Corpulent Carl

Evan and I worked together on our duet for the intermission as well, and Mr. Simon was beside himself with anticipation. As time drew closer and our numbers were getting pretty polished Ted, Jermaine, James and I started hanging out at the house some and we actually did work up a number, just for fun for the 'Double-Stuffed Oreos' that we decided to spring on Mr. Simon during the dress rehearsal before the concert. It was kind of a Christmas present to him of "Go Tell It on the Mountain" done in the Negro Spiritual style. I really thought it sounded pretty good, and had no intention whatever of doing it in the concert.

What we did was when Mr. Simon called on Ted, Jermaine, and James for their number I went up with them and moved Mr. Simon from the piano. I had thought it sounded good in my living room with my baby grand, but in the auditorium actually playing it on the full nine foot Baldwin Concert Grand, with its great sounding bass notes it really stood out! Mr. Simon was really pleased with our surprise, but he one upped us.

"Very good, guys. Now, if you will let me have my piano back, Carl, we'll get on with the trio. As for the 'Double-Stuffed Oreos', you will be doing that number as our encore tonight, although we will keep your group name quiet. I really don't think people will catch the joke." He gave me a wicked grin. "Thought you'd pull one over on me, hmm?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I paced around backstage like a caged tiger while a little kid with a stick beat on the bars during the first half of our concert. No matter what I did I just couldn't relax. Annie, on the other hand was as cool as she could be. It didn't bother her at all to go out and sing in front of people. Teddy and Jermaine kept cracking jokes and fooling around, but then they had been the second group out there, and didn't have to go back until we did our encore.

Evan drew a lot of funny looks at first, but when he told them he was performing for the intermission everybody pretty much just left him alone. We talked a little bit together, but didn't do much, because Mr. Simon still wanted us to keep our duet a surprise. I think that caused part of my nervousness, because I couldn't even talk about it, and I had to keep everything to myself. Finally, I had to go to the restroom and grab a handful of paper towels to carry around, my hands were sweating that badly, and I couldn't wipe them on my pants any more, or I was going to ruin the crease in my trousers.

I did get some good comments on the fit of my tux, which I must say, being tailored for me did fit better than the other guy's tuxes did.

Finally, the last pair of girls went onstage to sing, and Evan and I went to a warm-up room to do a quick tune on his cello. We would have to re-tune, of course, for the piano on stage, but we wanted it close. Evan plays in a youth orchestra, and he's done solos, so while he was nervous it was much more contained than mine. He's also not much of a talker, but he broke that pattern during our short warm-up. "Look, Carl. It's not that bad. I'm not going to tell you it's the same as playing in your living room. It's even better."

I looked at him incredulously!

"Yeah. It really is. When you are playing, and the room goes silent, and as good as you are it will, you know you have them, and then when you finish and they applaud, well, it's a rush. Just focus on your piano, and let it flow from your soul. You've got it, and I guarantee you everyone will know about it before the night is over."

We heard Jermaine knock on the door just before the girls finished their number, as Evan had asked him to. As far as Jermaine still knew it was only Evan playing. He thought I was just helping him tune.

I took a deep shuddering breath and felt nearly faint, but Evan clapped me on the back hard. "Showtime. Let's show them what you can do." And with that we made our way to the stage. Mom and Grandma had managed to get front row seats, and to see the look of surprise on Grandma's face when I walked out was precious. Mom of course knew, and I thought she looked nervous. Annie's mom sat next to them.

Most of the people were standing, with some in the aisles talking, and others making their way to restrooms as we walked out. We sat down, and Evan quickly tuned, then nodded at me and we paused for just a moment. Evan leaned in to the cello and made his first bow stroke, with the deep resonance of the bass intro to Tally's Lullaby and things got quiet through the first few bars until I began to play as the piano part kicked in. As I poured my passion for music into the piece I realized the room had gone totally still. The only thing to be heard was the piano and cello with their haunting melody. I could see the curtain rustling and saw a couple of heads peeking out, then I heard a startled, "It's Carl!" stage whispered loudly and then more and more rustling as others tried to see through.

