Pianist Charles tries for Guinness Book

Charles, who was born in Budapest, Hungary, 49 years ago, had attended music school from age six. The graduate of the Franz Liszt Academy of Music, obtained diplomas as a concert pianist, piano teacher and conductor. But says, “Because I wasn’t part of the Communist party, my career as a classical pianist was corrupted, I would say, and I had to head into show business and started to work in a theatre where my brother was a drummer. The musical director’s husband died, she was emotionally unable to continue, and I jumped in on a phone call and stayed there for eight years, as director, playing with other entertainers in a 14-piece orchestra, and as a soloist.”

In 1982, Brunner went to Scandinavia, Germany, Austria and England, touring with a small group of musicians for over two years before returning to his homeland, hoping that the political situation had changed “a little bit.” But it had not so after a few months, in 1985 he auditioned for a cruise ship job.

“Actually it was pretty tough as out of over 100 pianists, just two of us were chosen.”

That was the start of a 20-year career on the cruise ships, to over 200 countries in all continents, as musical director, entertaining with orchestras for the shows, and his own personal show of classical, pop, jazz and a variety of other types of music.

“On the morning after my personal show I held open house and would entertain requests from guests for every kind of music, which meant one moment Beethoven’s ‘Moonlight Sonata’ and the next ‘Ragtime ‘from Scott Joplin.”

Verlier grew up in Tunapuna, was educated at St Joseph Convent, St Joseph and completed her A-levels at St Augustine Senior Comprehensive. The graduate of the Valsayn Teachers’ College obtained a Masters in Special Education, and taught for years at the School For The Hearing Impaired in Cascade, Germaine O”Brien’s pre-school at La Joya and YTEPP. Deciding that she needed a break from teaching, ten years ago Verlier joined the cruise ships as a bar server, moved up to bar supervisor, assistant bar manager and then for the last five years was Crew and Guest Relations Manager.

Now back here, the couple started Brunner Stationery at Back Street, Tunapuna, where Charles teaches piano and singing privately, and also at St Charles High School, and not wanting to give up his Chaguanas students, still teaches there on Mondays and Thursdays.

Brunner has attempted to make it into the Guinness World Records, and has received one certificate from GWR, another is on the way.

The first is for 58 hours and 26 minutes continuous playing in 2004, and states it doesn’t necessarily mean that you will be admitted to the book, that privilege remains with GWR.

“Actually I am in contact with an American guy Tim Buie whose record was 53 hours which I broke with my 58/26, and then he broke this with 61 hours, and last year I played 63 hours, always on the ship,” he said. “Buie, who does it at home and at a local pub, has now played 63 hrs 11 minutes, so that’s why I am planning to do one here in Trinidad before the end of the year, hopefully reaching to 64 hours.”

And this is how the love affair started with Charles and Verlier in 2004 during his first attempt at the GWR.

“I just saw her sitting there quietly all the time I played, when she was off duty, and realised that she might be crazy enough to marry me, so when I finished, was checked out in the hospital facilities, slept, and woke up next morning, I just called her up and told her I wanted to speak to her. She took a five minute break and came to my cabin, and I asked the other people to leave so I could tell her I loved her. We had known each other before but not too well.”

By the next month Charles had arranged a surprise wedding in Hawaii, through a friend, and only told his bride-to-be two days before.

“I had to as I needed her passport.”

It was a very, very romantic Hawaiian style wedding at the West Inn Hotel in Maui, complete with the traditional kissing of the bride for as long as the minister can blow the conch shell. Neither had found the time to be married before that.

Charles explained the GWR’s very rigid rules. “You play for eight hours absolutely non stop and then must take 15 minutes break, repeating the pattern until you reach your targeted time. You cannot play the same piece of music in four hours time and all the music has to be recognisable with no improvisations. You can play from music, which I do and you can play from memory, which I do as well, but you have to have the list of music played and by which composer.

You cannot make up as you go along, and the list has to be submitted to GWR afterwards. The only thing going to them before is an eight page agreement which they provide and you have to sign it, so you can’t even make an attempt without their permission.

“Another page of rules says the whole performance must be recorded with quality photos; the attempt has to be in a place that is opened to the public with a book for signatures of witnesses, above all there must be two official witnesses who are respectable public figures, whose details are given to GWR so that they can be contacted and questioned about the attempt.

After all of this it takes months and months to be officially recognised and certified.”

For Charles it is not really about being in the book but to be able to entertain so many people for so many hours and show how much strength he has.

“A big part of it is a macho thing. Last time I started Sunday at 9 am and finished Tuesday at 11 p.m., sleeping for about eight minutes in the break. To get to 64 hours will take much longer.”