Video-Concerts

PERFORMING AMIDST A PANDEMIC:
FREDERICK MOYER’S GROUND-BREAKING VIDEO-CONCERTS

Dover, NH, August, 2020

During the last five months, when concert halls everywhere have gone dark, pianist Frederick Moyer has performed over 70 concerts for audiences throughout the US, bringing the uplifting power of music to audiences isolated due to the pandemic. His “Video-Concerts” combine exceptional musical artistry with technological innovations that allow him to play solo repertoire, concertos with orchestra, jazz standards with his trio, speak, show images and videos all without leaving his home.

A Video-Concert is the perfect synchronization of many moving parts — first being Moyer himself, who has been a full-time concert pianist for over three decades having played at such venues as Wigmore Hall, Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, Suntory Hall in Tokyo and Sydney Opera House. Also in operation during the performance are a newly renovated 1939 Steinway Concert Grand Piano, recording equipment from Moyer’s recording company JRI Recordings, his patented MoyerCam (a projection device that displays a close-up of the performer’s hands on the underside of the piano lid), four video-cameras, a sound system, two computers, two projectors, and various hidden switches. Post-production is done remotely on his computer by Gabe Johnson, a computer programmer from Minnesota. The resulting video looks like it was created by a large staff, when in fact Moyer is the only person in the room.

Video-Concerts have allowed Moyer to realize his dream of combining a wide variety of music and instrumentations into one performance. A typical program includes Schumann’s Third Sonata (in a version that includes a never-before-published last movement uncovered by Fred’s uncle), Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini using a wonderful orchestra accompaniment created by Music Minus One, Moyer’s own transcriptions of jazz pianists Marian McPartland and Oscar Peterson played along with Fred’s colleagues Peter Tillotson, bass and Peter Fraenkel, drums; and Samai, a Turkish tune by Goksel Baktagir, improvised by Moyer and oudist Iyad Staiti, who Moyer met in December during a visit to Palestine — Staiti’s performance is projected on the underside of the lid of the piano. The synchronizing of these recordings with Moyer’s performance is done using Moyer’s own USolo software. Moyer’s Video-Concerts display the versatility and possibilities of the piano in a way that would be impractical in a live recital.

So far, most of Moyer’s audiences for Video-Concerts have been retirement communities. The elderly are the population most affected by the pandemic, and many retirement communities are on lockdown, leaving residents feeling isolated. Moyer works hard to show that this performance is made especially for them. He projects the community’s logo on a back wall, and projects photos of the community on the MoyerCam. He greets residents and staff by name. The Video-Concert is usually broadcast through the community’s in-house television channel and then put into a private area of YouTube for residents to watch at their leisure on their computers. Sometimes, the initial broadcast is followed by a Zoom reception hosted by Moyer. Says Moyer, “The Zoom reception is the icing on the cake. I even wear the same outfit that I wore when I recorded the concert, which in a kind of fun way gives the impression that I just performed it, which of course isn’t the case. Often the audience members pour themselves a glass of wine, although it’s strictly BYOB.” These performances are beloved by the audience, with many communities requesting a second and third. Moyer receives many letters from audience members who describe the concerts as “marvelous” and “sensational” – wrote one resident: “It almost seemed like a time before the virus. It was a gift.”

All art is created within restrictions: whether it is the meter of a poem, the instruments in a chamber work, the dimensions of a movie screen. With the Video-Concert, Moyer has created his own work of art from the unique restrictions of the health crisis. As Moyer puts it: “While I miss the immediate connection with my audiences, these Video-Concerts are something between a recording and a live concert — offering some of the best of both worlds. I hope to continue finding new ways to make them better.”

Click here to see one of Moyer’s video-concerts: https://youtu.be/Ak0CTB2zS-A