When the last note came to an end and Evan lifted his bow from the strings for the last time he looked over at me and nodded. "Nailed it!" I saw him mouth, but I was concerned because the entire room was silent. Did we stink that badly? I mean, nothing! Suddenly there was an eruption of applause, and I could hear seats banging as people leapt to their feet in a standing ovation. I hadn't realized just how deeply into the music I had gotten, but as I played it was as Evan had said beforehand. I had become one with the piano, allowing my fingers to pour all of my emotions and feelings through the keys, and that passion had translated itself to the crowd. Their response was electrifying, and the rush was everything Evan had promised it would be.

The look on Mom and Grandma's face was all I really needed, though. Grandma had tears flowing down her face, and over her shoulder I saw my piano teacher, who had never been able to get me to play in a recital cheering and applauding with everyone else. Evan and I made our bows, and he made his way off stage, leaving me out there alone. Mr. Simon walked to the microphone and waited for the room to silence enough to be able to speak.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, that was Evan Spencer and Carl Hudson providing what was supposed to be an intermission. Obviously, that didn't work very well, did it?" He waited for a moment for the laughter to die down. "I was introduced to Carl's piano skills by accident earlier this school year, and I've learned from Mrs. Martin," he gestured to Mrs. Martin in the second row, "that she has never been able to convince him to play in public before. Mrs. Martin, I think that just changed." He waited for applause for Mrs. Martin to die down a bit.

"Actually, I knew this would happen, and I told Carl he would mess up intermission for me if he played." More laughter ensued." I have asked him to play a few more pieces, but because I know if he plays you won't leave, and we will have people needing restrooms while others are performing, so I've made an executive decision. We will have a ten minute intermission without any entertainment, but you won't want to be late returning because Carl will be playing three more pieces during our 'normal' intermission. I've heard him, and you won't want to miss this." He gave me a smile and a nod, and suddenly I had to go to the bathroom desperately. I fled the stage and tried to get to the back stage men's room, but found I couldn't get through the crowd of students who wanted to tell me what a great job I did.

Finally, I made it through the crowd and did my business. Evan was waiting for me when I came back outside. "You did it, Carl. You will never be able to match what you did tonight, but you'll keep trying."

"Hey, Evan, it wasn't just me! I couldn't have done it without you, and in that piece it's the cello that carries it."

He gave me a gentle smile. "You couldn't see yourself at the piano. The way you were so in tune with the instrument, pouring yourself through it is what makes the difference, and that is what the audience responds to. It was a pleasure to perform with you, and if you ever want to do something again let me know. I'd be honored to be a part of it."

Annie was waiting, face shining as I went back to go onstage again. "I knew you could do it," she whispered. "I'm so proud of you!"

Mr. Simon was waiting for me when I got back to the wings. "Good job, Carl. Ready to finish the 'intermission?'" I nodded, and we walked back out onto the stage together.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I believe we are ready to finish our 'Intermission.' In the history of music there have been rare times when someone has come on the scene unexpectedly and years later people have been able to say, 'I was there when . . . .' I predict this will be one of those nights. Carl, take it away." He half bowed to me and left the stage. Self-consciously I gave a nervous bow to the audience and settled behind the keys to begin Ballade pour Adeline, then I followed it with Tip-toe Dancer, and a couple of other pieces. When I finished the last one I had planned I stood and bowed to another standing ovation. I started off stage, but saw Mr. Simon waving me back to the piano. He mimed playing and I could see him mouthing "Joplin", so I walked back to the piano and started playing The Entertainer. He was making a keep going signal as I finished, so I segued into another piece, and then another, and another before he finally gave me a sign to stop.

To be honest, most of the second half of the program was anti-climactic after the intermission, but that wasn't my fault. At last it came time for Annie and me to do our number, and once again I was very nervous about going back out there. I had gotten a little more comfortable in front of people by the time I had finished the intermission, but that comfort level was now gone, and gone for sure before Annie and I went out. Mr. Simon set up the piano for me, with a microphone over the keyboard since I was going to play for us as well as sing.

