A Capitol Fourth

Because we supplied the 9' Steinway grand piano for the nation's 30th celebration of the 4th of July, our family was invited to view the party from 12th row seats. Wow, what a great time we had!

Jimmy Smits was the master of ceremonies, and he did a fine job. His comment that his family came here as immigrants--and that America had been very good indeed to the Smits family--touched the hearts of the audience members. It was a timely reminder that most of us came here from another country, and that we owe a lot to this great country.

David Archuleta did a beautiful job with The Star Spangled Banner.

Then Gladys Knight led a rousing "Heard It Through the Grapevine" and got everyone rocking.

Of course, our family was particularly thrilled by Lang Lang, the young Chinese genius. David and I had heard him play the "Stars and Stripes Forever" before, but this time with the Washington Monument in the background, it was a special treat. His hands move so fast as he does the counterpoint of the Sousa melody. Did you know that every instrument has a melody line in a Sousa march? I loved how Lang Lang's fingers were reflected in the fall board of the piano. They took off the lid, and the shots of the inside of the piano with those fabulous strings was totally cool.

Reba McEntire was the last big name performer of the evening. Her voice was as glorious and uniquely American as her looks. I particularly enjoyed her gorgeous blue sequined dress.

The 1812 Overture never sounded better than when fireworks were bursting over the stately white Washington Monument. The obelisk looked like a giant sparkler lighting up the sky!

All in all, it was A Capitol Fourth!

How was your Fourth? Did you catch "A Capitol Fourth" on PBS?

PS Being a mystery writer, I couldn't help but wonder when they used an ice pick to chisel the ice that went into the water coolers. After all the security precautions, an ice pick? Yeow! Oh, and the huge hanging Jumbotron got me thinking, "What if a cable breaks?" I mean, the mind of a mystery author never rests.

What You and I Can Learn from Classical Music's Hottest Act

The hottest, hippest act in Classical Music today, the group that has folks literally dancing in the aisles is a group of Steinway piano playing siblings from Utah, The 5 Browns. Desirae, Deondra, Gregory, Melody and Ryan not only play together professionally right now, they have the distinction of being the only family to attend Julliard simultaneously. Last weekend visited my husband's store (Steinway Piano Gallery of St. Louis), played a mini-concert, and then on Saturday gave a concert at Powell Hall. Above is a photo of them at Ted Drewes Custard because NO trip to St. Louis is complete without going to Ted Drewes. (And yes, that is Ted Drewes, not Nancy Drew's.)

How exciting are these kids? Well, an estimated one-third of their audience at any given concert has seldom if ever attended a classical music concert, and another one-third is college-age or younger.

In short, they are a phenomena. And anytime in life you get to observe ONE superstar--much less five of them at once--I think you should take notes. So here's what I learned, and do me a favor, don't dismiss this stuff as self-evident. The road to success is littered with waylaid travelers who confused self-evident with REALLY important.

The 5 Browns' Rules for Success (as observed by Joanna Campbell Slan, close up and personal):

1. Live with enthusiasm. Imbue all you do with energy. These five are thrilled about being able to do what they love for a living--and they'll gladly tell you so. Are you happy? Do you show it? All of us authors are living the dream. So we need to stop moaning and act like it!

2. Show interest in other people. Ever notice how some authors talk only about themselves and their books? Hmm? These five sensations were on a book signing tour, yet they peppered me with questions about my work. Earlier this year I sat between two men at dinner during a writers conference. They went on and on about their books, and never once asked me about mine. (Note to the man who sat on my right at that fateful repast: Sir, the acquisition of an English accent does NOT entitle a person to wantonly disregard commonly recognized table manners. Either your mother was raised in a barn--as you obviously were--or she's rolling around in her grave in shame!) Making other people feel important is not only good manners, it's also very smart business.

3. Make your work accessible. The Browns introduced each piece they played with a bit about the composer and how that particular composition influenced what we hear today. If you're an author, why not tell your readers about YOUR influences, be they other authors or popular culture? Spread a little credit around and educate your audiences. Let them feel like they just got "the inside scoop." That's why we read gossip magazines, right?

