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I just saw an episode of CBS News Sunday Morning that contained a feature with Eugenia Zuckerman. I was saddened to learn that she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease, but I was not surprised to learn that she had become a spokesperson for those trying to increase awareness and eradicate the disease. Eugenia, I wish you much success and happiness in the coming years. Thank you for all you have done and all you will still continue to do for the arts and for those with Alzheimers. No matter what you may not remember along the way, we will never forget what you have contributed to our lives.

For more information, see https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiax4Kx1abmAhVOR60KHaAKApEQFjABegQIBhAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cbsnews.com%2Fnews%2Feugenia-zukerman-on-keeping-her-sense-of-humor-and-dignity-in-the-face-of-alzheimers%2F&usg=AOvVaw2aN-i-qiTUoWs1NJvfuA89

I had the privilege of attending a recital at Tate Hall on the CPCC campus in Charlotte, NC last evening. I am not a professional critic. Far from it, but I just wanted to share my experience. It had been a long time since I’d been able to attend a flute recital of any kind, so it was food for my soul. I had never heard Mr. Bouriakov play before, and when the person who took my admission fee told me I was in for a treat, she was not kidding.

He began the evening with the C.P.E. Bach Sonata for Flute and Continuo in G Major. I caught myself watching his hands, which is not something I usually do. He had such a delicate touch both in his fingers and in the sound. His sensitive delivery and phrasing were absolutely beautiful, and I thought to myself, “Wow, if this is what he does with the Bach, I can’t wait to hear what he does with the French composers!”

The concert proceeded with a Sonata for Flute and Piano by Otar Taktakishvili. The concert notes stated that “Denis looks outside the standard flute repertoire for works that allow the flute to shine.” While I am no expert, I am unfamiliar with the Taktakishvili, and I am assuming this is one of those pieces outside the standard repertoire. (?) In any case, I’m a fan, and I’ve found a new piece I want to acquire and learn.

The evening continued with the Enesco “Cantibile [sic] et Presto” and the Chaminade Concertino. They did not disappoint, either. I won’t go into details, but they were absolutely lovely and made me want to pull both pieces back out of the file cabinet and dust them off. While I can never aspire to the agility and speed of his technique, I would love to try to capture some of the fluidity of Mr. Bouriakov’s interpretation. He followed with the Saint-Saens Romance, which was lovely as well.

He ended the program (not counting the Bach encore) with Waxman’s Carmen Fantasy. I’ve always regarded the Carmen a bit like I do much of Liszt’s work, not necessarily as valuable for its musical worth as for its ability to allow the performer to show off. However, Bouriakov did it such justice, and with a technique like his, it SHOULD be shown off! He is amazing. The piece ended to the whoops and cheers of the audience, bringing it to its feet in a standing ovation.

Thank you, Denis Bouriakov and Vahan Sargsyan (piano) for sharing your talents with a very grateful Charlotte audience on an incredibly stormy evening. Thank you, too, J.L. Smith and Company and Altus flutes for making it all possible. It was worth braving the storm and so much more to be a part of your evening!

My old state-of-the-art Korg electronic tuner has been through the wringer, and after a bzillion moves, I’ve lost the cord that lets me plug it in to the wall. So that led me to join the 21st century in search of app on my iPhone that would let me tune anytime, anywhere. I stumbled upon the Tuner Lite app from p!usadd, because the price was right…FREE! There is a paid version of this app, but I have found that the free version is quite adequate for my needs.

There are two modes for tuning: one that uses your phone’s speaker that will play the pitch for you, and another that uses your phone’s microphone, which visually represents your pitch on a spectrum with a needle, analog-style. (I usually use the latter.)

You can adjust the sensitivity of the app, which is helpful if you are trying to tune in a particularly noisy environment. Look for that option under the “settings” gear located in the lower right-hand corner of the screen.

You can calibrate it to a setting besides 440 Hz if you need to, and I’m not quite sure what the limits of calibration are. I didn’t bother to check that out, but I took the settings all the way down to 400 and up as high as 460, when I was playing around with it one day, but it could have gone beyond that range. I can’t imagine needing to go anywhere nearly that far, but it’s nice to know you have options.

For those of us to whom aesthetics are important, you can even change the color of the metronome by swiping left or right. There are 4 options: red, blue, black, and white.

There are other options available on the paid version, such as wallpaper, transposition, and temperament. If you’re just looking for a basic, no frills, equal temperament, chromatic tuner, though, I can heartily recommend this one. I’ve used it to work with several different ensembles and have found it to be reliable and very handy.

If you have a favorite tuner, please let me know!

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