Classical pianist Clipper Erickson talks with his audiences during concerts, providing helpful background on each piece he plays.
By: Anthony Stoeckert
Clipper Erickson wants to put your mind at ease. Don’t be intimidated by classical music. Don’t think you have to be an expert, or even be familiar with the pieces he plays. In fact, it’s those of us who don’t know a concerto from a symphony Mr. Erickson most welcomes to his performances.
"I think early on I became kind of struck by classical music being (listened to either by) older people or people who were there just to be seen, who aren’t interested in the music so much but just wanted to be there for a social thing," Mr. Erickson says. "And I love the music so much, I thought, ‘This is something everybody should love.’ Not just the people who have all the education or have some kind of social need to be at concerts."
In reaction to that, the pianist attempts to create programs that are accessible to audiences, as opposed to the intimidating concerts many major organizations present. He’ll perform one of those programs in the recital hall of Jacobs’ Music in Lawrence March 11 in a musicale presented by the Steinway Society.
Mr. Erickson also talks with audiences during his concerts in order to provide some helpful knowledge of the pieces he plays.
"I introduce the music and talk about the music and try to get people into it," he says, "particularly when you’re dealing with new works that aren’t as well known. You can’t just throw that at people and expect them to understand it without giving them a bit of road map as to who the composer is and why he was writing this and what the music is all about."
These days, he’s particularly interested in American music, not music that he says is akin to imported European art, but real American originals like George Gershwin, Aaron Copeland and Roy Harris. His March 11 program, for example, will include selections from Mr. Copeland’s Rodeo, Mr. Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and a piece by Amy Beach, a 19th century composer.
"She was a woman composer who wasn’t married to a famous man or wasn’t a sibling of a famous man so that was unusual in the 19th century," Mr. Erickson says. "It’s a beautiful piece written in a very romantic, Victorian style."
Introducing people to a composer like Ms. Beach, who many in the audience may not be familiar with, is something Mr. Erickson enjoys. "I like turning people onto composers they don’t know and saying, ‘Isn’t this wonderful stuff? Go out and listen to more of this,’" he says.
He began playing the piano when he was 7 years old. At around age 12, he listened to records of Vladimir Horowitz and Sviatoslav Richter and became enamored with the instrument’s sound and its possibilities. "And I started to decide that I wanted to make this my life, play the piano." So his parents had the garage of the family’s home in Santa Barbara, Calif., refinished as a studio where he could practice. And practice he did, every day two hours before school and two hours after school.
Mr. Erickson studied at the Julliard School in New York as an undergraduate and at Indiana University and Yale’s graduate program. After Yale, he moved to Bucks County, Pa., where he lives with his wife and two daughters.
He’s played at the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory and at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., where his performance of music by Franz Listz drew praise in a Washington Post review.
In addition to playing concerts and recording CDs, Mr. Erickson is an educator. He teaches at Westminster Conservatory and performs and talks about music at schools, nursing homes, church group meetings and prisons.
"I think educating everyone, in our own age and young people, is a very important part of what musicians do," he says. "That’s not always recognized, but I think if we’re going to be ambassadors for our arts then we have to educate people about them."
He likes to teach by example because there’s too much about the piano that can’t be taught with words. Practicing is about discovering what the piano can do as much as it is learning the notes.
"Music is about sound, so you have to be master enough of your instrument to know all the range of sound that it can produce," he says. "The piano can produce a huge variety of sound depending on how you balance the notes you play, how you use the pedal, what kind of touch you use, the range of loudness you use. The art is how to combine all these variables into a performance that expresses the music, and that’s sort of the magic. It’s hard to explain and hard to teach how to do that."
Clipper Erickson will perform at the recital hall of Jacobs’ Music, 2540 Brunswick Pike, Lawrence, March 11, 3 p.m. Admission costs $15, $8 students. Seating is limited, early arrival recommended to assure a seat. For information, call (609) 434-0222. On the Web: www.princetonol.com/groups/steinway. Mr. Erickson also will perform with the Trenton Symphony Orchestra at the Trenton War Memorial’s 75th Anniversary Concert, April 1, 4 p.m. Tickets cost $20-$40. For information, call (609) 396-5522, ext. 2. Clipper Erickson on the Web: www.clippererickson.com

