DAY TWENTY-SEVEN: February 15, 2008 Ottawa, Ill.

I’m sitting in the car looking out into a cornfield while Frank is inside a UPS terminal just outside of Bellville, Ill. There’s a stray shipment of CDs that didn’t make it to us yesterday, so he tracked it, and thankfully, we’ve got them for tonight’s concert. Last night, we were out of several titles, and people get frustrated if we play something that they can’t buy. So, last night being Valentines Day, I changed up the show a bit by playing things we did have. No shortage of love songs here! It was kind of fun alternating pieces for our show; there was a fresh feeling, all the way down to wearing the red dress for the first time.

What a contrast last night’s concert was to the one before! It was in one of these modern churches with a state-of-the-art sound system, all kinds of colorful lighting and spots, no windows, and what looked like a Kawai grand piano, but was electric! I was proudly shown the large array of orchestration and rhythm choices on its control panel. I had to adjust quickly. I have to admit, I know how to use this stuff and it was tempting. Frank said absolutely not, because there wasn’t enough time to practice with it. The sound and lighting guy, Neal, was really knowledgeable and lead the praise band at this church. He said he played for many years in the nightclub scene and was happier in this environment. I’ll bet!

Playing last night to this audience of about 150, I couldn’t decide if it felt like a sanctuary or a rock concert. Neal creatively faded from blues to reds to single white spots. I’m sure it was flattering, because it was dark. Good thing we had practiced this new stuff tonight, because I couldn’t see a thing on the keyboard! Also, good thing I didn’t experiment with any of those buttons! Frank is wise.

Neal presented us with two CDs and a DVD video of our concert! I’m glad I didn’t know he was recording us. How absolutely wonderful of him, and it also says a lot about this church’s capabilities. Some time when I get the nerve, I’ll watch it. Frank is happy, because it captures “My Funny Valentine,” which I played solo as a gift to him that night.

Our CD table was teaming with activity. I guess this was a fresh shopping opportunity for these folks in the Chester area. As I was signing left and right, there were some interesting comments/complements directed at me: One woman said, “At first I didn’t take you seriously….” Another woman interjected, “Why, because she’s good-looking?” the first woman continued, “I don’t know, but you WERE seriously good after all.”
An older woman said, ”You may not be that sensational of a pianist, but you’ve got that thing going between you and your husband, and you gave a great show!” I thanked her, I think… Actually, she’s right. I know my place in the world of truly great pianists. Van Clyburn or Andre Watts I am not, but I compose, arrange, teach and perform the music I love. I have never taken for granted all the opportunities given me to have my special place in the music world.

Chester, Ill. is the proud home of Popeye and friends. There are adorable, colorful murals on buildings all over town with the characters we know and love. It was Popeye that got me eating spinach as a kid. Sound familiar? As it happens, the writer was from Chester, and the characters real. Popeye was actually a sailor on the Mississippi River. There was a big canning factory there, too, although the writer didn’t add the spinach to the mix until he got to California. There are even Wimpy burgers in Chester that Frank dearly wanted.

The minister at the church where we played told us that there are lots of fights in Chester, with the High School kids especially. It seems to be a long standing tradition. That explains all of the elaborate fight scenes in Popeye!
Safety tip: If you have a disagreement in Chester, eat your spinach!

In one of the fake endings in our show last night, I played “Popeye the Sailor Man.” The audience roared! We had a good time in Chester.

We made it to Ottawa, and played our concert tonight at a high school that may as well have been a music conservatory! The hall was exquisite, dating back to the early 1900’s, and the piano was a reconditioned Steinway circa 1916. Wow! I wasn’t expecting that from a high school! Their bands, choirs and ensembles have won first place state awards for 13 years running. They even have eight or so practice rooms with Yamaha pianos. I want to go there! Oh, and there’s artwork in all the hallways, not just any artwork, but museum masterpieces from all over the world.

Brad, the sound and lighting guy, couldn’t have been more professional. He took care of major business quickly, and knew his stuff. There was a pride at this school for the arts that I had never seen before in a high school and envied.

Many people came from far away to see us tonight. I can thank Frank for putting these concerts in our newsletter. Also, this concert association was smart and gave away free tickets to students. Yes, finally! We had the biggest crowd ever, and we got a shot in the arm from the audience tonight. They cheered and whistled! More concert associations should do that. It’s win/win for everyone. These associations are looking for younger members, but word needs to get out to these campuses where the concerts are, so students can come and eventually join. Also, performers like a full house. There are always extra seats.

I was informed at intermission that the shootings at Northern Illinois University were within a one-hour drive from this venue, and there were many people in the audience who were directly affected. I needed to acknowledge that for sure, so I walked out and played “The Prayer” after saying a few words. It was hard. This is one of those times it was better to express myself through music because there are no words to describe these feelings. Gently, the pace picked up after that and we went on with our show.

We probably stayed afterwards talking to people and signing CDs for the longest so far on this tour. We were very grateful for everything tonight. We’re exhausted, but we’re elated, too.

It’s beddy-bye time, because tomorrow is another concert, in Ottumwa, Iowa. It’s another long day of driving, navigating, packing, unpacking, hotels, sound checks, loading, unloading, practicing and performing. It’s these great audiences and our good spirits that keep us going. Thank you, everybody!