It came to me in a flash of pure inspiration. It was written over a period of a day and a half, away from the piano, on a laptop computer while at work at a convenience store! The piece needed only a little bit of polish (cutting measures, at one point making two into one). I still have the old laptop with the original file on its hard drive, with the measures that I elided. It is dedicated to my college teacher, Susie Francis Dempsey, because from the beginning I felt it represented her and her style of playing. This is one of the most technically challenging of my pieces, one that I have to practice to "keep up" myself.
I gave the premiere on May 22, 2005 in a
studio recital at First Baptist Church on the Square in LaGrange, Georgia. This is the performance in the video below. Dr. Dempsey performed it on May 17, 2006 at a
luncheon for the Knox Concert Series and in a studio recital on May 20.
This piece was my "breakout piece" - the one that made me known outside of LaGrange. I sent copies to some of my pianist friends in some of the Yahoo groups, and it caught on. Adam Yoon made the first private recording of it, one I have on cassette and still treasure, since Adam is no longer with us. My friend Emily Moe sent it - and some of my other work - to pianist, author, and Liszt scholar Dr. Elyse Mach, who played and taught it for some time.
Roxanne Rea at Atlanta music retailer Hutchins and Rea also tells me it has "gone international" - she has shipped at least one copy overseas.
This piece was my "breakout piece" - the one that made me known outside of LaGrange. I sent copies to some of my pianist friends in some of the Yahoo groups, and it caught on. Adam Yoon made the first private recording of it, one I have on cassette and still treasure, since Adam is no longer with us. My friend Emily Moe sent it - and some of my other work - to pianist, author, and Liszt scholar Dr. Elyse Mach, who played and taught it for some time.
Roxanne Rea at Atlanta music retailer Hutchins and Rea also tells me it has "gone international" - she has shipped at least one copy overseas.
This is the first
of my pieces to be commercially recorded.
Pianist David De Lucia included it on his third CD, “Show Some Emotion”,
released in April of 2005. I can't remember if I sent the music to him, or if he heard Adam play it and got the music from him. I'm sure David will clarify this for me in the future.
The Romance was originally privately published, and was available from Hutchins and Rea in hard-copy form. Many of my piano-playing Internet friends have played this piece, and I have at least three private recordings by them. Pianist Andrys Basten has also recorded this - her performance (one I especially admire) can be heard at this link. (There is also a free mp3 download there.)
Here is a "picture video" I made, since the premiere performance was recorded in audio only. The people pictured in the video are various teachers and students whose friendship I treasure.
The Romance was originally privately published, and was available from Hutchins and Rea in hard-copy form. Many of my piano-playing Internet friends have played this piece, and I have at least three private recordings by them. Pianist Andrys Basten has also recorded this - her performance (one I especially admire) can be heard at this link. (There is also a free mp3 download there.)
Here is a "picture video" I made, since the premiere performance was recorded in audio only. The people pictured in the video are various teachers and students whose friendship I treasure.
On August 27, 2005, I received a package in the mail from Susie Francis Dempsey - a video of her performing the Romance in a 2006 studio recital. Although I was there and made an audio recording, it had escaped my mind that her husband, Dr. Wayne Dempsey, had made a video as well.
I am fortunate to have video performances by Dr. Dempsey of two of my compositions.
Critic Steve Haufe said of DeLucia's performance: "Robertson's intense 3 minute Romance is a highlight. One is reminded of the Rachmaninoff Op.16,# 5; perhaps also touches of Faure Nocturnes; yet a fresh,"American" sound to my ears, simple, honest, uncloying emotion."
Critic Don Satz said of DeLucia's performance: "(Robertson's Romance) is unabashedly loving and tender music that DeLucia plays with heart-felt dedication."
Did I say how much I love this piece?
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