Interview with New Age Pianist Jim Gibson

The following is from an interview I did with Jim. I asked 5 questions I wish I had the answers to when I first started playing piano in the New Age style. Enjoy!

Edward: How Did You Get Started Playing New Age Piano?

Jim: I My mother was a piano teacher, so I just grew up playing...had a job playing for a small church in the country near my hometown (Columbus, GA) during high school, and just "fell into" playing with a dance band while I was in college. I majored in English, got an MA in English, but was playing jobs all the while, and eventually left teaching just to be a full-time commercial pianist (in Atlanta). I've been doing that since the early '70s--playing all kinds of social and commercial piano jobs...some with bands, some with small combos, many just piano.I got interested in New Age music when...

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Summer Slow Down

Summer is almost here. Almost. Yet I find it strange how things in the piano world seem to slow down during the summer season.

What ... no one plays piano when it's hot out? Got better things to do?

I for one don't let the summer heat phase me. Perhaps it's because I have air conditioning. Or maybe it has something to do with me not taking many vacations.

I still play piano. So what about you? Does your playing slow down in the summer?

Paint Your Own Musical Landscapes!

I don't know why, but I find the idea of interpreting nature musically to be very appealing. Maybe it's because I'm attracted to nature's beauty, but the notion of communicating that beauty musically has always intrigued me.

Not being a very patient person, I wanted to find a way to capture a musical idea very quickly and sketch out an entire piece all at once. Visual artists do something called a thumbnail sketch and I wanted to do the same thing for music.

It then occured to me that if I just sketch out the first 8-bars of the piece, and write in the first 2-bars of melody, I could capture an idea that would be remembered weeks or even years later. It's amazing but this actually works!

Happy Mother's Day from Quiescence Music!

Moms. They do a lot. That's for sure. In fact, mother's do things most father's can't even contemplate.

Hence - the holiday we know as Mother's day.

My own mom used to make soup and sandwich for me during my lunch breaks in grade school. It was a heart warming ritual we both enjoyed.

I'd get off from school for an hour and come home. I only lived 2 blocks away. And I know I'd have something tasty waiting for me.

Anyway, happy Mother's day to all the hard working and thoughtful moms out there. -- Edward

Arranging For New Age Piano

A while back, I wrote an article that compared flower arranging to music arranging. While this may seem a world apart, it really isn't.

In flower arranging, the goal is to create a pleasing whole using different flowers, colors, textures, etc. If you've ever seen a beautiful flower arrangement, you'll know what I mean. The eye takes in the various contrasts and colors and is pleased when it forms into one satisfying whole.

In music the object is the same. When arranging a piece for New Age piano, we work with sections. We can label the sections (A) and (B) and then "arrange" the sections into an order. The most common order is ABA form. It has the benefits of simplicity and is a good place to start with New Age piano.

Most times, I'll use an 8-bar phrase for the (A) section. This gets repeated 2 or 3 times. Then it's time for some contrast - the (B) section. This can be a 4 or 8-bar phrase depending on taste. Then the (A) section is repeated one last time.

Now, there are other elements that go into our arrangement such as introductions, transitions, and endings. Using these elements, we can create a pleasing musical arrangement that satisfies the minds need for order and beauty creating art

George Winston: Rain - Piano Performance Video

When I first heard this piece of music, I was literally blown away! "How'd he do that?" I thought to myself. How can one man create such a full sound on the piano?

Of course, classical pianists have and continue to lead the way in making the piano such a rich sounding instrument. But here was a music that kind of sounded classical but wasn't.

It had a more modern feel to it. And ... it was titled "Rain."

In the classical world, this is called "program" music because the title suggests the inspiration of the composer and helps guide the listener towards what the composer had in mind.

Whatever you want to call it, you have to watch this video at YouTube http://youtube.com/watch?v=Uj6VLLa29zs

You'll see George play the piece. The video intersperses nature scenes with concert footage. A must see!

Forget About Trying to Make Music

Your best music will always come when you are in the moment and just playing the piano. Why is this? Because you have forgotten about trying to make music. Instead, you are now "making" music. A subtle but crucial difference that can be detected by most careful listeners.

The key to being in the moment when playing piano comes when the technical aspects are mastered and the player can just play. Think of sports as an example. Michael Jordan didn't have to think about how to drive the basketball to the hoop. He had done it thousands of times. Now he could allow his intuition to guide him in making the best shot.

If Andre Agassi had to think about how to hit the tennis ball, he never would be able to get it to where he wanted it.

The good thing about New Age piano playing is that technique is easily learned. For example, in the lesson "Reflections in Water," you have 4 open position chords to play. Once the technical aspects of playing these chords is down, you are free to allow your feeling to guide you in making music.

Now you are "in the moment" and can let the music tell you where it wants to go - not the other way around

My Hospital Stay (For Deep Vein Thrombosis)

I'll tell you... I don't know how it happened, but last week I woke up and my right arm was swollen to twice it's normal size.

Initially, I thought it was a pinched nerve. But when I saw my Doc, he said it was either something called DVT or compartment syndrome.

Anyway, I was admitted to the hospital for DVT and spent 4 days lying in a hospital bed.

The DVT I had was in my arm. Most people get them in their legs (especially after flying in an airplane).

The thing is, it could be a life threatening situation if not treated.

They put me on blood thinners and operated and I think I'm better. But it's really changed me. I'm not a youngster anymore so anything like this can "get" to you.

Great Discoveries Made by Making Mistakes!

There are so many areas in life where one must do things right. Thankfully, art is an area where great discoveries are made by making mistakes!

Take improvisation for example. We sit at our piano or keyboard without any thought of what is to come. Our fingers touch a certain chord that calls to us and we are gone. We are transported into a nonverbal world where anything is possible.

Surprises happily come our way as we let go and observe how the music is created before us. And we are always amazed that the "best" music happens when we do not care if it is good or bad.

We are not concerned with good or bad but with feeling and music alone. We allow ourselves to be wrapped up in this world of sound and it does transform us. When the music has played itself out we rest and notice that the world seems a little lighter than it was before we sat down to play.

Recommended Site - Freesolopiano.com

I noticed this site a while back and was immediately interested. The site's owner has assembled many - and I mean many Mp3's snippets of various New Age piano artists. You're sure to spend more than a few minutes at this site.

The site contains artist links, mp3's, free sheet music and other interesting tid bits. Well worth a visit! Find the site at http://www.freesolopiano.com/