Join story teller Marec Béla Steffens and pianist Tali Morgulis for an evening of storytelling and piano playing on Saturday, February 20, 7:30 p.m. in the parish hall of Christ the King Lutheran Church, 2353 Rice Boulevard, Houston, TX 77005. A requested donation of $20 will benefit the February Mission Offering for Feed the Homeless of Christ the King Lutheran church.
How do composers get their inspirations? You will witness one striking example. German writer Herbert Rosendorfer (1934-2012) describes in one of his tales how Franz Liszt, travelling incognito with his mistress, arrives in a small town in Tyrol. He borrows a grand piano and, under manifold difficulties, has it hand-carried to a lake in the Alps where he composes his piece, Bénédiction de Dieu dans la Solitude. Writer Marec Béla Steffens will read Rosendorfer’s tale (in English).
Tali Morgulis will then play the Liszt piece on the grand piano. (Don’t worry, you won’t have to hand-carry it). Marec will read his sequel to the story (likewise in English) in which the lake, enchanted by the piano music, leaves his place in the Alps and sets forth to find a spot where he can hear such wonderful sounds again.
Marec’s tale was included in a special edition in honor of Herbert Rosendorfer’s 70th birthday. Israeli-American pianist Tali Morgulis, a “pianistic firecracker” hailed for performances “full of power and emotion,” delivers vivid, imaginative programs to an ever-growing international audience, and is Associate Professor of Piano at the University of Houston Moores School of Music. Her love of the standard repertoire and passion for chamber music and contemporary works have led to a variety of engagements with many of the world’s leading orchestras, ensembles and soloists in the finest concert halls.