Annie looked up at me with a big smile. "This is going to be great, Carl. Just put your heart into the music like you always do, and the rest will take care of itself. I tried hard to believe her, but it really didn't sink in. All I knew was I was going to go out there with her and do my best not to make her look bad, but to do all I could to make her shine, she who had already done so much for me.

I know we looked funny as we walked out on the stage. There I was, all seven feet one and a half inches tall - I really don't know why the half is important at this stage - and four hundred fifty pounds, and Annie reaching up to hold my arm at her five feet nothing and still at only ninety-five pounds. There were a few titters throughout the audience, which caused my face to flame and I nearly stumbled, but Annie tugged on my arm and whispered up at me, "Don't mind them. We'll show them." She gave me her dazzling smile and stepped behind the piano bench as I sat down.

This time she did something a little different, and it made all the difference in the world to me. She rested her hand on my shoulder, after moving her microphone back by me instead of in front of the piano. "I want to sing with you, not up there," she whispered in my ear, and then gave my shoulder just a little squeeze. I took a deep breath and looked back to see if she was ready only to be dazzled by her smile and nod. Quietly, but with authority I began the introduction to my arrangement of César Frank's beautiful melody. Without even realizing what I was doing I began singing, and Annie followed right along with me, her voice highlighting mine and before we knew it, it was all over. I stood and took Annie's hand and made my bow as she curtsied. I looked up to see my mother and grandmother crying, and the entire audience on its feet applauding. I was amazed!

Annie and I made our way off stage, only to be called out again, and then again by the audience before Mr. Simon came out to end the program. First of all he thanked everyone for coming, and for their kind attention to the performers, and he talked about future concerts and opportunities to support the music program of the school. Then he said, "We have one more encore performance for you this evening, which will be introduced by one of our young men, at his request. I apologize for the length of the program, and the way it has stretched out, but I really don't think you mind." A chorus of 'No's' and applause drowned him out. "Please allow me to introduce Ted Dawson."

I started to follow Ted onto the stage, but Jermaine held me back. "Hang on just a minute, Carl. We go out in just a minute. Ted asked Mr. Simon for permission to introduce us."

I looked at him puzzled for a moment, but then I heard Ted start to speak.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I'm not a public speaker, and to be honest with you I'm terrified to do this, but I think you need to know the story behind this next number and in part what has happened this evening." He took a deep breath and wiped sweat from his forehead. "Tonight you have been introduced to a big guy, who also happens to be a big man. Carl Hudson has always been big, much bigger than the rest of us, and since the first grade most of us have made his life a living hell. Am I supposed to say that?" He looked back toward Mr. Simon, then forward again. "I guess I can't take it back. I was one of his worst tormentors, and I'm deeply ashamed of myself." Again he paused for a breath and to wipe sweat from his forehead with a tissue.

"Several weeks ago in class I made an egregious crack about Carl's size, and I was suspended from the class for a week, and from school for three days for what I said. I'm not proud of what I did, but I have to say it is the best thing that ever happened to me. Mr. Simon read me the riot act about my actions and what I said, comparing them to racial slurs. At first I was offended terribly at the comparison, but when I got home and my Momma found out what I had done. . ." he paused and nodded toward his mother, "she started in on me and basically said the same thing Mr. Simon did, but he was nicer!" That got a little bit of strained laughter from the audience.

"Mr. Simon had assigned to us the task of choosing groups to sing with for the program this evening. One brave young lady spoke up and said she wanted to sing with Carl. Of course, she received the same mockery we had given him, but you heard tonight what a great pair they make!"

"After my mother got through chewing on me I had to take a hard look at myself, and to be honest I was ashamed of what I saw. I projected on Carl for his size for years what I felt I received because of my race. The thing is neither of us can change either. I reread Dr. Martin Luther King's I Have A Dream speech and listened to it several times and decided I wanted to put what he said into practice. I went over to Carl's house and apologized for my actions, and we have become good friends as a result. He is indeed a big, big man, and I'm not talking size either."

"A while ago you heard Jermaine, James, and me sing a trio. I invited Carl to join us, but he said he had promised to sing with Annie. I told him if he sang with us we could call ourselves the 'Oreos', but with him in the middle it would have to be the 'Double-Stuffed Oreos'." This time he got a real laugh.

