Playing piano for guests.

[thalbergmad]

I no longer play for guests.

They turn their nose up at a Henselt Nocturne and wildly applaud the theme tune from Eastenders.

I refuse to attempt to entertain any more.

Thal

[zheer]

They turn their nose up at a Henselt Nocturne

  That don't know what they are missing.

[keyofc]

me too, rc
im better  - maybe you should take their phone number if they want a call when your cd comes out

[allthumbs]

I very rarely play piano for guests/friends as most are not into classical music.

If they do want to hear something, the instant one starts to play, they start talking which I find not only extremely rude, but highly insulting.

I guess I need to expand my circle of friends.

Maybe I should start a performers group that gets together once a month at a rotating residence to play for one another.

I think I'll call our thing 'The Duffers' Dalliance'!


allthumbs

[timothy42b]

I
I guess I need to expand my circle of friends.



allthumbs

Or your circle of repertoire.

Why not pick 3 or 4 pieces, not heavy classical literature but strictly lightweight audience pleasing pop, and learn them well?  Pick stuff that sounds harder than it is, you want to learn it quickly and get back to your other practicing. 

Then when they ask, you can whip out Minute Waltz, Flight of The Bumblebee, Stars and Stripes, and Alla Turco.  (choose your own pieces, obviously;  could even be television or gameboy themes).. 

[amelialw]

I very rarely play piano for guests/friends as most are not into classical music.

If they do want to hear something, the instant one starts to play, they start talking which I find not only extremely rude, but highly insulting.

I guess I need to expand my circle of friends.

You need to make a couple of friends who are classical musicians themselves, that way they will be able to understand you. Most of my friends are all musicians themselves or either that they know how to appreciate classical music...it makes everything easier for me!

[timothy42b]

When that violin player did his experiment in the subway, he deliberately picked music that his audience wouldn't be able to stand, and then blamed them for it.  The fault was his, of course.

I think you should either play for guests or not play for guests - but if you decide to do so, you should choose your music carefully.  A casual dinner is not the place for heavy music.  Play something short, lively, and approachable;  old familiar show tunes are probably ideal.

Why do it at all?  Well, you don't have to.  But every performance is also an audition, and you may be hired as a result. 

[sassafras]

Johnny Cash goes over real well with guests - far bettwe than classical or jazz.

[gerry]

I agree with much of what's been said above - especially the fact the all too often these requests come later in the evening when all (including me) have indulged in wine and other things that rather numb the senses and have an unfortunate effect on one's kinetic responses. And yes, I think we've all experienced the occasional guest who asks, "Do you know Symphony by Beethoven?" or please play "Concerto by Tchaikowsky". Replies such as, "I'd love to but I gave the orchestra the night off" usually only leave them a bit perplexed and not terribly receptive to any alternate suggestions you might offer.

As far as audience decorum is concerened, if the affair is a genuine musical "soiree" then you can expect respectful silence and indulge in more interesting repertoire. However, if it's like most casual gatherings (family holidays, and such) then you cannot expect the above. You must enter into your effort in the spirit of sharing and fun - I've even had my grandneice (3-year-old)  run up while I was playing and start the banging on the upper or lower keys in which case I just shifted into something that would fit in with what she was doing (Bartok, I think). Anyway, by then the crowd had heard enough to know I could play fairly well - they really didn't need a complete piece.

If you don't know or trust your audience, the Minute Waltz is always a harmless crowdpleaser - it's a quick and easy way to show off virtuosity as well as your cantabile talents; however it's very important to never announce it ahead of time lest one or two boors glance at their watches as you begin playing, leaving you to stew during your performance about just how long this piece really takes to play! (they will probably gleefully let you know when you finish which has the effect of trivializing the entire effort on your part). I agree with others that the good ole' Rachy's Prelude in C#m, Chop's Fantasie Impromptu and several of his Waltz's (the upbeat ones), Deb's Claire de Lune are all reasonably safe (warning - see opening paragraph). Unless I'm sure the crowd is properly receptive, I seldom play any Beethoven - in my mind, his works are just too damn noble to be entertainment or background music - oh, perhaps I'd indulge them with a mere Baggatelle...!  I've mastered many of the pieces from the Gershwin Song Book (a collection of his own short improvisations on his compositions) which work very well.

I think that it never really hurts those of us "amateurs" to perform publicly when asked, it's humbling and serves to remind us of the tricks that live performance plays on our minds. As a last thought on this subject, I once was part of a circle of friends who occasionally gathered at a summer home for weekend affairs. One of the frequent guests was a piano professor at a local college. The large great room had a beautiful old Wurlitzer grand and people would ask him to play but he steadfastly refused. I even brought a stack of 4-hand music one weekend hoping he would at least relent and romp through a Dvorak or Mozart - but NO. It has tainted my opinion of this gentleman ever since and I really think he is the poorer for not being able to loosen up and share his musicality in this type of venue. I later heard him in concert and he was very good, competent, nothing spectacular - so we're not talking about a great primadonna or anything. He could have added so much to the spirit of the gatherings  . After all - what good is sitting alone in your room...?

[jinfiesto]

Usually I go with something not incredibly heavy, but still impressive. A lot of Gottschalk is great for this, um pieces everyone knows are good too, minute waltz etc... Occasionally, I'll do a Beethoven Sonata, usually I cut the repeats, which is blasphemous, which is why I rarely play a Beethoven Sonata for guests... But short, sweet, and virtuousic looking usually does the trick.