The USC school year started a while ago and with all the events related to it, I was swept away like there was no tomorrow. It was as if I had entered a time-space tunnel that by the end of summer, I found myself thrown dramatically into October and I realized that I had procrastinated the final post about my adventure in the Hamptons…. until right now!
Anyway Pianofest, the piano festival in the Hamptons, met 200% of my expectations.
The whole experience, which I shared with 13 other pianists, excellent from every point of view, was unique for a number of reasons that I would like to share.
The first peculiarity that anyone would be excited about is the cohabitation in the house of Pianofest, which we were all subjected to Big Brother-style.
In recent years Pianofest, a creature of Mr.Paul Schenly (head of the piano department at the Cleveland Institute of Music), while maintaining all the characteristics of a music festival, took a turn in the direction of a reality show.
The last week of the festival was in fact dedicated to shooting the great moments of a typical day in the house with lots of sweet moments of friction in the bathroom and crazy madness in the kitchen. This is also thanks to Konstantin Soukhovetski, artist in residence, who oversaw the management team of recording, logistics and scenes.
In addition to this tv-show-aspect of the festival, it was enlightened by the splendor that characterizes the Hamptons, famous for celebrities and the high society that populate it.
The parties were those of Gossip Girl, so to speak.
The people, starting with Mr. Paul and Sophia Schenly Hiltner, and followed by the warm audiences and my fellow adventurers, were all adorable without exception. They provided support and contributed to the magic created.
The food! Well, the food is out of this world. Lobsters were the smash hit # 1 of each party after the concerts.
Personally, I could add some of my own passions and reconcile musical moments with moments of photography and invasive shooting. I created a collage in order not to forget the protagonists of this magical summer, and I have documented and edited some of my performances .
PianoFest 2014 Fellows, photos by…me!
If you’re wondering what that thing is on my head while I am playing, it’s just her, the gopro (just to stay in theme with the release of the new GoPro4). I now use it at every opportunity, even when I go to the bathroom. So you can better see my little fingers hopping merrily on the keyboard in a first person view. Have a look at 8 hands; it’s dazzling.
It was certainly an experience to be repeated!