Cooper Landing

August 20, 2017
Population: 289
Venue: Cooper Landing School, presented by the Cooper Landing Community School  

After months of planning, dreaming, and stressing, Gather Hear Alaska was finally launching. As I write this more than two years later, I still remember how I felt the night before my flight to Alaska. Instead of feeling excited for what was sure to be the biggest adventure of my life yet, I felt like I was at the edge of a diving board, with no way forward except a deep dive. And I’m a *terrible* diver (literally). I thought that night, what if I just turned around and came down the ladder? After all, this tour was so strange - I didn’t actually know anyone in Alaska, and all correspondences had been online or over the phone. It was all just a dream at that point. If I simply quit and didn’t get on the plane, I would disappoint and mildly inconvenience the presenters and hosts who were waiting for me, but they would eventually forget about it and the whole project could be buried. No one else really had a stake in this but myself.

Besides a feeling of reluctance, there was also fear. Who am I to go sauntering into a foreign place, with its own culture and lifestyle, and ask its people to give me their time and attention? Why should anyone care about classical music? The last thing I wanted was to come off as some privileged New Yorker, bestowing upon “the people” the snooty gift of classical music. What if no one showed up? Worse, what if people showed up and hated it?

Fast forward two days, I was in the teeny river town of Cooper Landing. I had overcome the feeling of reluctance by thinking:

“Even if it’s a miserable failure, at least on my death bed I can say that when I was 30 years old, I freaking traveled Alaska with a piano. No one will ever be able to take that away from me.” 

That thought carried me on my flight to Anchorage and drive to Cooper Landing, but I still had my fears. Luckily, I was in good hands - my presenter was Virginia, the kind and warm leader of the Cooper Landing Community School. The Community School offers offers enriching classes in subjects like yoga and art to local residents. The concert was held at the K-12 public school, where Virginia’s husband, Tommy is the sole teacher. The school had a total of 12 students! Apparently, Alaskan schools only receive funding when there are more than 10 enrolled students, and it’s common practice throughout the state for teachers to “import” relatives from other states to come live and study in Alaska, so that they can bump up the enrollment number and keep their schools open. 

To be perfectly honest, I was so nervous in the hours leading up to the concert and during the concert that I don’t remember very much about this performance. I remember that the school gym-turned-concert hall was full with young students from the school, and adults of the community both younger and older. I remember that, to my surprise and relief, everyone was perked up and attentive while I played, and expressed joy and appreciation afterward. Recollections of subsequent performances are much clearer, and writing about them will be easier.

P.S. On the previous day, videographer Jarett and I had run endlessly around Anchorage picking up the U-Haul, piano, various supplies/food, etc. I definitely bought an extension chord at Walmart, but somehow had already lost it by the time we arrived at Cooper Landing. Tommy saved the day by lending us the school’s, and also letting us take it on the road for the rest of our time on the Kenai Peninsula until I would pass back through Cooper Landing on my way back up to the inland portion of tour. His one request in exchange was that I would play for the students at school when I came back to return the extension chord. Of course I was happy to do so for the tiny audience when I returned 8 days later…and I didn’t lose their extension chord!