August 3, 2010

Pierre-Alain Volondat.



-------> Plage des Canebiers the other night. Not just boats and buoys bobbing bewitchingly in the distant sunset...but also a piano on a dock. Not just any piano - a 8' 11 3/4" (274cm) Steinway grand piano - and not just any player to accompany this instrument, but a certain French pianist named Pierre-Alain Volondat. This is what it looked like:





This is what he looked like. Amazing.



This is what it sounded like when he played Ravel, Debussy, Moussorgski.



At some point during the concert, between one of these stunners, he just stopped. He stopped, turned to the lantern lighting him on the right, glared at it and after a hanging pause, he placed a hooked forefinger on his lips (we could see the profile of his face where we were installed, sitting cross-legged in the sand) and ventilated: "Je m'aperçois que je ne suis pas seul." ("I have the impression that I am not alone"). Then he went on attacking the piano.

Only in St. Tropez is such an episode possible. (Think, a lot of money - too much - jammed into a really small beach village). Apart from the yachts, that is not a complaint.

3 comments:

Marnie said...

Man alive! How do you manage to find all these events, Emilie! So lucky :)

Brad said...

What a memorable way to spend an evening. I'm jealous!

alpal said...

this is wonderful and beautiful in every way. you are sooo lucky! thanks for sharing.

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