BSM
Holiday Wish List 2006
Last year, Bloomingdale faculty and staff offered a gift guide for music lovers—presents
any music student, listener, or performer might enjoy. This year, we
are taking a slightly different approach. Below, you will find a wish
list compiled by our faculty and staff—a varied collection of ideas from dream
presents to practical, less expensive items. We hope the list below provides
you with ideas for your own wish list or for the musician in your life! |
- Compiled by Bathsheba Marcus Conley
Janey Choi, violin faculty member, has a wish list with a lot
of variety:
 Mozart's Letters, Mozart's Life: Selected Letters edited by Robert
Spaethling offers the reader insight into the composer's life through
his own words. Published in 2000, this book was the first
translation of these letters in over sixty years and has been positively
reviewed for its faithfulness to the original German text.
$24.85 at amazon.com.
*
 iTunes Gift Cards "are always a great gift." Finally, tickets
to the Radio City Christmas Spectacular would be a fun way to ring in the holiday
season with a New York City classic.
iTunes gift cards available in varying amounts at itunes.com.
$40 and up for Radio City Christmas Spectacular tickets at radiocity.com.
Chen Chu, Director of Technology and Preparatory
Orchestra conductor has a wish list gift which will encourage anyone's
creativity:
A song composed by one of my students. "When we think of
gifts, what usually comes to mind is something that is wrapped
in a box. This holiday season, why not encourage your child,
yourself, or your student to write a short composition for a member
of the family. The music doesn't need to be notated. It
can be recorded and given as a CD or video. Or it can be
a live performance after a family dinner."
Jeremy Conley, Assistant Director, has a technology oriented
wish list this year:
 Noise Canceling Headphones would be "at the top of my list. These
are great for blocking out noise when you are listening to music
on a train or a plane." Jeremy recommends the Sennheiser
PXC 300 headphones.
$130 and up, available at various online and local audio retailers.
 Logic Express is a sequencer for Apple computers—a music creation
program—that "allows you to record live music, software
instruments, add effects, and mix it all together right on your
computer. If someone is interested in writing and recording music,
a sequencer is an ideal option and a worthy companion to standard
notation software." Similar products are available for PC as
well, such as Cakewalk.
$99 for students with ID at apple.com or at the Apple Store; $299
for the general public.
Jonathan Faiman, piano and composition faculty member, has an item on
his wish list which would be a great present for any performer:
Flash Recorders are portable machines which allow for easy recording of rehearsals
and performances in mp3 format. Transferring recordings to a computer
is a cinch with these, and Jonathan recommends a few specific models below.
$399.97 for the Edirol R-09
$695.97 for the Roland CD-2
$1849.97 for the Sony PCM-D1
available at sweetwater.com.
Carolyn Jeselsohn, cello faculty member, has a practical item on her wish
list this year:
Ultra light Yamaha music stand is made out of lightweight aluminum
and is easily adjustable.
$79.99 on musiciansfriend.com.
 Carolyn also recommends tickets to the Met's family production of The Magic
Flute as a gift for her students. This abridged version of Mozart's opera
is a great introduction to staged opera for children.
$15 and up on metopera.org. |
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Sachiko Kato, piano faculty member, has a true
wish list item plus a few more easily attainable items:
A newly refurbished Steinway B "would be nice. I would
also be happy with a gift card from amazon.com. For my students
I'd recommend a metronome, note cards, DVDs, or CDs that are
relevant to their musical study."
Steinway pianos are available at Steinway & Sons and other
piano retailers.
Practical gifts for music students can be found on sharmusic.com,
amazon.com, or other music retailers.
Nilsa LaSalle, Administrative Assistant, recommends including
gifts from novanatural.com on any music student's wish list:
"I order from this website for my environmentally conscientious
gifts. This company makes toys and musical instruments from
all natural materials. Their products encourage creativity
and include song books, drums, and other instruments."
$10 and up on novanatural.com.
Alysia Lee, voice faculty member, has tickets to some exciting upcoming
performances on her wish list:
Lincoln Center Gift Certificates. "I think the best musical gift
is to experience live music. I would use a gift certificate to Lincoln Center
to purchase tickets to a few of the American Songbook series performances." Alysia
also plans to include tickets to a variety of other performances on her
wish list, including Susan Graham in recital at Carnegie Hall on January
29; Justin Timberlake at Madison Square Garden on February 7; the Jazz at
Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis in late March; and tickets
to the Broadway musical Grey Gardens.
Lincoln Center Gift Certificates, $25 and up on lincolncenter.org.
Susan Graham tickets $25 and up at carnegiehall.org.
Justin Timberlake's concert is sold out but tickets may be available on
ebay.com or similar sites.
Wynton Marsalis tickets available for $37.50 and up at jalc.org/concerts.
Grey Gardens website: greygardensthemusical.com. Tickets
available at telecharge.com for $36.25 and up.