"Mr. Simon stopped by Carl's house to talk with him about singing with Annie, concerned about it because of the mockery he has received from all of us for so long, and while there he learned what an accomplished pianist Carl is, and also what a beautiful voice Carl has. It was his idea to pair Carl and Evan together for the intermission, and then to have Carl play a couple of numbers more. Then tonight you all received him so well Mr. Simon just had him keep playing and playing." Applause started up again.

"Look, I'm sorry to be going on so long, here, but this is totally off the cuff, and I'm sorry if I ramble. I just wanted to say Jermaine, James, and I started hanging at Carl's house after school and fooling around singing and stuff and we came up with a song that we sprang on Mr. Simon, just as a Christmas present when we were supposed to be practicing this morning, and he insisted we do it tonight as our encore. May I present the 'Double-Stuffed Oreos', and we would like to sing for you, "Go Tell It on the Mountain" in a Negro Spiritual style of Carl's arrangement."

Jermaine gave me a little push and the three of us went out to join Ted on stage. I sat at the piano, and the three guys gathered round me. I had arranged the piece to feature Jermaine's high falsetto voice counterbalanced by James' very deep bass, with Ted and me filling out the middle parts. We did it rather up tempo, with plenty of syncopation and movement to keep it lively. By the time we were through the audience was on its feet clapping along with the music. We ended and took our bows to thunderous applause and went backstage. I couldn't help myself. I grabbed Ted and gave him a big hug.

"Thanks, man. That took guts!"

"If I'd have treated you right all these years it wouldn't have been necessary."

Dr. Robinson, the school Principal, came hurrying over to us, her high heels clacking across the tiles. "Ted Dawson! I want you to know I am proud of you! That was the best thing I've ever heard another person say or do! I am going to expunge your suspension from your record, and it will only show as a three day absence, reason left blank. I see no reason that should be a blot on your record after what you did tonight to atone for it. Is that OK with you?"

Ted just looked at her with wide eyes. "Thank you, Ma'am. Thank you!"

"You deserve it." She turned to me. "Carl, that was wonderful! I know you are going to hear that over and over. I hope it doesn't go to your head and spoil you, but what you did tonight was absolutely wonderful! I have to find Evan! My daughter is getting married in June. If Evan is willing would you two play that piece as part of the wedding?"

I nodded. "Yes, ma'am, if Evan is willing and I'm free that day."

"Thanks." She swept away, and Mr. Simon stepped up to us.

"I heard what she said, Ted, and I couldn't agree more. Well said, young man." He reached an arm around Ted and another as far around me as he could and pulled us together. "I'm not leaving you two out of this, either," he said to James and Jermaine. "Beautiful job tonight. That was the best Christmas present I've ever received! Carl, you were brilliant! It was a great night all the way around, and I proud of all of you kids."

He stepped away just as a very dark lady stepped up to me and grasped my arms. She pulled me down and kissed me wetly on the cheek, and I felt tears running down her own cheeks. "Carl, I want to thank you for what you've done for my boy, Teddy. He's a different boy, now." She turned from me and gathered Ted into her arms and held him tightly. At first Ted was a little embarrassed by the display, but when he saw the looks the other three of us gave him he smiled and hugged his mom back.

"Thanks, Mom. I love you, too," I heard him whisper. My mother and grandmother came hurrying up then and hugs were exchanged, and Mom and Grandma made it a point to include Ted, James, and Jermaine, with Mom thanking Ted for saying what he did.

"Ted, there will be those who will misunderstand what you said, and willfully so, but I want you to know I couldn't be prouder of you if you were my own son, and your mother has a lot to be proud of!" Mom gave Mrs. Dawson a big hug and introduced herself. Before it was all over the Dawsons, James's family, and Jermaine's family were all invited over to our place for pizzas and an after party.

I had a lot of others gathering around me for a while, but I kept looking for the one I really wanted to see, and finally I was able to spy Annie sitting over to the side with her mother, just smiling and waiting. I made my way over to her and gathered her up in a hug, holding her up off of the floor and spinning her around, and saw her mom smiling up at us. "I've been looking for you!"