Member News

Ben Niles, director of the film “The Making of Steinway L1037,” paid MEA a cameo visit at the October general meeting and offered members the DVD version at the discounted price of $15; it retails for $26.95.  This independent film follows the creation of a Steinway concert grand from forest floor to concert hall.  It explores the relationship between musician and instrument and is called by the LA Times, “A meditation on the making of pianos and of music, a process that is very much like falling in love.”

If you have not had the pleasure of touring the Steinway Factory, this film is invaluable for you and your students.  The DVD will be available at the front desk at the general meetings.  Also, visit www.notebynotethemovie.com.

The National League of Performing Arts, Inc. will present the National Young Virtuosi Solo Recital Competition for high school sophomores, juniors, seniors and college freshman students on April 11.  Depending on the student’s instrument, a recital program of twenty to twenty-five minutes is required.   Selected winners will be featured in NLPA’s concert series on May 16. Scholarships will also be awarded to the winners. 

For further information, please visit the NLPA website at       www.nationalleagueofperformingarts.org
or contact the competition director, Ching Lin Chen.

Last year Clavier and Keyboard Companion joined forces to create Clavier Companion. This bi-monthly publication by the Frances Clark Center for Keyboard Pedagogy contains cogent, focused, and practical articles on music and teaching at all levels along with in-depth interviews with pedagogues and artists, reviews of new materials, directories of camps and festivals, and other popular columns.

Subscriptions can be obtained by calling 888-881-5861 or online at www.claviercompanion.com.   Discounts for groups of five or more are available.

The Scherzo Club is a wonderful opportunity to play for a supportive, appreciative group and to hear some wonderful music. A case in point was the Scherzo Club meeting at the home of Barbara Landi Hause on February 2.

Ana Berschadsky, Vicky Griswold, Barbara Landi Hause, Anna Katznelson, Helen Krotoff, and Beatrice Long all performed, playing pieces by Prokofieff, Scriabin, Chopin, Turina, and others. Anita Gordon premiered three pieces composed by her husband, Louis Gordon, who was an enthusiastic member of the audience, along with Rosemary Palmerton and Janet Cicero. Stella Xu finished off the marvelously musical morning with a stunning performance of Chopin’s Concerto in e minor, accompanied by Anita Gordon.

Back row, left to right: Stella Xu, Anna Katznelson, Beatrice Long, Rosemary Palmerton, Ana Berschadsky. Front row: Vicky Griswold, Barbara Landi Hause, Anita and Louis Gordon, Helen Krotoff.

The seventh annual Honors Recitals were a big success. Fifty-nine soloists and four ensembles were selected to perform at The Bickford Theatre at The Morris Museum on Saturday, November 21. Teachers represented for the recitals were: Aki Ando, Dragica Banic-Curcic, Gloria Chu, Jennifer Chung, Rebecca Eng, Azar Gordon, Tomoko Harada, Mansoon Han Kim, Helen Krotoff, Grace Kuo, Julia Lam, Chuanyin Lee, Vivian Lien, Beatrice Long, Thomas Parente, Rita Reston, Sondra Tammam, Stella Xu, and Yuka Yanagi.

Grace Kuo & students	Azar Gordon & students	Helen Krotoff & students

Thank you to President Barbara Landi Hause for hosting the recitals and taking publicity photos.

     Grace Kuo & Chiaki Morimoto, Co-Chairs

The NJ Federation of Music Clubs annual competitions took place on December 6. The Winners’ Recital was held on December 13 and was an inspiring event with wonderful performances.

The regular Piano Competition consists of four levels covering ages 10-18. First place winners were Albert Wu, Connie Wang, Justin Lee, and Jeffrey Chen. Other winners were: Jenny Shih, Kevin Shi, Yenddie Lin, Christopher Chen, Tiffany Yu, Katy Wong, and Crystal Song.

The Bookstaber Memorial Competition is for high school students playing a thirty-minute program. Albert Wu was awarded first place, with Tiffany Yu and Jenny Shih tying for second, and Kevin Shi placing third.

Congratulations to their teachers: Azar Gordon, Rebecca Eng, Fred Gajewski, Tomoko Harada, Ruth Kotik, Chuanyin Lee, and Beatrice Long.

The MEA is now allowing legal printouts and legally downloaded music in all events. However, please remember that photocopies of copyrighted music are illegal, and are not allowed. The use of illegally photocopied music will cause a student to be disqualified from any event.

Please help replenish the MEA-MJN Scholarship Fund by making a contribution any time during the year. Donations may be made in the form of a tribute to celebrate or honor someone or an occasion. Contributions are fully taxdeductible. Send donations to Ruth Pasquariello, (see address in the MEA Members Directory.

MEA members Yuly Verbitsky and Yuka Yanagi performed at the Steinway Piano Gallery in Paramus on Saturday, November 14 at 8:00PM. The program included works of Chaminade, Chopin, Liszt, Rachmaninoff, and Scriabin.

Picture of MEA members Ching-Lin Chen, Beatrice Long, and Sophia Aganovich with violinist Judy Wu and cellist Steven Fang at a National League for the Performing Arts concert in October

Michelle Chen Kuo performed at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall on Saturday, October 18. Her program included pieces by Bach-Busoni, Chopin, Debussy and Liszt. Michelle is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music and The Juilliard School.

Beatrice Long performed on Sunday, September 28 with violinist Qian Zhou at the Presbyterian Church of Madison. Qian Zhou is the gold medalist from the Marguerite Long-Jacques Thibaud Competition.  The program included sonatas for violin and piano by Beethoven and Brahms.

Trude Super, a devoted member and former President of the MEA, died in Pittsburgh in March 2009 at the age of 78. A graduate of The Juilliard School, she was a church organist and for many years taught piano at Kent Place School in Summit as well as in her private studio in Summit. She will be sorely missed.