Open House at Alpine Way Sunday, May 7

I would like to thank Beth Johnston, manager and Ron Wilkes, activities director for hiring me to play cello solos for residents and their visiting families today during lunch at Alpine Way Retirement Apartments. I played from 11:37 to 1:05, what I call a "fat hour," in the Special Care Unit.
The large audience was very appreciative of the melodies I played, most of which I have selected and arranged for myself, as sheet music available for the cello is pretty limited.
Moonlight Bay, Percy Wenrich 1912
Someone To Watch Over Me, George & Ira Gershwin, 1926
Begin the Beguine, Cole Porter, 1935
Night and Day, Cole Porter, 1932
Only You (and you alone), Buck Ram and Ande Rand, 1954
When You're Smiling, Mark Fisher, Joe Goodwin & Larry Shay, 1928
The Girl from Ipanema, Antonio Carlos Jobim & Vincius de Moraes, 1963
Ain't Misbehavin', Thomas "Fats" Waller, Harry Brooks & Andy Razaf, 1929
It Don't Mean A Thing (if it ain't got that swing), Duke Ellington & Irving Mills, 1932
What the World Need Now is Love, Hal David & Burt Bacharach, 1965
Spanish Eyes, Bert Kaempfert, 1965
I Love Paris, Cole Porter, 1934
Take the "A" Train, Billy Strayhorn, 1941
Volare (Nel Blue, Dipinto Di Blu), Domenico Modugno, 1958
Just One of Those Things, Cole Porter, 1935
The Way We Were, Alan & Marilyn Bergman, Marvin Hamlisch, 1973
By the Light of the SIlvery Moon, Ed Madden & Gus Edwards, 1909
Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera), Jay Livingston & Ray Evans, 1955
Don't Get Around Much Anymore, Bob Russell & Duke Ellington, 1942
Mairzy Doats (once sung by Bing Crosby), Milton Drake, Al Hoffman & Jerry Livingston, 1943
It Might As Well Be Spring, Hammerstein & Rodgers, 1945
Don't Be Cruel (to a heart that's true), Otis Blackwell & Elvis Presley, 1956
I've Got the World on a String, Harold Arlen, 1932
Blue Skies, Irving Berlin, 1927
Chattanooga Choo-Choo, Harry Warren, 1941
I've Got A Crush On You, George Gershwin, 1930
As Time Goes By, Herman Hupfeld, 1931
It Had To Be You, Gus Kahn & Isham Jones, 1924
A Taste of Honey, Ric Marlow & Bobby Scott
My Blue Heaven, George Whiting & Walter Donaldson
Puttin' On The Ritz, Irving Berlin, 1928
Georgia On My Mind, Hoagy Carmichael, 1930
What A Wonderful World, George David Weiss & Bob Thiele, 1967
Tennessee Waltz, Redd Stewart & Pee Wee King, 1948
Isn't It Romantic?, Lornz Hart & Richard Rodgers, 1932
I Don't Want To Set The World On Fire, the Ink Spots, 1941
Love Is Here To Stay, George & Ira Gershwin, 1938
Star Dust, Hoagy Carmichael, 1928
Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral--That's An Irish Lullaby, J.R. Shannon, 1913
Five Foot Two, Eyes of Blue (Has Anybody Seen My Girl?) Sam M. Lewis, Joe Young & Ray Henderson, 1925
Jeanie With the Light Brown Hair, Stephen Foster
Beautiful Dreamer, Stephen Foster
Fly Me To The Moon (in other words), Bart Howard, 1954
Unforgettable, Irving Gordon, 1951
Mona Lisa, Jay Livingston & Ray Evans
Stand By Me, Ben E. King, Mike Stoller & Jerry Leiber, 1961
Till there Was You, Meredith Willson, 1950
Blue Moon, Lorenz Hart & Richard Rogers, 1934
Moon River, Johnny Mercer & Henry Mancini, 1961

Pioneer Primary, May 3, 2006

On the invitation of Pat Peters, I agreed yesterday to fill in for entertainment that could not make it to Pioneer Primary today (see my entry from last year's Pioneer performance also). I played for about 25 minutes, then answered questions. What a great, polite, appreciative bunch of kids! Thank you all for having me out there.
I played the following songs:
Across the Universe (The Beatles, circa 1968)
In My Life (The Beatles)
Good Day Sunshine (The Beatles)
I Will (The Beatles)
Penny Lane (The Beatles)
Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da (The Beatles)
Do You Believe In Magic (John Sebastian, 1965)
You'll Be In My Heart (From Walt Disney's "Tarzan," 1999) (Phil Collins)
Colors Of The Wind (From Walt Disney's "Pocahontas," 1995) (Alan Menken)
Concerto in F (W.A. Mozart)
Suite No. 1 for Cello (J.S. Bach, 1685-1750)

Here are a few typical answers I gave to the many questions asked today.
"Yes, the cello is like a big violin you sit down and play; it's in the same family."
"This is the third cello I have owned. It was handmade in the early 1920's in New York by Czech immigrants."
"I started playing cello when I was about your age, in fourth grade. I turned 40 this year, so I've been playing for 30 years."
"No, I've never cut my hand on the strings."
"Now, I can learn most pieces in a week or so. But it used to take longer. The better you can read music, the quicker you can learn songs, so study your music theory and work especially hard on your counting, no matter what instrument you play."

Thanks again.