{"product_id":"r-stern-my-blue-piano-aca","title":"R. Stern: My Blue Piano","description":"\u003cul\u003e \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eComposer\u003c\/strong\u003e: \u003ca href=\"\/fr\/collections\/robert-stern\"\u003eRobert Stern (1934-2018)\u003c\/a\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eEditor\u003c\/strong\u003e: Michael David Golzmane\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cstrong class=\"original-instrumentation-title\"\u003eInstrumentation\u003c\/strong\u003e: \u003cspan class=\"original-instrumentation\"\u003ePiano, Soprano, Tenor\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eWork\u003c\/strong\u003e: My Blue Piano (1995)\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli class=\"binding hidden\"\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBinding\u003c\/strong\u003e: \u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eWork Language\u003c\/strong\u003e: \u003cspan class=\"book-language\"\u003eEnglish\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eISMN\u003c\/strong\u003e: \u003cspan class=\"book-barcode\"\u003e9790600238224\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSize\u003c\/strong\u003e: \u003cspan class=\"book-width\"\u003e8.9\u003c\/span\u003e x \u003cspan class=\"book-length\"\u003e12.0\u003c\/span\u003e inches\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli class=\"book-pages hidden\"\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePages\u003c\/strong\u003e: None\u003c\/li\u003e \u003c\/ul\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"row\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e \u003c!-- split --\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"row\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"one-half columns\"\u003e \u003ch4\u003eDescription\u003c\/h4\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"feature_divider\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e \u003cp\u003erevised 2004\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRobert Stern's song cycle for soprano, tenor, and piano,\n\u003cem\u003eMy Blue Piano\u003c\/em\u003e\n, was composed in 1995 and draws its texts from Else Lasker-Schüler's exile-era cycle\n\u003cem\u003eMein blaues Klavier\u003c\/em\u003e\n(published in Jerusalem in 1943).\nThe work received its premiere on October 29, 1996, in Bezanson Recital Hall at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, performed by soprano Paulina Stark, tenor Jon Humphrey, and pianist Nadine Shank. The event was warmly received, with particular praise for the score's emotional immediacy, its fluid interweaving of German and English texts, and its vividly pictorial piano writing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFollowing this first performance, the same ensemble—Stark, Humphrey, and Shank—presented the work at Smith College on February 21, 1997, as part of that year's Five College New Music Festival. Later that fall, on November 8, 1997,\n\u003cem\u003eMy Blue Piano\u003c\/em\u003e\nwas featured at Abbey Memorial Chapel at Mount Holyoke College in a new interpretation by soprano Melinda Spratlan, tenor Christopher P. Aspaas, and pianist Gary Steigerwalt.\nIn 2004, Stern undertook a revision of the score, refining aspects of its vocal and pianistic textures. The revised version received its first documented performance on April 3, 2005, again in Bezanson Recital Hall, with Paulina Stark, William Hite now singing the tenor part, and Nadine Shank.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe revised edition incorporates a series of small but meaningful updates while preserving the overall structure and expressive character of the original version. Minor note adjustments appear throughout, several harmonies have been subtly refined, and select dynamic markings have been clarified or altered for greater musical impact. Issues of pacing and sectional tempo relationships have also been smoothed out or adjusted to enhance the continuity between sections.\nThe most substantial modification occurs in the final six bars of the third movement, which have been more significantly reworked. Apart from these updates, the piece remains largely unchanged, and the revised score remains essentially faithful to the 1995 original.\nThe revised edition presented here reflects the composer's final vision for a work that continues to resonate through its blend of lyrical vulnerability, luminous text-setting, and emotional depth.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"American Composers Alliance (ACA)","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44517490655311,"sku":"ACA-STER-008","price":26.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0900\/1828\/files\/34e4e3deced31cb32b0d081457bc84f1.webp?v=1780257114","url":"https:\/\/www.ficksmusic.com\/fr\/products\/r-stern-my-blue-piano-aca","provider":"Ficks Music","version":"1.0","type":"link"}