Sophie played well and even emoted more at the keys with the awareness of the audience. I had to smile to myself, though, when she played her second piece an octave higher than written. When she returned to her seat, I asked her in a whisper if she realized that she had played it higher. She smiled, saying no, explaining that she felt soooo nervous when she played.
Matthew walked swiftly up front, sliding onto the bench, his hand starting the piece before his body came to a halt! Of course, his head was not "in the game" and the piece unraveled. He just started over again and then played fine.
Evan became dismayed when he got up to the piano and realized that he could not back the bench to his preferred distance from the instrument due to a step in the way. He did look rather cramped, and the close quarters appeared to cramp his style as well. He was shaky in his playing at first, but then settled in to the performance and finished well. He played the pieces that he performed in the recent competition and added the second movement to the Kuhlau Sonatina as well. He just began practicing the second movement after the competition, and I was impressed with how quickly he learned the movement and even memorized it!
While each child struggled somewhat with the performance, it still was a good and positive experience.
Before the recital, I debated whether to attend bringing Logan. Usually babies and recitals do not mix well. I decided to try it, even if it meant standing in the hallway the whole time. Logan weathered the hour and a half recital beautifully, and I only stepped out into the hallway with him for the last two performers (and still could listen through the open doorway while he crawled around.) It was cute how he was able to pick Evan's pieces out of the line-up after hearing them for so long. He started smiling with the familiar music and rocking in time.
Since I forgot the camera, I recorded the kids performing their pieces today. Evan just played the second movement of the Kuhlau Sonatina for this session. It became a game of concentration. Hear who won: Evan or Logan?
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