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Title: The Piano Shop on the Left Bank: Discovering a Forgotten Passion in a Paris Atelier by Thad Carhart ISBN: 0-375-75862-3 Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks Pub. Date: 12 March, 2002 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.34 (44 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Stuff I never even thought about...
Comment: Grew up as the atonal curmudgeon in a thoroughly musical household -- my mother got her BA in music at age 70 and still teaches piano at age 80 -- but Carhart walks one through the "quartier musique" in such a fashion that even I thoroughly enjoyed the stroll. His rediscovery of the piano begins with his own story but fear not, the book moves briskly away from the personal and captures the reader's attention and interest as Carhart writes of the wonderful complexity of this commonplace thing: the piano. The descriptions of the master classes and the visit to the Fazioli piano factory are brilliant concluding pieces to this very well-crafted volume. In essence the book embodies much of what Carhart has to tell us about the piano. As well he treats Paris and the French with due consideration and appreciation and never condescends to his reader. A delightful read that gains momentum.
Rating: 5
Summary: A Gentle "Thriller."
Comment: I held my breath throughout this enthralling account of Mr. Carhart's rekindled love of pianos and their potential to hold listener and performer spellbound. This is a marvelously written book to treasure for all the reasons other reviewers have already noted, including a fresh visit to an old section of Paris; Desforges, the special piano shop that invites personal introspection and new friendships amid the clutter of a wide variety of pianos and their disembodied parts; the seemingly impromptu lessons in piano history, construction, and restoration that offer wonder in the process as much as factual information; and a revisitation to a boyhood love-and-struggle relationship with the instrument and his teacher's expectations of its mastery. Beyond these attributes that keep the pages flying by, "The Piano Shop On The Left Bank" teases the reader's sense of reality. Is it a novel? Is it non-fiction? At times, I felt lost among the genres, not through any fault in the writing; quite the opposite, the immersion in this volume was so complete for me that at times I had to put the book aside to convince myself that I was not sipping tea and eating madeleines with a very different author. I appreciated Mr. Carhart's openness in drawing the reader into an intimate world that described a sensitive boy deriving tactile, visual, and, ultimately, aural pleasure in lifting up the piano's revealing fall board. And there are so many other moments to savor. Just a few include: visits to Luc's musty atelier and the once-weekly watering of its well-worn floor boards; Carhart's moment of boyhood pleasure at an upright in a hotel bar; the childhood lessons and recitals that caused such anxiety; his solitary delight at the Bechstein in the music room of his sister's school; the bonds he forged with Luc as they went through the process of deciding upon a piano of his very own; his joyful expectation while awaiting its delivery; and the return to his music studies as an adult, this time on his own terms. I hope that this special book will be read widely; it has much to offer beyond the subject of the piano.
Rating: 5
Summary: For the love of the piano
Comment: Thank you, Thad, for so beautifully capturing the vast range of emotions that pianos stir in their aficionados. What a gem! This book will become a classic, just like the classic pianos that mysteriously show up and pass through Luc's atelier. I greatly enjoyed Thad's command of language, his keen and affectionate observations of his French collegues (only in France would Thad be viewed as an American, in any other culture a person with such an in-depth understanding of the culture and fluency of language would have been adopted as a local), and the manner in which he conveys the feelings pianos evoke in him. I also enjoyed the growing familiarity between Thad and Luc and the evolution of humour in their discourses. And despite the tragedy of the situation, had to laugh when Thad - with utmost sensitivity - points out how the unfortunate alcoholic Jos would wake up in train stations across France.
My preferred piano is the Sauter - I love the warmth and richness of its song - and most generously my mother gave me the piano that once brought much joy to dad. Just like Thad observes so well, one is often greatly attached to a particular instrument because a loved one who has since passed on used to play it. And hearing music come alive again, music that was once played by someone who no longer is alive, can cause strong emotions to surface. Shortly after my father passed on I attended an Evgeny Kissin (sp?) concert, and when EK started playing one of my father's favorite Chopin pieces, I could no longer control myself ... (I guess in a quiet concert hall you just try and quietly blow into a handkerchief). I also remember piano lessons I took as a child in France, and reading Thad's desciptions brought back memories. The teacher I had back then was not as gifted as some other ones in other countries at drawing out my enthusiasm for this wonderful instrument. Thad's logic when looking for an appropriate teacher for his children made a lot of sense.
The Piano Shop on the Left Bank is a most evocative book and a must-have for anyone who is affected by the sounds of a piano as well as the beauty of language.
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Title: Piano Lessons : Music, Love, and True Adventures by Noah Adams ISBN: 0385318219 Publisher: Delta Pub. Date: 10 March, 1997 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: Piano Pieces by Russell Sherman ISBN: 0374525005 Publisher: Noonday Press Pub. Date: June, 1997 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: Paris to the Moon by Adam Gopnik ISBN: 0375758232 Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks Pub. Date: 11 September, 2001 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: Beethoven's Hair : An Extraordinary Historical Odyssey and a Scientific Mystery Solved by Russell Martin ISBN: 076790351X Publisher: Broadway Pub. Date: 09 October, 2001 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
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Title: Temperament: How Music Became a Battleground for the Great Minds of Western Civilization by Stuart Isacoff ISBN: 0375703306 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 04 February, 2003 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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