Meeting Pavel ~ At the Sydney Conservatorium of Music ~ September 2003

I had enjoyed Pavel's concert organised by the SCGS at the Performing Arts Centre on Saturday 30th August, 2003.
We arrived five minutes late and the hall was full. We were lucky to find seats somewhere in the middle. What a delightful concert it was. If you have seen Pavel Steidl before, you'll understand.
So meeting him again the following Monday at the master class was something to look forward to. There was lots of great performers who played for Pavel, like Miles Frazer, James Holland, Joseph Littlefield and Warwick Payne. They played music for Houghton, Brouwer, Albeniz, Bach and Bellinati.
I heard Warwick Payne playing Jongo and it surely sounded like a fun piece to learn. This master class was memorable for me because I felt nervous going up to Pavel so he could sign my program. I thought I could ask to play for him. He said "Oh, do you play the guitar? What would you like to play." I replied "Recuerdos de la Alhambra". "Oh! You can play Recuerdos de la Alhambra?" So he went about finding a guitar for me to use and handed me his. He was happy with me and gave me a hug and kiss. That was so cheering and encouraging for me and unexpected.