How to Congratulate a Pianist

[Tatonik]

I'm in the midst of "Piano Notes" by Charles Rosen at the moment. When
I came upon this passage on the art of congratulating a pianist after a
performance that may not have been to one's liking, I felt a tinge of
recognition:

"Milton Babbitt had developed a large repertoire of the subtly
noncommittal: a good sample was 'You did it again!' The compliment
offered to me by another pianist that perhaps gave me the greatest
pleasure was one given after a concert in Paris: 'Congratulations on
your great success in New York!' (a recital that had been written up
with two columns and a picture in Time magazine). The greatest formula
of all had been developed by Nadia Boulanger, who, I am told, would come
backstage, hold your right hand in both of hers, look you straight in
the eye, and say, 'You know what I think!' (Vous savez ce que je
pense!)"

I believe I had something similar happen to me after I played one of the
two easy Beethoven sonatas in recital at school. My former piano
teacher, whom I will refer to as Anna for the purposes of this anecdote,
was in the audience and came up to me after the concert. Anna smiled at
me brightly and said, "Who is your teacher now?" At the time I thought
nothing of it. My belated interpretation is that she was trying to
determine any and all parties responsible for what I had just
perpetrated on stage, without putting it in so many words.

What's worse is that I didn't have a teacher at the time. I had
prepared the piece myself.

Anna was again in the audience a year or two later for my fateful
Brandenburg 4 outing. She happened to be sitting next to my mother.
After the applause had died, my mother remarked to Anna, "I couldn't
really hear him over all the other instruments." Said Anna, "Oh, *I*
heard him."

Anna is my Nadia.

[Andy Evans]

"We clapped until we stopped....."