Ya Like Jazz? Cool, My Mom Does Too

Some Things You Should Know

I chose to interview my mom! Her name is Keri Knecht Grosso. She got her bachelor's degree in piano performance here at Converse University back when it was still an all-women's college. She is truly a wonderful musician and probably the biggest (and my favorite) musical influence in my life. Now, she runs her own private and group lesson company called Grosso Music & Fine Arts. 

Me: Did you ever take music classes or lessons?

Mom: Actually, I just miraculously woke up one morning and could play. It was all right there in my head. I had perfect technique and everything.

Me: No, but actually. 

Mom: I started banging around on the piano when I was younger when Kurt (older brother) was taking lessons. But my mom said that I wasn't allowed to start taking lessons until the third grade. Then, I broke my arm in the second grade and they were like, "Good, that'll slow her down for a while". But I still played with my cast, so my mom finally gave in and let me start taking lessons after I got out of my cast. 

*A brief sequence of childhood piano lesson teachers much like Numbers in the Old Testament.*

After that, I took with Doug Weeks at Converse, and, you know, I've also had lesson with some famous people here and there. 

I had no idea what I wanted to do, but I got a scholarship to go to Converse (even though I had no idea what it was). And I thought, "I'm never going to go to an all women's college." But then I went up and fell in love with it. I still had no idea what I wanted to do, but I was forced to be a music major because of my scholarship.   

Me: Let's talk about your personal taste in music.

Mom: Oh wow. Why?

Me: For funzies!!

Mom: Ok. 

Me: What was your favorite band when you were younger? 

Mom: The Smiths. 

(This is the first song she played for me by the Smiths. It is her favorite album of theirs.)

Mom: I also really liked U2. I always, always loved Ella (Fitzgerald) and Louis (Armstrong). Without fail. I was a big Nina Simone fan for a while. I didn't even know who she was until this movie came out, "Point of No Return", and she was referenced in it while I was working at the movie theater. Sarah Vaughn, too.

Mom: When I was in college I was a really big fan of this one band called "Squirrel Nut Zippers". I just loved her (Katharine Whalen's) voice and the color of her voice. 

Me: What kind of music from your youth did you think was overrated?

Mom: *laughs* Striper, Petra, honestly most of the Christian artists. Except Bob Dylan, we really liked Bob Dylan. Oh, and Madonna! Madonna is overrated. She's more of a performer than a musician. So, while she is a smart marketer, she's not a great musician. I think. 

Mom: You know who was underrated? Prince. He played like thirteen instruments. *starts singing Kiss by Prince*

Me: What kind of tech did you use to listen to music in ye olden times?

Mom: A tape player until I was in, like, college. When I was really little, Grandpa Bean had this old Ford pickup truck that had an eight-track player and we'd listen to the same songs over and over again. One of them was *starts singing The Birds And The Bees*.

Mom: It was really fun, even though it was the same songs over and over again because there were no seatbelt laws. So, we'd just climb in the bed of the truck and have the wind in our hair. It was really fun. We weren't allowed to have Walkmans because our parents had a "no-headphones" rule. 

Me: I wanted a Walkman for a while.

Mom: That's because you watch too much sci-fi. 

Me: Heyyy.

Mom: Just kidding, there's no such thing as too much sci-fi. 

Me: What do you think of my taste in music?

Mom: I like your taste. But your taste is a lot like mine, so. I think you have a healthy amount of influences of alternative and jazz and some pop, too, which is good because it's always good to know what popular culture likes. 

Me: Have you ever been to any big concerts?

Mom: Well, I've been to some amazingly big classical concerts. I turned pages at Spolato festival for some of the most famous musicians in the world and for the Olympic chamber music concert. That was pretty cool. Getting to hear them play the Mendelssohn octet and having Frederica Von Stade buy me a hat at Walmart. That was cool. I've listened to you in some in the Florida orchestra concerts. I've been to a lot of Florida Orchestra concerts. And we were required to go to fifty concerts a year when I was in school, so yes, I've been to many a concert. 

Me: How do you listen to music now and how does it play into your life?

Mom: For my church job, I have to listen to a lot of music. And the funny thing is, we played very classical, high church music three weeks ago and last week we sang a Disney song. I'm playing through the Debussy cello sonata because George (a teacher who works for her) is talking about playing a concert. And the Beethoven sonatas for Kayla (one student of hers) for her college auditions. And a lot of beginning piano music. *laughs* While I'm teaching. Mostly it plays into my life in a work way. 

Me: What is your favorite genre of music?

Mom: My favorite is by far jazz. For least favorite, that's difficult because there are artists that are good and bad in every genre. I'm googling genres right now. But probably EDM. What is plunder-phonics??!!

*Brief plunder-phonics interlude. Feel free to fall down that rabbit hole if you so choose.*

Me: Ok, final question. If you were to learn to play a new instrument which one would you choose and why?

Mom: Cello. I've always loved the cello. I've always wanted to learn it.