I was able to hold two recitals as planned on Saturday, March 6. My dad passed away the week before and despite canceling lessons for a week, my students pulled off their performances.
I shared a story about my dad and my senior recital in college. The music building was under construction and my recital was set for the West Institute (now Fine Arts West) at the University of Utah. My dad heard me complaining about the piano I would be playing and he secretly did something about it. He rented me an amazing one. When I found out, I had no idea what a fabulous piano a Fazioli was. I admit I was annoyed with my dad. I needed to play the piano before renting it to be sure I liked the sound, the action…the things that would help my performance. My dad responded, “How bad can a $95,000 piano be?” I tried it and loved it. I had lessons at Baldassin Pianos in North Salt Lake before store hours and it saved me a trip to Kaysville where my teacher was living at the time. Now I live near the site of the piano store. (It has since moved to Draper, Utah). My dad forgave me for my initial comments and I will forever be grateful for the sacrifice of my dad to make my event unforgettable.
