August 27 - St. Andrew's Lutheran Church

Often times when I visit my family in Minnesota, I perform during my hometown church services. I've performed there at least once a year for the past 14 years, and I've really come to appreciate the comfortable setting, the hometown crowd, the spectacular 9-foot piano, the beautiful services, and the creative freedom to play most anything I want! Thank you to St. Andrew's Lutheran Church for welcoming me back so enthusiastically every year.

Worshipers at Sunday's 8:45, 10:15, and 11:30 services enjoyed the early-morning pleasure of Ravel's energetic, frenetic, and virtuosic "Toccata" from his 'Le Tombeau de Couperin.' I'm not sure how much I enjoyed whipping that thing out at 8:45 in the morning... my fingers and forearms had become granite about 30 seconds into the performance. Yes, I could have warmed up before, but I didn't want to wake my poor little brother trying to sleep in for a change. Thankfully, I had definitely warmed up by the time the second and third performances came around.

Highlights from the morning:

*"Sheep may Safely Graze" during the 8:45 service - a prime example of how setting, piano, and acoustics can inspire a performance.
*Bach's Choral Prelude "Ich ruft zu dir" during the 10:15 service. I was feeling it man - especially the end.
*Liszt's transcription of Schumann's "Widmung" during the 11:30 service. I think I found a satisfying balance between lingering over every beautiful, little moment and allowing the momentum to carry me from beginning to end. I was swept away while still acknowledging how gorgeous my surroundings were. ....and gorgeous they are in "Widmung!"

Comments anyone??