I often banter with those I interview. "You'll have to come visit Orcas Island some day. You can play at The Living Room and make BIG BUCKS!" Pianists Robin Spielberg, David Lanz, and now Suzanne Ciani have actually come, and all the richer, I might add. George Winston ALMOST took me up on it,and it would probably take a solar eclipse to get Wendy Carlos off Manhattan, but one tries.

It seemed that every obstacle in the world rose up to stop Suzanne's visit, which was already postponed from the beginning of the summer.  I had two magazines I had to get to press. Suzanne barely finished recording Pianissimo III. Missed connections in Seattle, legal contracts to go over. Lost address book. "Where is Renton? How do I get there? I'm lost!"  Criminy! She was supposed to come here for a break, now it looked like she'd break coming here.

She finally flew in to Rosario Resort on a sea plane at noon on Friday, perfect weather.  I welcomed her with a cheery, "A plane! A plane! Welcome to Fantasy Island!" Little did we know how really true that was going to be! How many experiences can one stuff into a three day period? Somehow, I got a lot of work done, too, but it seemed sleep would have to wait.

Suzanne's concert on Saturday evening was a dream, and I was pleased that Suzanne and Susan Osborn hit it off...understatement! (see below). Perhaps they will work together?? Suzanne stayed with Christopher Peacock and his wife, Jayliln. A good fit, musically, since Christopher owns a small label, Pure & Simple Music. But more than that, they simply hit it off -- La Famiglia. They are also colleagues in pianos,as they both own Yamaha Disclaviers (with its midi recording capabilities).

I know you fans want to see and know EVERYTHING, so brace yourselves...you can't. When *I* got emails from fans in Spain, Italy, and Chile sending good wishes for Suzanne's concert, I realized she had some serious fame going on here. So here are two shots, a genuine embrace with Vocalist Susan Osborn, and a moment of silliness on Mt. Constitution's Little Summit trail with Christopher Peacock and Jaylin. Can you believe we got lost? Okay, one more. The bottom shot is an abstract, and epitomizes for me the serene beauty of Orcas Island. Okay...one more:  Suzanne appears in Christopher Peacock's section below.

She met only 1/10 of the folks I wanted her to meet. But one word describes her visit: FABULISSIMO.

Christopher Peacock

Pianist Christopher Peacock is famous for his shows at the Rosario Resort. Over the years, he's created a lovely record label, Pure & Simple. We usually chat at the post office, but with Suzanne's visit, we really got to spend some time together, a lunch, dinner, his concert at Rosario,  and this silly hike on Mt. Constitution. (see above) Below are Christopher, Jaylin, and Suzanne enjoying a delicious lunch at Bilbo's courtyard restaurant in Eastsound.