Thomas journals

[in an attempt to create something nice for my Facebook page -- where I rarely post anything -- I submitted the following]   Porto is a city of culture, something that I appreciate particularly during the recent PortoPianoFest , twelve days of piano concerts in various locations around the city and suburbs.  I managed to attend six of the twenty or so recitals; all were refreshing to hear such displays of musicianship unaided by electronics.  Mea Culpa : a Scriabin sonata was so powerful, I wrote a comment accusing the Festival of amplifying the sound; they very politely responded that they would never amplify a solo piano!   It is also encouraging to see young musicians performing so well.  The programs were predominantly well-known classical pieces – several of which I know and/or have played – plus a number of newer and varied selections to expand our horizons.  The outdoor concert in the Crystal Palace Gardens was such a delightful setting on a sum...

 My previous post was a screed against amplification of a solo piano recital.  My spouse cautioned me against such an accusative tone.  She was right -- mea culpa . I sent the note (deepl-translated into Portuguese...I think they figured that out) to the organizers on the comment window of their webpage .  They responded ever so nicely to me, assuring me that any electronic devices on their piano were simply for recording purposes, that none of their solo piano performances are amplified.  So that's it.  My ears deceived me.  The first pianist truly did play so loudly that it buzzed my Apple Watch warning;  and the second pianist's performance included a loudspeaker setup that is permanently in that room, unused by this particular piano performance, so my perception was colored by my luddite attitude.  Indeed.  

  06Aug25:  I am an amateur pianist.  This is the week of Porto Pianofest !  I attended a solo piano recital yesterday and the day before, both at the University of Porto's Reitoria administration building, in the Salão Nobre and the Sala Comum.  The pianists were wonderfully skilled; they played an interesting and varied repertoire, and wrote helpful comments in the program introduction.  In each case the appreciative audience numbered around one hundred people.  I was however sorely disappointed by the fact that both performances were electronically amplified.  The first case was rather subtle, noticeable in that the beautiful Yamaha grand piano was obviously connected to electric devices, and in that the pianist's powerful Ravel and Scriabin chords were exceptionally loud (my Apple watch warned me of loud noise exposure) and rough – obviously the system could not handle the volume.  Yesterday in the Sala Comum I sat further back and notice...