Master Class with Peter Mack - Sunday morning

Due to the time change and the crazy travel schedule, I didn't arrive at Professor Peter Mack's master class until the 2nd performer was about to perform.  Lucky for me, I got to see this amazing, witty, charming Irishman do his 'thing' on stage!   Also lucky for me, I got to hear a 16-yr old pianist, Alec Allee-Munoz, from Newbury Park, CA (student of Edward Francis) perform "Desperate Measures, op. 48 (Paganini Variations)" by Robert Muczynski.

After Alec performed the piece, Professor Mack worked with him, involving the audience of teachers at every opportunity.  Some thoughts from the professor's wonderful presentation:

Instead of thinking of this piece as a set of variations, think of it as one piece that can CREATE a set of variations.  Prof Mack stressed thinking of the overall set so that the audience will feel 'swept away.'

Then I hear the BEST COMMENT EVER in a Master Class. If there were an award for this category, Prof. Mack might very well win 1st, 2nd and 3rd prize!  He made a remark that this young pianist has very fashionable hair, but the 'sweep' hides his eyes. Mack stated, 'when I watch a pianist with their eyes hidden, I feel isolated.' He even stated that he keeps hair 'things' in his teaching studio & if students arrive for their lesson with hair in their eyes, he has them grab something to put in their hair to move it out of their eyes.  (He then made a remark that he lets them keep that, since he doesn't want a lice epidemic to spread! hahaha)

Professor Mack encouraged the student to 'crouch down' while playing the piano to show the audience a change to quiet dynamic level. He also pointed out that he likes his students to sit on the edge of the bench because they move more and it stops them from slouching.

Then, to demonstrate shaping of phrases, Prof Mack asked the student to play one section of music and play the one note that he should 'go to' within that phrase.  He then turned to the audience and asked them to clap at the point where the climax of the phrase should be and he further stated that if they didn't clap, he would look at them and single them out. HAHA!  The audience was clapping at every possible downbeat and Prof Mack pointed out to the student that this was because HE wasn't making it clear in his playing which note was important.  After the student played it again, with one note clearly standing out among the others, Prof Mack complimented the student that it was better, but that wasn't the note he would've chosen! Then he gave an analogy to think of your life. You wake up in the morning and you're at home, all calm and peaceful and relaxed.  Then you go out into the 'scary world' and how do you feel?  Then you go back home. He was encouraging the student to aim for the note that wasn't in the home key. The phrase should all go to one note and that one note is outside the harmonic area.

It seems that Prof Mack is full of analogies and stories as he gives a Master Class (and this is the first one I have ever seen! WHY!?)!   He was referring to a section where you can think of the tempo getting faster and faster in one section and then slower in another.  He said it's like the mad scientist in her laboratory mixing the chemical, but later she has compassion for her victim. "Listen to the bubbles and toxic chemicals."  Professor Mack had the audience in stitches the entire time!

At one point, the piece requires the pianist to play one measure piano and the next forte, and back and forth as such.  Prof Mack turned to the young pianist and said, "Tell me, can you keep a secret?"  He was encouraging the young man to keep a secret that the next measure would be an opposite dynamic. He suggested a practice technique for this: play one measure very loud, then pause, then play the next one very quiet, then pause, etc.  Change the body between loud and quiet.  Since it takes time to change the body, you'll take a bit of time between the changes.  As you practice, this amount of time will lessen.

In a 'scherzando' variation, Prof Mack reminded the young pianist to show us that he is at play. Don't look too serious. He told the student that it needs a bit more rubato to be creepy... (going back to a story about the mad scientist!). 

In the slow variation, he said it is about 'lingering.' He demonstrated at the piano, with hints of singing along. He told the student this is really a contralto singing, and you don't ever hurry contraltos!  HAHA!  "You have time."

He also reminded the pianist that the music has a bit of 'teasing.'

It is very difficult to capture in words how one would describe a Peter Mack master class. I'm convinced that Peter should be in the movies.  I'd pay to see him as a 'character' in a movie like Batman or Spiderman!  It was a pleasure to watch him sing, dance and play his way through teaching this young student.  (LUCKY STUDENT!!!)