Sweet sounds of a bygone era
Bend, Ore. – Lois Gumpert has been playing the piano since she was 7 years old in 1922. The former Bend Water Pageant queen has played so many shows in the area that pretty much anybody who’s lived here long enough knows her name.
We met up with Lois in her home last night to sit in on a little piano playing and storytelling. Lois has played a repertoire of popular jazz tunes from the 1930 and ‘40s so many times that she can hardly remember what she is playing or what key it is in – but her fingers never forget what to do.
Lois recorded a CD in 2001 at the age of 87, although as far as anyone can tell it is not available for purchase anywhere on line. No matter; all the old-timers in town boast a copy.
Posted by Elizabeth Armstrong Moore on Thursday, September 28th, 2006 | Email This PostThis entry was posted on Thursday, September 28th, 2006 at 12:31 pm. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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April 16th, 2007 at 5:12 pm
Goes to show that you\’re never too old for music,or too young for that matter.As a child I learned to play the piano in the 50\’s stopped before the decade was out.in the nineties I found the HAMMERED DULICMER,I found the instrament while chaseing the Ohio and Erie canal in Rosco Villiage,it just so happened that ther was a dulicmer festival going on that same weekind as when I was visiting the remains of the old canal.This was in 1991,at first it was enough to collect to tapes by different players.In \’92 I bought one for myself.In \’93 I even had the nerve to enter the novice class contest,I did not think I was good enought to win,it was something to do.Lo and behould the Judges thought I was good enough,I took 3rd place that year.