Today, the 5th of July, the three boys performed for an hour-and-a-half for the Democrats Abroad 4th of July Celebration at an old - many centuries old - convent in Antigua.
The piano is under the first arch you can see to the left on the bottom level.
The piano was a grand, yes, but without pedals or a book stand. Pedals would have been helpful, but the stand was not necessary since the boys had all of their repertoire memorized. It was very dirty and out of tune, which was to be expected considering it was open to the outdoors. Our host, John Mann, always helpful, brought a damp rag and some pliers. Jeremy tried to turn some pegs, but they were too tight. He said when he travels again he'll take some tuning tools.
The boys began playing, and all went as well as could be expected considering the condition of the piano, but unbeknownst to them, on the balcony above them a group of teenage girls preparing for a dress rehearsal for a fashion show at the end of the month wanted to know who was playing the piano so well. They were having a photo shoot and several male models had come to be photographed with the young women.
The curious girls came downstairs and decided they preferred to be photographed with the piano players. To their credit, though the boys were surprised, they didn't miss a note when models decided to sit on the bench behind them or beside them. For years, my students have played a game I call Distraction where I will do anything to distract them while they perform a memorized piece. Today, these three young men demonstrated they have conquered that game!
This young lady sat down on the bench just as Karthik finished playing "Pink Panther,"
and said, "Can you teach me how to play that?"
Was Karthik just being polite or did he enjoy the attention? Or both?
This guard was also happy to pose with the piano players!
