Great party, Plays and Improv. Mr. Piano Again and I had a good time, except for the drive down there (some advice: avoid I-95 south between DC and Richmond on a Saturday morning in August when everyone is headed to their beach vacations).

I hope the book signing event went well today. I'm sure we'll read a report. Mary Anna, I'm looking forward to reading the book.

RE the video of Bernard and me: ack -- we weren't warmed up yet at all. That was the first movement of the Bach sonata in G major (originally for viola da gamba, but usually played on the cello).

I'm delighted everyone enjoyed themselves - the caliber of talent in my house was overwhelming - I was near tears just thinking about how lucky I was to be part of it all.

I loved having Mary Anna and Muffin as houseguests - they were so much fun, and it now appears that I'll be going to Florida to visit them early next year.

Everyone that attended brought something special to the event, and you've all left behind so many images and memories. Thank you all for coming and sharing the joy of making music!

Here are my photos of the weekend:

Friday, we went to dinner at Bottom's Up pizza, a really great pizza place in historic Shockhoe Bottom.







Saturday afternoon:

Piano*Son (who has jaw dropping technique!)



Muffin, Mary Anna, PianoAgain and Mr. PianoAgain (who had me in hysterics - he has a marvelous sense of humor)



Bernard and PianoAgain:



Piano*Dad and my friend Lori (now registered here as PianoDoc)



CathyS and Jon (the page turner extraordinaire)



CathyS and her eldest son:



Improv and PianoAgain:



Piano*Dad and Piano*Son:



CathyS playing a gorgeous Brahms:



My favorite pic of Muffin and Mary Anna:



My daughter, Playette:



More to come...

At 8:00 we headed off for dinner. Turns out my daughter is friends with the manager of the restaurant and chatted him up for about ten minutes...resulting in exceptional service for all of us!

The beer, wine and spirits were free-flowing - we had a blast...heh...and closed down the place.

Today's events were a smaller group: Mary Anna, Muffin, Bernard, Lori, Playette and myself. Improv bowed out, and spent the time cleaning up the house.

Mary Anna's appearance today was at a bookstore located in a part of Richmond known as Carytown. It's a very eclectic, funky, vibrant area and attracts a lot of different kinds of people. Today the Carytown Merchants' Assn. held their annual Watermelon Festival, which is really an excuse to close off Cary Street and have a monstrous block party.

Brunch at Can Can:



After a great meal, we walked a few short steps to the bookstore:







While Mary Anna signed books, the rest of us enjoyed the festival...and the watermelon!



Here's a colorful street musician:



but wait, here's the best part: check out the shoes! I have to find a pair - they're awesome!



Finally, we delivered Muffin back to the safety of the bookstore and her mom, made our goodbyes and went separate ways. Bernard and I, after a dead car battery mishap, made a quick tour of historic Hollywood Cemetary, where I took this parting shot overlooking the rapids of the James River:



I let Bernard off at the train station and spent a reflective half hour driving home, wishing I could rewind the clock and do it all over again!

The James is very cool - I walked across it once, rock to rock, near downtown and the Civil War prison Belle Island. Love Richmond.

quote:

Originally posted by plays88keys:

Bernard, you positively Californian, and I mean that in a nice way.

Wow, just WOW. The pictures are fabulous. You all look so wonderful! And plays - your house is just beautiful. I think it is SO COOL that people from these websited get together for piano parties! Makes me .

This is my favorite picture:





Jodi

Yeah, the blue shoes are getting a little long in the tooth.

Truth be told, I retired them a while back. I only dig them out for piano parties.

Great pics!

Cathy, your son is drool over handsome. Those eyes will slay the girls!!!

What a party!

quote:

Originally posted by jodi:
And plays - your house is just beautiful. I think it is SO COOL that people from these websited get together for piano parties! Makes me .


Jodi

Thanks Jodi, and everyone else who commented on our home -- like you, Jodi, it's a work in progress, only it hasn't reached the intensity of where you are...yet. Looking forward to seeing your house in a few weeks. We're still on for 9/2, right? (doesn't that count as a piano party, even if the piano is in storage?)

Wow.

I got back from this special trip at 2 a.m. this morning. It was a perfect weekend--from meeting forumites for the first time, to making new acquaintances, to the weather--couldn't have asked for better.

Richmond, VA is a lovely city where a quiet gentleness permeates the air. Even strangers on the street greeted me with a charming sweetness that was unexpected. Richmond really does seem to have it all.

I stayed at a historic inn where Edgar Allan Poe lived for two years according to the inn's write up. My room was huge and the bed could have slept three people comfortably (there's a thought). Although the amenities were nothing special they were far from deficient. Most of the furnishings in the inn are period pieces--letting history live. I enjoyed the 2 front rooms on the ground floor like a ghost from the future. There is a lovely inner courtyard, the perfect place for evaporating a morning's lingering slumber while having coffee. I'm glad I stayed there. Improv was so very kind to come pick me up at the inn for the party and take me back to the inn afterward (at midnight no less!)

Plays and Improv are perfect hosts in every way and embody everything I've ever heard about southern hospitality: warm graciousness.

Improv, you will have to accompany Plays on one of her next trips to NYC so I can try to reciprocate the favor. Thank you for the many lifts to and fro.

Plays, Very special thanks for all your kindnesses this weekend.

What a party. It was fantastic! Play's house is beautiful. The redecorated kitchen and living room look professionally done, and Plays great taste is on display everywhere. The food was delicious. I want you to know, Plays, it took great fortitude to resist the fudge and lemon tart plates! No one ever told me that in one's middle years metabolism changes in such a way that caloric energy can be absorbed through sight alone.

Plays' Steinway is as stunning as I knew it would be. A Steinway owned by someone who appreciates beautiful music rarely disappoints. At first I found the action a little resistant but that's because my Yamaha's is so light. It didn't take very long to get acquainted with this beautiful instrument. It's tone, to my ears, is perfect and a true joy to play.

Speaking of joy, it sure was joyful to play Bach with PianoAgain. PianoAgain, you are so talented, your cello playing is beautiful. Piano*Dad and Piano*Son--another multi-talented musician--were gracious enough to treat us to some french horn and piano and it too was superb. Awesome. To top it all off, Improv and PianoAgain played some Irish folk music on guitar and cello. OMG, it was totally cool. Special moments in piano party history. It was great!

Mary Anna, I'm so glad I met you at last. I read several chapters of Artifacts on the way home last night and look forward to resuming the story asap. Muffin, you are an intelligent, charming young lady and I very much enjoyed our conversation during dinner Saturday evening. Best of luck in all your endeavors. iucunditas eram mei (is that right? )

I also got to meet Play's and Improv's lovely daughter Lindsey who is a sweet, charming and delightful young woman.

CathyS, it is always a pleasure. It was nice to met your husband and family this time. The Brahms was fantastic.

PL--nice to 'see' you there too! It was a little tricky to carry on a conversation though--that'll have to wait until we meet in person. I did hear a bit of your organ playing and it sounded awesome.

jon-nyc, great fun as always. Your Scriabin sounds great.

(I have some pics too--I hope--which I'll post a little later.)

Sounds like a ton of fun was had on that there other coast too!
I love the way the blue hydrangea arrangement picks up the blue in the dining room curtain.

quote:

Originally posted by Bernard:
I also got to meet Play's and Improv's lovely daughter Lindsey who is a sweet, charming and delightful young woman.

Indeed she is! She was so much fun at dinner.

What a fabulous party, Plays. Wish I could have been there.

Thanks for all the cool pics and descriptions. Sounds like everyone had a fantastic time! Wish I'd been there!