terrible things on stage

[krenske]

i found this one hilarious: just thought i'd share!!

was page-turning for a friend once, who was playing some norwegian composition with a violinist. in the rehearsal, my mate couldn't quite play one particular line, which we found quite amusing.

before the concert, i suggested that, seeing as he wasn't exactly going to play perfectly anyway, that we go for beers first. he agreed, and we each had a pint.

so, we wandered on stage in the concert, and the playing commenced. the fiddle player was already a bit pissed that we smelled like beer... but hey, is she really going to find someone better at this point?

the ill-fated line came up, and sure-enough, my friend almost stopped playing, which was againg rather funny, of course.

right at the end of that line was a page turn, for which i prepared, leaning over from the left hand side. exactly on the page-turn was a bottom A, which my mate struck, colliding with pageturner's more intimate regions on the way down.

we both burst out in fits of laughter, while the fiddle player continued playing. i don't think they went to coffee so much after that.

this happenned to anyone else??

[kriskicksass]

Mussorgsky was in a similar situation once, but he played brilliantly despite his drunkenness. It sounds like you were just rude to the violinist he was accomanying. Please tell me he wasn't being paid?

[henrah]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA



I hope the audience didn't think of it too rude. I'm guessing this violinist isn't quite liked by either of you, but I'm glad you guys had a good time

[lisztisforkids]

I was once playing Chopins 25/12 utterly smashed for a few friends. I must say I did really quite well considering I would think Chopin, Chopin-Vodka and start in fits of laughter.

[jason2711]

I always end up playing while drunk at friends' houses with mixed success.  It gets a bit more interesting when they blindfold me and start throwing stuff... quite a few wrong notes get bashed there...  I find the drunker I get, the worse I get at playing particular pieces, but I get surprisingly better at improvising (though, that's probably just my drunken opinion... beer, err, beer muffs?)

As for this instance... it's not terribly fair on the violinist... as a bassoonist I wouldn't be terribly impressed if my accompanist was wrecked, and as a (very part-time) accompanist I wouldn't do it either.  Although, it's still pretty funny 

[krenske]

thankyou jason, but i never said the accompanist was "wrecked". i said something to the effect that he smelled a little of fine ale. i find it very interesting that pianoforumers always look for the argument in any given statement!
my post was rather intended to let other pianists relate similar stories of misfortune and humour on stage, NOT A CHANCE TO CAST JUDGEMENT on myself and the accompanist i speak of.
take some happy pills you guys!!!!

[alwaystheangel]

i was accopaniying a singer once.  And only once.  She was signing "the Rose" you know, the Bette Midler one, I and  was playing the accompaniemenet (A and E chord through out essentially).  She was so out of key, it wasn't even funny.  I tried not to but I started to cringe on particularly bad notes, by this time the crowd started to twitter and it grew to talking and finally to laughter... She was booed off the stage... I feel sorry for her but when she asked how she had done (singers cannot hear booing, it's a scientific fact) I told her she did wonderfully.  I wasn't sure whether lying or telling the truth hurting her sensitive singer's feelings was the best course of action.  She was a friend though...

[henrah]

It would have been more beneficial to her if you told her the truth, and as a friend she should respect that. If, however, she says that she is in tune and thinks your lying, then she's plain stupid and needs a slap upside the head
Henrah

[ramseytheii]

I remember seeing a young Chinese girl in a competition, who didn't play very impressively, and in order to make up for the lack of interesting things in her playing, added lots and lots of movements to her stage presence.  Twists, turns, from sky-ward implorations to nose-above-the-keyboard "digging in," it was a circus of cliche.  At one point during an energetic twist she leaned forward  a bit too far, and banged her forehead on the fall board, which proceeded to fall on the keyboard and her poor hands.   Remember those cartoons where the kid kicks the burglar in one shin, and he grabs it and starts hopping around, and then the other, and he grabs that?

Walter Ramsey