.jeri.

I am thoroughly overwhelmed after today's noon performance. Honestly, all I want to do is go home and play the piano, but a) all my books are packed away and I have nothing fully memorized and b) if I practiced several hours a day, I would never be as good as what I just saw.

Today's concert was given by Bill-John Newbrough, who has one of the longest "about our artist" sections in the program I've seen, from impressive performances to awards. At first I admired his control as he tackled a couple of Bach sinfonias and a Haydn sonata, but the song that stole the show was Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody Number 2. Some of you may know that I took piano lessons for about 17 years. Well, as a child who loved Warner Brothers cartoons and the piano, it was only natural that my favorite cartoon growing up was Rabbit Rhapsody, in which Bugs Bunny performs Liszt's epic piece.

It was only natural, as well, that it was always my goal to play that song one day. As it turns out, I was capable of the music, but had a physical disability - my fingers weren't long enough to conquer the piece and bring it up to speed. You see, Liszt purposefully constructed large pieces of music with the ambition of stretching one's fingers to incredible widths. I once read that he actually cut the ligaments in his hands in an effort to make his reach even wider. Gross! Well, I have very tiny hands, so while I was able to play the piece and make it sound simply okay, I could only go so far with it, and eventually had to give it up.

Today I got to see what it's like to have conquered that piece. I remembered so much of it, and my fingers remembered even more, surprising me by playing along for most of the performance. I know, it's annoying to see musicians do that, but when you've spent a year with a piece of music, it's almost impossible not to mimic the pianist while watching him play. Newbrough had incredible control of pace, dynamics, pedaling, and (of course) getting every note right. His fingers were so agile and precise; I was definitely jealous and inspired.

I have to admit, as the song carried on, I got really anxious for him (as if he were going to mess up!). When you know what's coming and how hard it is to play, it's easy to get nervous for a fellow musician. My heart was racing with anxiety and amazement. I seriously got so into it that I couldn't help wohoo-ing when it was over, along with most of the audience. He received a massive standing ovation.

Sometimes I lament the fact that I didn't study music at college, or that I didn't practice long enough, or that my fingers aren't long enough, or that I don't have the self-confidence to give live performances, or that I don't feel like I treated technique as seriously as I should have. But you know, I'm still proud of myself for having gotten far enough that I could play this song, and I had a damn fine time playing it, too. I remember countless afternoons trying to balance the fun of remembering which part of the cartoon I was playing (a problem I had with many a classical song thanks to Warner Brothers' awesome integration of classical music in most of their cartoons), with being serious enough to learn each measure and attempt to feel the music. It was an accomplishment as well as a lot of fun. I will never be as great as this guy, and I'm probably past my piano prime, but having played this Liszt piece was very fulfilling, and watching someone conquer it hands-down was an incredible experience for me.

And to think, I got to see this concert for free!