Mom played the piano quite well, and when the spirit moved her, she would play great classical pieces such as Rachmaninoff’s Prelude in C# Minor…..Dum….Dum….Dum….three chords in low octaves to start the piece. All of us could hum the first bars to this piece in our sleep. I think this was her concession to being a secret “pinko” given that he was a Russian composer. I was going to do my 5th grade composition on Rachmaninoff’s life, but switched at the last moment to Felix Mendelssohn, for whom I found a nice reference in the World Book Encyclopedia. It was a time when I was flexing my literary muscle.
Mom also played more "contemporary" tunes (and I use the term loosely) whenever uncles Harold or Derald came over. They would sing and she would accompany them on the piano. Most of these were church tunes or show tunes from the 40s. Her mastery of the keyboard was an inspiration to Ron who, after 3 years of technical lessons, was able to master “Old Black Joe” for a recital….nowadays quite politically incorrect! I think that was the pinnacle of Ron’s musical career. What a pity! Such talent lost.
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