Pianist Spencer Brewer

EIGHT PIANISTS IN SOPER REESE LAKEPORT BENEFIT CONCERT

A splendid treat awaited those who braved the storm March 6 to hear the fifth-annual piano concert given as a benefit in Lakeport’s Soper Reese Theater.  Eight pianists took to the stage with varied styles and a good deal of hilarity at times during the informal performance, which felt more like a friendly exchange between musicians in someone’s living room than a formal concert.

Opening the concert was a sad reminder of the fires that devastated Lake County this past summer. Pianist David Neft, who lost  his home in the fire, played his own composition, a heartfelt blues, followed by a version of Errol Garner’s lovely song Misty as a tribute to his brother who tragically lost his life in the same fire. From Elizabeth McDougall’s exquisite Chopin, played with a liquid and tender touch I had not formerly associated with this pianist, to the raucous boogie-woogie of Ed Reinhardt, the program had great variety.  Spencer Brewer played one of his older “dream” pieces with a gentle rolling left hand, followed by a stronger rhythmically varied example of his more recent work. As always his style is elegant and smooth and, as he demonstrated after intermission, he is an entertaining raconteur as well.

Tom Ganoung and Paul Kemp are well known throughout Lake county for playing at many venues there, both with their own compositions, some  standards, and even a bit of comedy, and here they entertained an appreciative audience of most locals.

Elena Casanova was first heard joining long-time collaborator Elizabeth MacDougall in a duet of three pieces by Ignacio Cervantes, beautifully played by two women who are obviously friends as well as highly successful musical co-conspirators.  When Ms. Casanova later played another piece by her countrymen, Cuban composer Ernesto Lecuona, she showed once again the mastery she has over this genre. The strong rhythmic patterns overlaid with lyrical melodies were perfectly executed.

An unassuming and quiet Tom Aiken demonstrated his mastery of improvisation that is intricate without being fussy, and beautifully developed to reveal a jewel, in this case the haunting My Funny Valentine from the 1937 Broadway Musical “Babes in Arms.” I have never before heard it played quite like this, and Mr. Aiken’s versatility was impressive. I also heard him play the harpsichord the day before in a baroque ensemble, and later in this program he played a haunting Thad Jones tune A Child is Born. 

All eight pianists briefly played together and in rotation in a standard twelve bar blues to the delight of the audience, and the program ended with an arrangement for four hands, in this case the hands of Ms. MacDougall and Ms. Casanova, who played a transcription of Gershwin’s iconic 1924 Rhapsody in Blue to a standing ovation.