Time in the Eastern Hemisphere
After the passing of her beloved husband, professor Kerr, one of Ruth’s students in Soochow University in Taiwan was concerned for the grieving Mrs. Slenczynska. Thus, through the invitation of her student, Mrs. Slenczynska left for Taiwan in the fall of 2002. Once she arrived, she was well received with kindness and respect. Three months after her arrival in Taiwan she began performing again, despite a 3-year break from playing the piano. In January of 2003, Bunsho Mifune organized a home concert in Taipei where Mrs. Slenczynska took part and performed Chopin’s Etude. After the success of this home concert, Slenczysnka practiced and prepared 30 piano pieces by J. Brahms in only a year and a half. Later, in 2009, Slenczynska had successful recordings from her time at Liu Mifune Art Ensemble, Okayama. Her familiarity with worldwide composers was one of the many reasons that led to her success.
Four years later, Bunsho Mifune announced his daughter’s wedding to Slenczynska to which she very excitedly replied that she would be visiting Tokyo to perform at his daughter’s wedding. Slenczynska had treated Masae as her own granddaughter, as she was always around while Slenczynska visited Tokyo throughout those 14 consecutive years. Masae’s wedding was extraordinarily special for her since she had two music masters performing with historical instruments. Her performances in Japan later let to the recording of 6 CD’s called “The Art of Ruth Slenczynska” produced by the Lui MAER label.
Later in 2011, after the earthquakes occurred in Japan, Slenczynska helped Mrs. Kubo organize and perform at a charity concert at Kyudo Kaikan Hall in Tokyo.
While in Tokyo, Her Imperial Majesty Michiko, showed interest in Slenczynska’s performance in Tokyo. When Slenczynska had her last Chopin recital in Okayama (2005) celebrating her 80th birthday, Mrs. Shuku Iwasaki introduced Mrs. Slenczynska to Empress Michiko. The day of the performance, the concert capacity was only 120 people, but due to her popularity, Mrs. Slenczynska had to perform the same concert twice in a day. Despite her 8 previous Tokyo visits, December 6, 2013, was her first performance in Tokyo. Her immense success in Tokyo made it impossible for the Empress to see Slenczynska in concert, so she was invited to the Imperial Palace just 2 days after Masae’s wedding.
A couple days later on December 12, 2013, she left Tokyo to visit Taipei and as soon as she arrived, she began practicing at the home of one of her students at SIUE. After a week of practicing, she performed a very rich program including all the pieces she performed at Masae’s wedding. Her performance was deemed touching and artistically beautiful and sensitive, leading to a standing ovation with loud cheers showing excitement. After the performance, Slenczynska was asked for her autograph from over 400 participants.
Continuing Concerts
In May 2005, she celebrated her 80th year with a “final concerto program” through the Huntsville Symphony Orchestra. Here, performances included Liszt piano concerto #1, Chopin’s piano concerto #2, and Tchaikovsky’s piano concerto #1. During this time period, Slenczynska began to settle down her lifestyle – she began teach private students in New York City, act as a judge in piano competitions, and administer master classes. However, she could not stay away from the performing scene for too long.
On September 24, 2010 the pianist returned to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville to perform on the new Steinway concert grand. This was a big deal to her, as the SIUE Music Department had dedicated the piano in her husband’s honor. While in Edwardsville, she recounted her experiences with notable musicians and leaders all over the world. Two weeks later, on October 9, 2010, she traveled to the San José State University Music School to perform a recital and give an auto-biographical lecture.
Later that year, Slenczynska returned to California and performed for the Pacific Musical Society Centennial Gala at the Fairmount Hotel in San Francisco. To honor Ms. Slenczynska, the society compiled an interview and photos into this Youtube video entitled “Living Legends: Ruth Slenczynska.” In January of 2018, Ms. Slenczynska returned to SIUE just before her birthday, for the first time since September of 2010. On Tuesday, January 9, 2018, she performed a recital in the Dunham Auditorium, as well as conducting a piano master class the following day. Throughout this month, an exhibit about her life and career was added to the Lovejoy Library.
Ruth’s Modern Pieces
In the later part of her life, Ruth came out with two major albums. The first album, Ruth Slenczynska: Complete American Decca Recordings, was created by Decca Recordings in 2020. This box set was the “first comprehensive tribute to her artistry.” The box set contains 123 tracks performed by Ruth. These songs were written by many different artists such as Chopin, Liszt, Bartok, Debussy, and more. According to the reviews on this album, “This CD captures her and her very prime with breathtaking performances of many standard pieces, as well as some more unusual ones… These discs reveal her amazing virtuosity, as well as her introspective approach to many of the more delicate vignettes,” and that Ruth’s playing, “… really brings out the soul of each piece with just the right feeling.”
