Today I went to see Roger Kellaway play with his jazz trio, which was comprised of a piano, bass, and hollow body electric guitar. It was great! I wish they played more at the free symposiums, but I'm too cheap to pay $42 for the evening ticket. They played some music and talked about Roger's influences. People were throwing out names from the audience, "How much are you influenced by the Nat Cole trio?" (duh, of course). Someone brought up Shirley Horn, who I of course love and adore and idolize. She was a wonderful jazz pianist who played classical piano until she got out of high school and then crossed over into jazz. Roger said he had 12 years of classical piano before he ventured into jazz.

This year I've been taking some jazz piano lessons as part of my master's degree. I wish I had time to practice more, but I don't. I put in about 2 hours a week of practice at my jazz piano. It's pathetic, but at least it is SOMETHING. Currently, I am working on writing an arrangement of the Kurt Weil tune, "Lost in the Stars." The lyrics are poignant, and I think it has a lot of room for exploring various harmonies. I am still very much an amateur, but I have written some gorgeous sounds!

At any rate, I was sitting there listening to Roger talk about his upbringing and how he got to be "possibly the greatest jazz pianist to walk the earth" and I got thinking how much room I have to grow in this area. Then I had a revelation: I have reached the pinnacle of what I can accomplish in classical piano. I can continue to play classical piano and be the best of practically anyone around (except for that .0001% who makes a living playing concertos with orchestras, living out of a suitcase, touring the country, with management, ugh, not so fun), but then I would never grow again. I have learned how to efficiently learn music that someone else wrote, playing by memory, music that everyone has already heard. (Here comes the revelation:) If I work at jazz, THAT is where I can grow. THAT is how I can make music that NO ONE else has ever heard before. THAT is how I can make an audience giddy as they hear tunes they already know but in a new way that I thought up. So watch out, world! Tawna Love is going to be finished with her masters degree, and then you are going to be FLOODED with the wonderful sounds I am going to dream up for you. I am really looking forward to this next creative period in my life.