I will never forget the first time I attended a concert by Canadian pianist and composer Stewart Goodyear. His elegant artistry made it memorable, for sure — but it was also his gracious and lovely interaction with the audience that stays in my mind. He was the soloist with an orchestra performing one of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Keyboard Concertos. After the first movement, there was a smattering of applause, and Mr. Goodyear’s reaction was to look out into the hall, place his hand on his heart, and bow his head briefly. His warm and welcoming response spoke volumes about his appreciation of the audience and their spontaneous exuberance. I recently shared that recollection with Stewart Goodyear. He told me, “I feel there is a sense of abandon that I love when someone claps between movements! It inspires me to go an even more extra mile in my performance, and the other movements are performed with that person in mind.” Today’s Beautiful Music is the talented and gracious pianist Stewart Goodyear playing the Gigue from Johann Sebastian Bach’s French Suite #5. (Go ahead and applaud whenever you feel moved to do so!)
Bach: Gigue from French Suite No. 5 in G major – YouTube