The second album, My Life in Music, was created by herself through Decca Recordings in March 2022. This was her first new album with Decca Recordings in sixty years. This album being released was much more than just some new album created by Ruth. What makes this album extraordinary is the fact that Ruth released this album at the remarkable age of 97. This album contains 12 tracks, all performed by Ruth. These 12 songs were written by a variety of composers, such as Rachmaninoff, Chopin, Barber, Grieg, Debussy, and Bach. These songs were chosen either due to her personal connection with the composer, like with Rachmaninoff and Barber, or due to her memories connected to songs, like with the songs written by Grieg, Debussy, and Bach. The memories connected to those songs come from her great relationship with her musical mentors, Egon Petri, Alfred Cortot, and Josef Hoffman. Overall, this album is a tribute to Ruth’s amazing career as a pianist as well as a celebration of her fascinating life.
Ruth’s Interview on Life Experiences and What’s To Come
Ruth did an interview with CBS to talk about her new and upcoming album at 97 years old. In this interview she lets us in on her personal life and things we do not always see in articles. Ruth was asked where her mind travels while she is performing (she has been playing her almost entire life), she says “I go to a place I cannot take anyone else, it’s a place from where I get my music.” This interview tracked her performances all throughout her childhood and talks about some of the greats she met along the way. Ruth still wears the Faberge Egg Necklace Sergei Rachmaninoff gave her when she was nine.
Throughout this interview Ruth remains humble. In response to “You were a miracle child,” she replies “Every child is a miracle.” The reporter [Mo Rocca] then says, “but you are an awesomely talented one,” which she shuts down and says, “if I were awesomely talented I wouldn’t have to work so hard.” Ruth recognizes her hard work and successes but does not boast to the world. Ruth then reflects on her childhood, saying how she just wanted to be like other kids, and play in the street with her friends, but her father refused to let her do so. This is what led her to run away and stop performing for a while. She then talks about her meeting with Harry S. Truman, from which she received a signed photograph that was donated to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. She also talks about meeting her second husband who “changed her life completely.” Ruth talks about how he made her feel like a real person, which was probably hard to do considering her being in a large spotlight ever since she was a child.
This interview then highlights Shelly Moorman-Stahlman, a professional musician, teacher, and of course, one of Ruth’s students. Shelly has embraced and invited Ruth to live in her home. Ruth has made such a great impact on her students, and some will go to the ends of the Earth to make sure Ruth is doing well. Ruth has certainly lived up to her highest potential and has no intentions of stopping now. She reflects and soaks up all the experiences she has had in her life and how that has made her a richer person. Not money wise, but in experience, connections, and a loving way.
“You don’t look back on the past, you gain from it, but you are always looking forward”
Ruth slenczynska
Works Cited
CBS Sunday Morning. (2022, April 3). Pianist Ruth Slenczynska on her life in music [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/Z1CKfnmkvks?si=4XaRmsttHZerRPMw
Complete American Decca Recordings. Amazon. (n.d.). https://www.amazon.com/ Complete-American-Recordings-SYMPHONIKERSLENCZYNSKA/dp/ B08MQS5HGQ/ref=sr_1_2?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9. mMVckI1_cGkVaWAdaP3zL_ JyWhHn44W8YyX8s8-XTnX0WtD5lmsAp8-DS6IBdW5LFsRVXvt1M YeeKHWaQvx2FhEhcfUaXqYaBTgZEu4jzaj2O5c_6MD_fEmbvRM1B6y3D-1vyALpgLAnsi28K0Maeg.SCMq9MtO0IfBLlUI_gj2bzcRXR-3DET2cxUj4AJ sRrs&dib_tag=se&qid=1709012954&refinements=p_32%3ARuth+Slenczynska&s=music&sr=1-2
Dickman, T. (2018, March 12). Ruth Slenczynska Biography. SIUE Lovejoy Library. https://www.siue.edu/lovejoy-library/musiclistening/special_collections/title/ slenczynska/slenczynska.shtml
Mifune, B. (n.d.). Mrs. Ruth Slenczynska, the postlude of rejoicings 2013 – I. Liu Mifune Art Ensemble Records | The Art of Ruth SlenczynskaMifune. https://www.liu-mifune-art.jp/exp07?lang=en
Pacific Musical Society & Foundation (Director). (2016). Living Legends: Ruth Slenczynska [Film]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpIfrDpIeA8&ab_channel=PacificMusicalSociety%26Foundation
Pacific Musical Society & Foundation (Director). (2012, August 25). Ruth Slenczynska, pianist, plays Frédéric Chopin’s Étude Op. 25, No. 11 [Video]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gB546B1_ZFo&ab_channel=Pacific MusicalSociety%26Foundation
Profile. Liu Mifune Art Ensemble Records | The Art of Ruth SlenczynskaMifune. (n.d.). https://www.liu-mifune-art.jp/profile?lang=en
Ruth Slenczynska – my life in music: CD. Decca Records. (2022). https://shop.decca.com/products/my-life-in-music-cd
SIUE News. (2018, January 12). Slenczynska Dazzles Crowds, Classes at SIUE. SIUE. https://www.siue.edu/news/2018/01/Slenczynska-DazzlesCrowds-Classes-at-SIUE.shtmlSteinway Society. (2010, October 9). About the Artist. Past Concerts. https://steinwaysociety.com/footer/past-concerts/ruth-slenczynska/