Unlocking Beauty: A conversation with pianist Terry Eder, founder of “Key Pianists”
A remarkable act of musical and financial philanthropy is taking place in one of New York City’s loveliest jewel-box concert halls, the intimate Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. The series is known as Key Pianists, and 2016/2017 marks the second season of its existence.
Detroit-born pianist Terry Eder had the idea that there were certain pianists of merit who were being passed over, as it were, by the musical system. They play with “wisdom, insight, and sensitivity” and they deserve an opportunity to be heard to their best advantage, and audiences deserve to hear them, in an intimate, small hall with clear acoustics and good sight lines.
Ms. Eder, whose own musical accomplishments make her “key,” taught herself Hungarian, a notoriously difficult language, and studied the composers with whom she is closely identified: Bartók, Kodály, and Dohnányi, at the famed Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest.
Last year, to begin her enterprise, she presented the renowned Beethoven interpreter Peter Takács, a former teacher of hers, in a three-concert overview of Beethoven’s music (including chamber music): early, middle, and late. The concerts were very well-attended and received. Interested readers can access my reviews by clicking on the following links: Early Beethoven/ Middle Beethoven/ Late Beethoven.
Encouraged to continue, this season will have three concerts as well, each with its own pianist, the legendary Chopin specialist Ann Schein, Ms. Eder herself, and Sara Davis Buechner in a Japanese/French “fusion” recital.
Ms. Eder and I conversed over lunch recently. She is a petite, vivacious woman, with great passion for the piano and the experience of live music. After some years following a different career path (lawyer), she has returned to her first love. Her energy radiates; she practices four hours a day (quality instead of quantity); and she is now studying Mandarin Chinese.
To put it as succinctly as possible- Ms. Eder believes in the immediacy of the live concert experience, coupled with performers who possess not just great ability, but who also have charisma—the ability to create the chemistry of rapt attention among the audience. For this to happen, a small hall is ideal, thus Weill is the perfect location.
Ms. Eder wishes to change a general perception of the “third” hall in the Carnegie complex as merely a venue for debutant artists by presenting a high-quality, important series of events: Key Pianists. She stresses the importance of the live concerts as a communal activity of utmost value, especially in a technologically driven era like ours (the ubiquitous cell phone, social media, etc.).
A frequent attendee of the major piano series in New York series, Ms. Eder became troubled by the sameness of many of the presentations in the big halls—as well as the too-trendy avant-garde locations that are sprouting at a great rate. She is constantly searching for pianists who would fit the “key” quality. She stated that this is, by nature, quite subjective. She is looking for what she calls “sincerity with every note.” When I asked her about a “dream list” for the future, she ventured Janina Fialkowska, not often heard in the United States, let alone New York.
I mentioned philanthropy in paragraph one. These events are entirely financed by Ms. Eder herself, an immense tribute to those invited to perform, and a true commitment to bringing beauty to New York. For more information, follow this link: Key Pianists Series 2016/2017
Come hear what makes a Key Pianist, and unlock some beauty for yourself!
