Is New Age Piano Dead?

I hate to see something as beautiful as New Age piano music die simply because the term "new age" turns people off. But I have to admit that the popularity of this style has been losing steam since the mid 1980's. Sure, there are devoted fans who love this style, but new listeners are hard to come by.

Even nature photographers are organized and have their own society. So do Plein air painters and other small niche groups. I'd like to organize fans of New Age piano music and even though there is a site that lists New Age pianists and their CDs, it doesn't inspire interest to those who might want to learn this style. Any ideas? Send me an email.

Can Art and Music Enhance Each Other?

I'm a big Sumi-e fan. Sumi-e is a Japanese art form that means "ink painting." It's a very free-form intuitive kind of art form. The reason I mention this at all is that when I paint and get in tune with the art, my piano playing seems more alive. It seems that one art form influences the other. I thought about it and what really happens is that when Im in the moment and enjoying painting, the emotion carries over into other areas - especially music.

P.S. Find the Sumi-e book here.

New Age or Contemporary?

I came across a pianist/composer by the name of Wynn-Anne Rossi a while back while looking for "New Age" piano sheet music. Her style and song titles are what many consider new age music but she does not call herself a "new age" composer. Actually, she does not use any labels to describe herself. Listen to a piece from "An Alaskan Tour" and tell me what you think?

Piano Class Very Unsatisfactory

I'll never forget a piano course I took when I was attending the Community College of Philadelphia. It was a "class" piano couse where about 20-25 people were seated around keyboards. Each keyboard had headphones and we were supplied with a standard piano textbook.

The course lasted 4 months or so and I learned how to play triads with both hands. I also learned how to read treble and bass clefs.

I can't say that I was thrilled with this course. In fact, I remember thinking how boring it was. And dry. Why couldn't we learn something that would allow creativity in?

I guess most "teachers" don't think you can be creative in music until you spend about 2 years learning what they consider to be the basics. This is all nonsense and only serves to mystify music and make it unaccessible to the masses.

Is New Age Piano Easy or Difficult to Learn?

When I first started playing the piano, I wanted to create my own stuff. As I delved into the genre known as New Age music, it seemed easy enough to learn.

My main problem in learning how to play in this style was being able to let go and learn how to improvise first. You see, I wanted to create "a piece of music" and that froze me up. Once I realized this, it became my priority to just be in the moment and play whatever I felt using a few chords only.

This has made all the difference. Although I do use a method for "composing," a piece of music, I wouldn't be able to do it unless I could move forward without censoring what was coming out.