I've been working at the Irish Coffee Pub, off and on, in fits and starts, for almost three years now. The newest arrangement with the management seems to assure that I will be there on a very regular basis, at least throughout 2012.
Such regularity has brought on a new urge to blog, with the ICP gig as a theme. The "Ship Notes" blog a few years ago was a pretty decent first blog effort, with "Cruise Ship Piano Entertainer" serving as a unique vantage point from which to write.
Pianos are remarkably different in their sound. I can sit and play at thirty different pianos at Frank & Camille's, and discern thirty different timbres, with thirty different "actions".
The "action" of the piano is the group of mechanisms -- keys, hammers, flanges, pins, and other little doodads that result in 88 hammers hitting metal strings. Some "actions" allow the key to depress easily, for more rapid playing. However there are also "hard actions", where more force is necessary to depress the key. And there are endless variations on this idea, such that there seems to be a millon different "actions".
My point being -- I really love the piano at the Irish Coffee Pub. It's a Yamaha upright, with a terrific sound and a fairly easy action. The management keeps it tuned, without any prodding from me. I've been inspired to learn more tunes, and to stretch out and experiment with arrangements.
The dining crowd and employees at the restaurant have responded well to what I do. Later in the evening, as the diners depart, the entertainment frequently becomes boisterous and vocal, with the help of some old singalong fans who I've known for many years now, going back to the "Jolly Swagman Days" of 1997-2003. It's a distinct switch from one style of piano entertainment to another, and I love them both.
I've found a niche I like very much, and hopefully I'll get some good stories out of it, both informative and entertaining.
No comments:
Post a Comment