I just finished a series of eleven paintings for the Scottish pianist Kate Durran so she can have them at her 2022 concert series in Scotland and England. I first encountered Kate in 2009 for the Ruckert Lieder series, as I explained in my last post. That time I just sent her the images for her to project onto a screen when she was performing each song. This time I have sent the originals and notecards for her to sell at her concerts. You can purchase her CD of Bach Toccatas here.
This series of paintings includes seven Bach Toccatas, Franz Liszt: Harmonies du Soir, Bach/Busoni: Chaconne, Franz Scubert: 4 Impromptus, and Beethoven: Moonlight Sonata. Her concerts begin April 8 at Lukesland Gardens in the southwestern corner of England, then she will travel around the UK for several more concerts, including Moffat, Scotland.
Here they are ….
I loved several things about painting this series – the lyrical quality of the songs overall, flowing melody with such precision of structure underneath, lots of flourishes throughout, the energy in each one, how the last four in particular are each in their own way romantic symphonic poems, the layers of music, how there are strong correlations to the rhythms of seasons and nature, and how even the more somber pieces have romantic, uplifting parts to them.
What a joy this entire process has been! The coincidence that Spring has just begun feels appropriate, as visually interpreting these masterpieces of music has made me feel renewed and excited for a new season.
I took piano lessons for about 9 years when I was young. My mom is a good piano player and singer, and always told me that one day I would really appreciate knowing how to play and read music. I also sang, and I’ll never forget my music teacher in 6th grade telling me I had a special talent for it, but I quit singing in the chorus a few years later, and I stopped playing piano a few years after that. I have always loved music, though, and that has never left me. I doubt I could still play anything on the piano more than Heart & Soul at this point, but I really appreciate what my mom gave me and also how much talent, skill, and work it takes to play piano well. Kate Durran is an inspiration. I so loved this quote from a review of her Bach Toccatas CD:
“A very special disc … she is a Bachian of luminous integrity and unforced nobility.”
What an unbelievable compliment and assessment of her work! I am so honored to have done this series for her.
