Auroran makes grand return to American Grands

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Gail Wright of Aurora, and her Husband Tom (CQ), perform at the American Grands concert, Saturday, at Elgin Community College. | Dave Shields~For Suntimes Media.

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Updated: February 29, 2012 10:22PM

Gail Wright never thought she would play the ivory keys of a piano again as a painful illness worsened, but the pianist’s life with music has returned in grand fashion.

“It’s exhilarating to perform on a stage of pianos — it’s like playing with an orchestra,” Wright said.

On Saturday, Wright performed in the prestigious “grand finale” of the American Grands annual concert, held in the Blizzard Theatre of the Visual and Performing Arts Center at Elgin Community College.

The Aurora piano instructor was among 500 pianists to perform musical pieces for their appropriate level of expertise on 12 ebony grand pianos with two pianists at each keyboard.

Conductor Colin Holman said the 12 grand pianos “bridge together the skills and artistry of more than 5,000 fingers of performers and their hours of practice.”

Pain ‘excruciating’

While American Grands has remained a unique venue, this year it struck another chord.

Wright was diagnosed 13 years ago with lupus, a chronic autoimmune disease that causes the immune system to attack the body’s own tissues and organs, including the joints.

“The pain in my fingers was excruciating,” Wright said.

She said her illness was complicated with six years of pleurisy, a condition associated with the inflammation of tissue surrounding the lungs and chest.

“I never thought I would play the piano again,” she said.

Wright, who had performed in the American Grands since its inception 17 years ago, had to sit out of the concert series for the past two years.

“Gail didn’t forget a thing,” Music Director Larry Dieffenbach of Geneva said of Wright’s return to the stage. “She is a great addition not just with her musicality but her persona — she is a happy, upbeat person.”

Family joins in

The celebration of Wright’s return was marked with six family members joining her in concert. Wright’s husband, Tom, was seated at her side during Beethoven’s “Fidelio Overture” and for John Phillip Sousa’s “Stars and Stripes Forever” traditional grand finale of the night.

The youngest of couple’s three children, 12-year-old Claire, performed during the evening concert, as did their four nieces and nephews: Sarah, 14; Brian, 13; Anna, 10; and Kevin, 7.

Claire and her cousin Sarah performed the “Flight of the Bumble Bee” from two pianos front stage.

“It’s a lot better that my mom isn’t in pain and we can perform together,” Claire said.

Wright’s husband said he, too, was happy to be able to perform beside his wife again.

The American Grands started out at the Norris Cultural Arts Center in St. Charles as a cornerstone of the St. Charles Music Festival. It began in 1995 with one performance and grew by 2002 to three concerts.

The concert Saturday evening featured classical and modern selections, as well as two specially commissioned pieces dedicated to two retiring American Grands contributors, pianist Mary Hooper of Batavia and St. Charles resident Jill Dickens, who has been involved with the planning committee.

Pain easing up

Wright credits her recovery to a form of hormonal treatment and taking organic chia seeds in orange juice.

“The seed turns into a gel in liquid and apparently releases whatever is good for you — I was in pain practically every minute. I thank God every day,” Wright said.

“It’s pretty amazing — for the most part, the pain is gone. I definitely believe the chia seed was a catalyst in me getting better.”

Pianist Jon Warfel was Wright’s teacher while at Waubonsee Community College.

“I know how much Gail loves the piano,” Warfel said. “I think it would be very difficult to have to sit back from something you enjoy doing and feel passionate about — it’s like not being able to breathe.”