Heintzman Pianos

I adore my Heintzman upright piano.  It's solidly built, speaks equally in all registers, sounds beautiful, and feels great to play.  By looking up the serial number (41146), I learned it was constructed in 1912 in Toronto, Canada.

Legend has it that Theodor August Heintzman worked side-by-side with Henry E. Steinway in a Berlin piano factory, prior to their immigrating together to North America.  The superior craftsmanship between the two piano brands is certainly comparable.

I bought mine in 1992 from Bill Weiss, who was Winnipeg's finest piano technician.  He was in his 80s at the time and has long since passed.  Mr. Weiss rebuilt the instrument, replacing the hammers and bass strings.

My piano tuner and longtime family friend, Garry Varty found it for me.  Mr. Varty was born blind and enjoyed the irony in saying he "looked long and hard" for an instrument of this quality, specifically for me.

With great difficulty (a long story), I shipped it to Connecticut in 2003 after getting married and buying a home.

Earlier this month I spent a week in Kincardine, Ontario performing and teaching at the Kincardine Summer Music Festival.  I was overjoyed when I lifted the piano lid at the performance venue and saw that I would be playing a Heintzman all week.  I was a bit perplexed, because it looked new, and I was under the impression Heintzman pianos were out of production for some time.  I have since learned that the Heintzman name was purchased by a Chinese manufacturer, who claims to build them according to the originals specifications.

"Liar!"

The new Heintzman was a huge disappointment.  They may have replicated the original dimensions, but something is clearly lacking --- "T.L.C." and old-school craftsmanship which reflects pride in one's work.  The instrument's quality was on par with Young Chang pianos, which deflate my sails every time I am forced to play one.  Notes stuck.  The upper register was weak, thin and metallic sounding.  It didn't hold it's tune. As the week progressed, the piano became more and more unravelled.  It was a despicable instrument and I hope to never encounter one again.

At times I envy horn players (did I really just say that?!!).  It must be nice to bring one's own, maintained, reliable, predictable instrument to a gig.  Pianists on the other hand are at the mercy of the instrument they are dealt.

I pride myself in getting a decent sound out of even the poorest of pianos, but some nights it is harder than others to overcome, compensate for, and not allow myself to become entirely distracted by poor workmanship or lack of proper maintenance.

They don't make 'em like they used to.

Grrr!!

Jazz Camp

An evening concert with tenor saxophonist, Ralph Bowen

Jazz Camp takes a lot out of me.  After a week of teaching during the day, performing at night, and socializing with old friends, I'm wiped.

I just returned from the Kincardine Summer Music Festival, which is organized by my friend, trombonist Jules Estrin.  The faculty was comprised entirely of friends with whom I went to McGill University in the late 1980s.  They are now all highly respected jazz educators and players in Toronto and Montreal.

Kelly Jefferson - tenor sax

Brian O'Kane - trumpet

Jules Estrin - trombone

Mike Rudd - guitar

Mike Downes - string bass

Ted Warren - drums

We performed together almost every night, including concerts accompanying Toronto singer/radio DJ Heather Bambrick and saxophonist, Ralph Bowen.

Ralph was one of my jazz professors at Rutgers and he played on both my "Schroeder's Tantrum" and "Re:Visions" CDs.  It was great to see (and hear!) him.  What an inspiring player!

I also really enjoyed the teaching aspect of the KSMF.  The students in my ensemble were bright and inquisitive.  They eagerly took notes and asked plenty of thoughtful questions.  I probably gave them a full year's worth of practice material.

An outdoor student performance at the KSMF

On Friday I played an afternoon concert with the JazzFM Youth Big Band, comprised of Toronto's top high school jazz students.  These kids can really play!  Drummer Ted Warren and saxophonist Kelly Jefferson were also featured guests.

Performing with the JazzFM Youth Big Band

I have taught at many jazz camps over the years but this one is by far my favorite.  I highly recommend it to aspiring young jazz players.  The location is gorgeous, the price isn't exorbitant, the faculty are superb, and the evening concerts rival what you would hear in a Toronto or New York jazz club.  For info about next year's camp, visit the Kincardine Summer Music Festival's web page: http://www.ksmf.ca.  I hope to see you there next summer! 

Ralph Bowen and Earl MacDonald
enjoying the view at Lake Huron

Summer Reflections

During this first week of the new school year, I continually hear students and faculty asking one another how their summer was and what they did.  One colleague asked me to list the three highlights of my summer.  I found myself stumbling for an answer --- probably because I’m usually so focused on the present/future.  When I did collect my thoughts, there were some great memories to relate.  Here’s a brief recap:

Kincardine Summer Music Festival:

This was my first summer teaching and performing at the KSMF in Ontario, Canada.  My friend, Toronto-based trombonist Jules Estrin, runs the camp.  Many of the faculty were old school mates from McGill University in Montreal.  It was nice to catch up with them, and they have all become incredible players and effective teachers.  Students came from all over Ontario and there was a nice mix of teens and adults.  The days were well structured with a mix of master classes, small and large ensemble rehearsals, workshops and concerts.  Having the faculty perform each night with a variety of special guests was one of many things that distinguish this camp from many of the others at which I have worked over the years.  There is no substitute for hearing the music played at a high level, and I think it really inspired the students.  Hearing the impressive Jazz.FM91Youth Big Band with trombonist Al Kay (of Rob McConnell/Boss Brass fame) was a highlight for me, as well as accompanying my old friend Denzal Sinclaire.  What a voice!

Bushnell Park Monday Night Jazz Performance:

Two days after getting home from Kincardine I performed with my 10tet, the Hartford Jazz Society’s New Directions Ensemble.  It is always a kick to play in front of an audience of 5,000 or so.  I hired my favorite recording engineer, Peter Kontrimas to document the evening and am looking forward to hearing how the recording turned out.  Here is some concert footage of my new composition, “Mirror of the Mind”.  It is my tribute to “Prof”, the late William Fielder (1938-2009), who was the professor of trumpet at Rutgers University back when I did my graduate studies there. 

Josh Evans is the trumpet soloist.  The piece also featured Kris Allen on alto saxophone.

I am currently writing an extensive plan of ensemble activities to submit to the Hartford Jazz Society’s grant writer.  We look forward to working hand-in-hand with the jazz society, in their efforts to promote, preserve and pioneer jazz performance in the Greater Hartford area.

Camp of the Woods:

Although music is a very important part of my life, these days it takes a back seat to my family.  I deliberately planned to spend a significant amount of time with my wife and kids this summer and we had some great times together.  One of the absolute high points was our week at the Camp of the Woods, a Christian resort and conference center in the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York.  We slept in a tiny cottage, but most of our time was spent outdoors doing activities like canoeing, hiking, playing on the beach, swimming, mini-golfing, foosball, basketball, and rock climbing.  Every morning they had a reputable Christian speaker for the adults (Tony Evans, from Dallas), with children’s programming for our kids.  It was nice to be able to spend some quality time just with my wife.  We ran a 5K race together, and Jana won her age division! The camp even had an extensive music staff, which included a full studio orchestra (wind ensemble plus rhythm section, strings and vocalists).  Most of the instrumentalists were grad students from conservatories across the US.  Church music is often nothing short of torture for me, so this was a great surprise and very refreshing.  We left spiritually uplifted, inspired and well rested.  I highly recommend this vacation spot and hope to return there for years to come.

So there you have it… three high points, of many, in my summer.