Hazel Mae, growing up in the flapper era, loved popular music and played the banjo and the piano. She took piano lessons for several years from her Uncle Herbert (everyone referred to him as Uncle Bootie), Nana’s youngest brother. She also enjoyed classical music and went to ballets and concerts with us in the 1980s.
Around 1952(?) when ‘Aunt Ida’ died, Dad inherited a Baldwin baby grand player piano. Ida and Art had a home on the shores of Lake Erie, not far from Cedar Point. They (along with Ida’s sister Rose and her husband Leo) were not related to us, just very good friends of Kate; childless couples who adored Dick like a child of their own. The piano had been used at the Cedar Point ballroom at the time when big bands played for the summer crowds. The piano became Mom and Dad’s prized possession although it dwarfed our little dining room. Jim and I were immediately signed up for piano lessons. Uncle Bootie sent sheet music and Mom started practicing and regaining her skills as a pianist. And Dad spent hours teaching himself to play by ear the melodies of his favorite songs. He never did learn how to read music but eventually learned enough chords that he could pair up with his pecked out melodies that his music was presentable and recognizable. It takes an enormous amount of concentration and effort to pick out a tune when you have never played an instrument or read sheet music beyond the church hymnal. I’ve often thought that this hobby provided a lot of enjoyment and diversion from his health problems for the last 15 years of his life.
As Dad’s balance became more impaired, Mom became more and more concerned that one day he might fall under some part of the piano, knocking the extremely heavy piano on top of him, and she would not be able to lift it off and help him. Finally she convinced him that it should be sold. Can anyone remember when that happened?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
I believe the last picture of uncle Herb would be in the album scan gma book4 020.jpg . Kathy says there are some older black and white photo's of him that were in the older book.
I don’t think I ever knew mom played the banjo – I’m surprised she didn’t tell me especially since I played the ukulele and then the guitar!
I do remember the baby grand player piano – there were rolls of music that could be inserted & the piano would play by itself. I’m sure there is a picture in one of her books of dad playing the piano, with a candelabra on top – so he’d look like Liberace :-).
I also remember hearing about Judy & Jim going for piano lessons – somehow I got out of taking them – maybe because the piano was sold. I’m pretty sure though that we got a second, small upright piano. We can probably determine the date, when we go thru some of the older picture books.
Judy wasn’t that picture of a small boy, that you had on your wall in the living room – Uncle Bootie as a baby?
Oh how I do remember Aunt Rose & Leo and their house on the Causeway (and vaguely their house in Sandusky). I loved going to visit them & swimming in Lake Erie. It was the neatest house. The backyard went down to the bay. The front faced the lake, we’d cross the street to their bath house and the lake. I loved to play in the waves – usually I could get Jim to swim with me. I remember Rose would send us each $5 at Christmas – that was a lot of money back then.
Kathy
I can assure you that Mom did have a banjo - I was probably the one who rendered it useless from playing with in while we lived at Forge Street - she probably ditched it before the move to Ido Avenue. She also had a darling child's little roll-top desk - that might have made the move but I don't remember seeing it when it was time to move her to Canton Ave. Seems like the roll-top portion of it had died and been thrown out soon before/after the move to Ido??
Just for the record, I cannot remember a smaller upright piano replacing the grand piano. That's not to say there wan't one - just that I can't remember it right now.
The picture that I have of a little boy sucking his thumb is of Uncle Carl Staley (Bebe/Edith's husband). They did not have any children and I don't know anything about his family. They lived most if not all of their married life in Lorain, OH. He sold furniture and they lived on "main" street in an apartment above stores. They both doted on Hazel Mae and Martha Jane. We usually met them for a picnic at a little way-side park just outside of Elyria. Dad was always very vocal about how much he loved Bebe's baked beans.
Quick correction on the "aunts". Art and Ida were the rich ones who had the house with garret/castle near Cedar Point. There was a "little" beach house on the Lake Erie side of the road across from the end of their driveway. I think it eventually "fell in" due to erosion due to high lake levels - probaby after they died. Art inherited a lot of money when his family sold their tomato farms to the Heinz's (?) company. Ida's sister Rose was married to a Sandusky policeman, Leo. They lived in a beautiful English Tudor style house on a boulivard.
And, hey, I loved to play in the waves too. I never got to old to enjoy them.
I'm thinking that the Christmas moeny was more like $20.
I have not seen the picture of dad at the piano in some time .. notice the argyle socks! .. he used to wear them all the time and always rolled up the cuffs on his pants when walking around the house and you'll see that in both pictures .. and he loved the candle sticks on the piano .. it made him laugh and said he felt like Liberache with a home made candelabra, he never could read music .. and always played "by ear" .. when he heard a song he liked it used to take him an evening or two sounding out all the notes on the keys but would have it and then played it out by memory .. I used to hate the lessons we had to take but sure wish I hadn't and stayed with it .. would love to play now! Jim, July 8, 2008
I love the way dad is smiling as he plays the piano - he was having fun. :-) Kathy, 7-8-08
Post a Comment