of those previous 25 years have similar stories to tell, I'm sure.
This summer, however, I shared a moment with two dear friends, which must join my list above. All of the above moments were very public events. This one was much more private. At the end of a voice lesson that my friend Nancy Zylstra, soprano, was giving to Florence, I began playing Schubert's "Gretchen am Spinnrade." As I began playing, Nancy began singing. What's remarkable about this is that Nancy hasn't sung in years. She stopped singing before I really got to know her about 15 years ago. But Nancy's voice was legendary. It was a sad day for all when she stopped. Well, she and I performed the song for our audience of one, Florence. When we finished, Florence's hands were over her mouth and tears began to well up in my eyes . . . and then in Nancy's. Her singing was powerful, beautiful, and very moving. I always thought I would never get to hear her sing. That evening changed all that. Thank you, Nancy, for my latest (and one of my most memorable) BPI moments. Please keep singing!
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