Bathsheba Marcus Conley, Director of Student Services and Foundation
Giving and piano faculty member, has three items on her musical wish list
this year:
 iHome iH6 Dual-Alarm Clock Radio lets you wake-up and fall asleep to
your favorite tunes on your iPod. "I find I only listen to my iPod
when I'm on the move, but I have my whole music collection stored on it. This
system would allow me to easily listen to the music on my iPod when I'm
at home too."
$99 at apple.com.
LP to CD or Cassette to CD Recorders "are essential for people who have
favorite recordings on LP or especially cassettes. Recently I needed
to get access to some recordings that were available only on cassettes
that looked like they might fall apart at their next playing. I
found myself thinking what a shame that these great out-of-print albums
weren't on CD. These recording systems allow you to do it yourself
and save those valued home and store-bought older recordings."
$99 and up for various models at select electronic retailers.
 Charles Ives: Piano Sonata No. 2 Concord, Mass. 1840 recorded
by Gilbert Kalish is "definitely on my wish list this year. I have
wanted to own this definitive recording of the massive Concord Sonata
for a while-it's a CD I would enjoy listening to and also learn a lot
from."
$10.98 on amazon.com.
Marc Peloquin, Resident Teaching Artist, has a wish list with
a Chopin theme:
 Chopin's Funeral by Benita Eisler is "a wonderful
short biography of Chopin." The book begins with a description
of the composer's funeral and then flashes back to Chopin's arrival
as a composer in Paris. While not a scholarly review of
Chopin's life, the book is well written and offers a terrific overview
for anyone interested in the composer.
$11.65 on amazon.com or other booksellers. |
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 Chopin: Piano Sonatas Nos. 2 and 3 is a new recording on
the Virgin Classics label performed by the "wonderful, young Norwegian
pianist Leif Ove Andsnes. I have heard his Liszt playing
and he has a great sense of architecture which makes me think he
would be great with Chopin's massive B minor sonata."
$6.98 on amazon.com or other audio CD retailers.
Tia Roper, flute faculty member has some ideas
which any flute player would love:
Double Wood Flute Stand allows flute players to keep two instruments
displayed and ready to play at any moment.
$53.95 on fluteworld.com.
Flute Journal, a hardcover journal with a 100% silk cover embroidered
with a flute design is "great for people who keep a journal and
love to write."
$14.95 on fluteworld.com.
Imageline Studio Producer Edition Digital Audio Software offers "computer
and music lovers a recording studio in their own home." The
program is one of the most complete virtual studios currently available.
$149.99 on samash.com.
Inka Rudnycka, early childhood faculty member, has a unique present on
her wish list:
A Bass Recorder. "I enjoy playing recorder, and
already have soprano, alto, and tenor instruments. It's fun to be
able to switch from one to another. The difference in price from
a tenor to a bass is amazing."
$189 and up on musiciansfriend.com or other woodwind retailers.
Baby Maracas. "I am always looking to expand my personal collection
of early childhood instruments, and the transparent plastic baby maracas
with colorful beads are one item I would enjoy having." These maracas
would be perfect for Inka's Baby's First Music Class or for anyone
who has a young child at home.
$2.95 for Baby Maracas by Edushape on amazon.com.
Kevin Shihoten, Project Manager, has a wish list item perfect for any pianist
who enjoys playing Beethoven:
Henle Edition of Beethoven Piano Sonatas, Volumes I and II "are true wish
list items. These volumes are expensive, but offer invaluable access
to some of the greatest works for piano in an authentic, high quality edition."
$51.95 and up on henle.de.
Brandon Vazquez, Director of the Music Access Project and Development
Associate has a jazz-themed wish list in keeping with his musical
tastes:
Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers - Live in '58 DVD. "I'm
excited about this brand new DVD which features what many consider
to be one of the finest line-ups in the history of jazz. The
footage on this DVD is being released for the first time and is
a collector's item for any serious jazz fan."
 Two tickets for Red Hot Holiday Stomp with Wynton Marsalis & Friends. "It
would be easy to get into the holiday spirit at this Christmas
show at Jazz at Lincoln Center. The program features Wynton
Marsalis, one of the greatest living jazz trumpet players in the
world, playing holiday Christmas classics swung by the Jazz at
Lincoln Center Orchestra." Shows run from December 14th-16th.
$37.50 and up at jalc.org.
Monica Verona, Resident Teaching Artist, has two items on her wish list
any piano player would enjoy:
The Art of Piano Playing by Heinrich Neuhaus and Principles
of Pianoforte Playing by Josef Lhevinne are "two bibles of piano
playing." Both books offer insight and tips to pianists trying
to improve their skills.
$24.21 for The Art of Piano Playing and $4.95 for Principles
of Pianoforte Playing on amazon.com.
*Prices are based on recent information available on the Internet.
Retailer listings do not reflect Bloomingdale School of Music's endorsement. |
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