4. Talk to the small fry. Desirae, Melody, Gregory, Deondra and Ryan purposefully stopped to take questions, both at our store and at Powell, taking care to call on the kids who raised their hands. When one little girl pipped, "Were you ever in your school's talent contest?" All five burst out laughing in remembrance as they assured her that indeed they had!

5. Dress up, but don't be overdressed. The Browns wear cocktail attire the first half of their performance and casual wear the second. "We want to seem approachable," said Desirae. And they do. We've never had a performer wear Converse high-tops in our store before. Trust me, Gregory's footwear spoke volumes to the kids who came to see the Browns. It said, "Yep, you can be YOU and still make music." They were nicely groomed, trendy without being crass, and flat out adorable.

6. Sign anything for anyone. From the stage, the Browns offered to sign "any stuff you have." I've seen authors who'll only sign books purchased that day at that event. Is that you? How do you suppose that makes you look? What does it say about you? When that person goes home and talks about you, what will she say? (If you can't answer that affirmatively, better check a copy of How to Win Friends and Influence People out of the library.)

7. Tell people you WANT to come back. It's flattering to THEM, and it lodges a little reminder in their brains: Must have these folks back. When? Hmm. Be sure to tell the bookseller or conference director you'd like to return.

8. Laugh. Be joyous. Gregory ( the oldest brother) introduced Prokofiev's Toccata, op. 11 which he described as sounding like the chase scene from The French Connection. As if on cue, a siren blared in the distance. He got the giggles as did most of the 2400 audience members in Powell Hall. Stage performers know the importance of "jumping the footlights," bridging that gap between those on stage and those in the seats. It's an intimacy all audiences crave. How can YOU jump the footlights and get emotionally close to your readers?

9. Give 'em your phone number. And then be response. We've already heard from Greg, telling us how much fun they had and asking for copies of photos we took. He gave us his email, but we also have all their phone numbers.

Look, I don't know if I'll ever get to be on Martha Stewart's show or Jay Leno's or even watch Zac Posen's fashion show, much less be an important personage there. All of which The 5 Browns have done. Yet to hear them talk about it, they are still marveling at their good fortune. And that's exactly the way I want to act. I want to give my best, to love what I do, and keep marveling at my good fortune. I have the feeling it's the secret to success. From the other side of the pianos, it sure looks it.

10. Put energy in all you do. Here, enjoy this--
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Yo6Zma-fgM

PS Are you a regular reader? I'll add your blog title to my blog role if you leave a comment with your blog address!

If I Died Tomorrow.

I spent two days in Los Angeles last week. Well, actually I was in Huntington Beach at the Balboa Bay Yacht Club.

My husband, David, and his partner, Gerry Malzone, and I were driving back to LAX when the topic turned to "what if I died right now"? (This was BEFORE we heard about the airplane crashing into the Hudson River!)

Maybe it's because we've all known each other for years. Maybe it's because we're all middle-aged. Or maybe it was because this year we lost Henry Steinway, a lovely man, the last of the Steinways involved in the business...and since it was the first Steinway dealer meeting without Henry, we were all feeling a bit thoughtful.

Then Gerry said something extra-ordinary. He said, "You know, I think I've only had maybe five really bad days in my life. And if I was in a plane and it went down, I wouldn't be screaming and crying. I'd be thinking what a good life I had."

Wow.

I got to thinking about it.

I could only think of two really, really horrible days in my life. One was when my nephew Joshua was killed in a freak accident. The other is too personal to share.

Honest. I mean, I had to work hard to think of anything more than those two days. I mean, yeah, there have been some rotten days, some days I'd rather didn't happen. But only two that really, really still make me sad to think about. Two days in 55 years.

Gerry was right. If I died tomorrow, I'd have to think, "Wow. It's been great. Thank you, God." And realizing that, I vowed to be a little happier every day, and grateful for the happy times I've had.

(But I still miss Henry. We all do.)