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I just finished reading A Romance on Three Legs, Katie Hafner’s extensively researched non-fiction work about Glenn Gould’s decades-long love affair with a very particular instrument, a Steinway known as CD318 (C to signify its special status as having been designated for the use of Steinway Concert Artists, and D denoting it as the largest — nine feet — built by the company).
The brilliant Canadian pianist was famously finicky about the action and tone of his pianos, preferring an extremely responsive, light keyboard with a dry, almost harpsichord-like sound (he rarely used the sustain pedal).
The book, subtitled Glenn Gould’s Obsessive Quest for the Perfect Piano, goes into great detail about not only the incredible skill and care that goes into making a concert grand, but also about the way Gould became a real thorn in the side of Steinway & Sons, who bent over backward to please the idiosyncratic artist until he finally discovered his musical match in the corner of the Eaton’s showroom in downtown Toronto.
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Glenn Gould. (Winnipeg Free Press Archives)
CD318 travelled the world with Gould (often accompanied by master tuner Verne Edquist, who devoted most of his professional life to the pianist’s particular whims and who also has a fascinating story) until he gave up touring permanently; thereafter it was the only piano he would use to record.
The grand was damaged beyond repair when careless movers apparently dropped it; it now resides in the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, along with the curious, sawed-off stool Gould used when he played.
The instruments being played at the Centennial Concert Hall next weekend might not be as finely made or as pure of tone as CD318, but they have their own stories to tell.
On Dec. 3, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, with the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba, presents Violins of Hope, featuring concertmaster Gwen Hoebig and first violinist Sonia Lazar performing on two violins that once belonged Jewish musicians who perished at the hands of the Nazis. (See Saturday’s Arts & Life section for the full story from Holly Harris.)
They have been lovingly restored by Israeli luthiers Amnon and Avshalom Weinstein as part of their Violins of Hope project, a collection of violins, violas and cellos, many of which belonged to Jews before and during the Second World War.
“Strange how potent cheap music is,” Noël Coward wrote; the same could be said for cheap instruments. Unlike CD318, many of these violins and cellos were likely humbly made and didn’t live the coddled life of a concert grand. But their survival is a testament to the way our appreciation of music goes beyond pristine tone or even perfect technique. It’s given meaning through memory, touching us in ways that are often impossible to articulate.
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What’s up this week
Alexandre Dumas’s swashbuckling epic storms Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre starting Thursday as The Three Musketeers brings Aramis, Porthos and Athos, and their pal D’Artagnan to the stage in Catherine Bush’s adaptation of the 1844 novel. It runs to Dec. 17; tickets and info are here.
Hinode Taiko, Winnipeg’s venerable drum troupe, is celebrating its 40th anniversary with two shows at the Centre culturel franco-manitobain, Saturday, Nov. 26, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 27, at noon. Hikari, which means “the light leading the way,” will feature the première of original compositions by new artistic director Yuzo Nozoe.
The concert will be centred around the big drums (taiko), but will also showcase other percussion, dance, vocals, flute, and koto (Japanese harp). A reception will follow each concert; attendees are asked to wear masks except when eating or drinking.
Hikari concert tickets are $25, available here.
Selkirk-born singer-songwriter William Prince brings his Until We Meet Again tour to the Burt on Saturday, Nov. 26, at 8 p.m. The deep-voiced folk storyteller, who played three sold-out shows at the West End Cultural Centre a month before the pandemic shut everything down, released a single this year with Serena Ryder, Sing Me a Song, that hit the CBC top 20. Only a handful of tickets ($36-$48) are left at Ticketmaster.
Also at the Burt are ‘90s rock mainstays the Headstones, performing tonight. The Kingston, Ont.-formed band fronted by Hugh Dillon just released a new album, Flight Risk. Tickets are $50-$74 at Ticketmaster.
Juno-winning Vancouver alt-rock band Dear Rouge — married couple Drew and Danielle McTaggart — comes to the Park Theatre on Tuesday, Nov. 29, in support of its latest album, Spirit, recorded with producer Thomas D’Arcy; Hotel Mira opens. Tickets are $25 at Eventbrite.
Also on offer: Goofy, Mickey and the rest of the gang lace up their skates for Disney on Ice this weekend, string kings The Fretless invite round out their sound with local guests at the WECC, the Barra MacNeils kick off holiday concert season, the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra’s monthly Vinyl Vault record sale returns, and art-house films from near and far run at the Cinematheque (including a 4k restoration of Guy Maddin’s Tales from the Gimli Hospital). Check out this week’s What’s Up column for more details.
Recommended
TV: I’m only a couple of episodes in, but so far I’m impressed by The English, a Prime Video western starring Emily Blunt as a British noblewoman who has travelled to the United States to exact revenge on the man who killed her son. She meets up with a taciturn Pawnee man, Eli Whipp (Chaske Spencer), who fought in the U.S. army and is now hoping to claim the land promised to every soldier, his own lands having been stolen.
Actors Emily Blunt, left, and Chaske Spencer, right, attend the premiere of Prime Video’s “The English” at Metrograph on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2022, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
Created by Hugo Blick (The Honorable Woman), it’s a slowly unfolding story, filled with loathsome villains and beautifully shot Prairie vistas, that delivers some moral conundrums.
Weirdly, the first episode features two of my faves, Ciarán Hinds (absolutely terrifying!) and Toby Jones; the U.K. actors also star together in another new release, The Wonder, an adaptation of Emma Donoghue’s novel, on Netflix.
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