| Oct 21, 2010


Photo: Mayor Janet Gutowski presents Helen Praskey (photo left) with a paddle in recognition of her contribution to the arts scene in Arden.

Arden and the Arts celebrated its fifth anniversary last Saturday in front of the largest crowd ever to attend one the concerts.

The concerts have always been focused on the piano, which is fitting since they were originally organized by Ardenite Larry Lightstone, a dedicated piano tuner and unabashed lover of piano music. This year, with the addition of a baby grand piano that is now permanently located at the Kennebec Hall, piano music took centre stage once again.

The first half of the concert featured Michael Costello from Carleton Place. Costello is a versatile interpreter of the classical piano repertoire who matches his playing skill with an ability to put the audience at ease with his self-deprecating wit.

He began the concert playing a Schumann piece, followed by Turkish March by Mozart, Debussy’s Clair de Lune and a piece by George Gershwin.

Costello then talked about his abiding interest in the work of Frederic Chopin, and when he played two Chopin selections to end the first part of the concert, the audience could see the ease in his manner at the piano and hear a flow to the sound that was different from his approach to the works of other composers.

After the intermission, Central Frontenac Mayor Janet Gutowski made a presentation to Helen Praskey, the founder of the Arden Glee Club, in recognition of her contribution to the arts scene in Arden. The audience, a number of whom are Glee club members, could not have agreed more.

Martine Buissart, a mezzo-soprano from Montreal who now resides in Harlowe, took the stage next. With Michael Costello accompanying her on piano, and putting her at ease a little since she has not performed often as a soloist, she also went to the Gershwin songbook, performing Summertime and some other pieces. The audience was so taken with Martine Buissart that they gave her a standing ovation at the close of her performance.

For her encore Buissart sang an a cappella version of the Edith Piaf standard La Vie en Rose, which she performed in her native French.

Then, after having heard some well known classical pieces and Gershwin, the audience was treated to original music by local pianist and composer Shari Tallon.

Everlast in D minor is a piece Shari Tallon has developed over the years. It features a variation in pace and tone from section to section, without losing the thread of the melody, and it fit in with the Chopin theme of the night in its ability to create a peaceful mood in the listener.

Floating in A minor, her second piece, was more of a challenge to the listener, because even though the title suggests otherwise it has a more rumbling, complicated sound that forced the audience to concentrate more, whereas Everlast was easier to simply roll along with.

After an enthusiastic ovation for Shari Tallon, Michael Costello returned for a performance of the famous Heroic Polonaise by Chopin.

Costello had saved his best performance for last; he gave the Polonaise a rousing interpretation, and it was a fitting end to another enjoyable evening of piano music in Arden.

After the concert, Larry Lightstone, who continues to be involved with the concerts from his behind the scenes vantage point (and of course he tunes the piano), couldn't help mentioning that the audiences in Arden are particularly warm and welcoming to the artists that perform these concerts.

“This reception was a reassurance to me that appreciation of fine arts is not dead in Canada,” he said

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