When I was 39 years old, I felt a strong urge to expand my musical horizons. This desire was the result of two major projects that had taken place during the first six months of 1988. First was the planning and recording of a solo piano album appropriately called I’m Beginning to See the Light, which I sold at my gigs. The second venture was organizing, arranging and directing the Second Annual Jazz Worship Service at the Hartford Street Presbyterian Church (where I have been the Music Director for the past three decades). This program featured selections from Duke Ellington’s Sacred Concerts.
Somehow, by the time June arrived that year, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that if I wanted to continue developing as a composer, pianist and teacher, I needed more musical training. One name instantly popped into my head: William Thomas McKinley. About 14 years prior to that, I had heard Tom perform with a jazz quintet at a concert in Worcester. His piano style was so unique and impressive, that his performance had remained etched in my mind for all those years. Knowing that he was also a classical composer, I promptly located and contacted him to inquire about taking lessons.
By now, you are probably wondering what this story has to do with today’s featured selection, Dearly Beloved.
Read on…..
When I first saw the music to Dearly Beloved in the Real Book, I wasn’t particularly excited by the tune. However, when I started listening to some of the tracks on Rhapsody Music, I was blown away! One after the other, vocal and instrumental alike, each version has something special to offer the listener. In addition to the terrific classic swing style performances by vocalists Nancy Wilson, Ruth Price and Joe Doggs, there is one that stands out.
Boston native, Meredith D’Ambrosio opens her version by singing the introduction in a rubato tempo before launching into a creative up tempo swing flavored with a bebop-like treatment of the lyrics. Husband Eddie Higgins combines his wonderful piano talents with has arranging expertise to make this a memorable recording. Coming from a totally different perspective are the Latin rhythm renditions by Cal Tjader and Don Baaska. I could go on, but I think that you get the idea.
For you, the piano student, Dearly Beloved is truly a song that offers you the opportunity to personalize your performance. This is why I shared my Tom McKinley story. A couple of months into my training with Tom, he taught me an important lesson that rings true with Dearly Beloved (as well as with several of Jerome Kern’s other songs). When it comes to improvisation and interpretation, simpler is better. The 32 measures of this standard contain a great deal of literal repetition in addition to the fact the harmony is filled with easy-to-negotiate ii-V and ii-V-I progressions. It’s somewhat ironic that the composer not only disliked jazz, but also thought that his songs should only be performed in the context of the shows for which they were written.
I suppose he wouldn’t have been happy if he knew that two of the songs (featuring Johnny Mercer’s lyrics) from the 1942 film You Were Never Lovelier, Dearly Beloved and I’m Old Fashioned served as the subjects of my blog posts seventeen months apart. Fortunately for us, more than 65 years after their composition, we have a new Jerome Kern tradition, because so many great performers have seen the value of the composer’s simpler is better approach to writing.
How about you? Do you need some help learning how to personalize your piano performances of your favorite songs?
The Ed Mascari Piano Studio teaching approach is designed to help you do just that. Whether you live near to our conveniently situated Natick Piano Studio location or close to our centrally located Hudson Piano Studio, you can get the guidance you need.
Contact us today to find out how you can better use your piano keyboard to realize your dream of learning to play the piano.
Remember, each of our teachers is dedicated to helping you learn to play the music you love!
