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My Musical Odyssey

When I was growing up I was encouraged by a number of people in the classical music world to work toward becoming a concert pianist. I considered that path intermittently as a child and teenager, but I had too many other interests that distracted me from spending enough time practicing the piano. Plus, I had a severe problem with stage fright.
Eventually I became a professional ventriloquist, and I'm very glad that I did. It has felt like the perfect art-form for creative expression for me, and I have never experienced much stage fright while doing it. It has felt very gratifying to be able to bring joy and laughter to so many people, especially to children.
I stopped playing the piano as a young adult and - for psychological reasons - I did not play it for many years. Then, when my first daughter, Michelle, was born, I began playing songs on the piano for her. Then I started playing classical music for her. From an early age it was apparent that Michelle had an extraordinary talent for singing, so I soon became her accompanist. I introduced her to the jazz standards of the Great American Songbook that I love. I played them for her and with her at home and in concerts. We also performed her favorite Broadway and pop songs.
In high school Michelle's rare talent for classical singing was discovered and encouraged by my late cousin, Bruce Zemsky, of Zemsky-Green Opera Management. This led to Michelle choosing the path of classical singing. She is now graduating from Juilliard.
This has inspired me to reconnect with my suppressed passion for piano playing. I don't have the time to practice the piano as much as I'd like, but I'm working on finding more time for it. There is so much beautiful piano music that I now want to learn and play. Meanwhile, I have started a playlist of piano pieces that I have recorded at home. I hope to expand this playlist rapidly in the near future. If you'd like to check it out, you can bookmark it...https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSPEtPuQKKV6V9kvPp5JMw11j-Vm86PzE

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