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 at the Piano!

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/

Recommended Listening: High Plains by Phillip Aaberg

I first heard this one back in the 1980's I believe. The reason I got it was due to the fact that George Winston said Aaberg influenced his playing.

Well it only takes a minute of listening to the first track to hear the influence. And what a wonder it is!

This CD is sublime in every sense of the word. Aaberg makes a tonal palette out of the piano, coaxing every nuance, every timbre and texture out of it. At times melodic, at times textural .. but at all times a masterpiece.

If you're into New Age piano and you don't own this CD,do yourself a favor and at least listen to it somewhere or buy it outright. I promise, you won't be sorry.

New Age Pianist Interview: Timothy Crane

The following is an intervew with New Age pianist Timothy Crane. I asked Tim 5 questions about how he plays and composes at the piano. Enjoy!

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

Timothy: First, a preface. Even though my first cd was played primarily on "new age" radio stations (and, I assume, my second will be as well), I have always considered what I wrote to be either (1) Christian instrumental (a category that barely exists) or (2) instrumental pop (a category that I recently learned has its own Grammy category). My pieces mostly include elements common to many pop songs (like verses, choruses, bridges, etc.) and there is very little improvisiation (although I love to improvise).

That being said, I probably really started listening and emulating "new age" piano players after hearing George Winston's December album. I also remember hearing, for the first time, Enya's Orinoco Flow on a regular broadcast radio station and being quite amazed. The kind of music that I most liked to play, i.e., big, orchestrated rock instumentals by people like Elton John, etc., were rare, and mostly on throw-away tracks. When I heard my first Yanni cd on the radio, I knew it was possible to write and play an entire album's worth of that kind of material.

Edward: What Inspires You and Informs Your Music?

Timothy: Like many musicians, I'm not so much inspired as I am obsessed. I can't really go a day without playing the piano, and mostly that means... Read the rest of this interview at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/tcrane.html

David Lanz Endorses Quiescence Music!

I've been a big fan of David Lanz's music for quite a while. Actually,
I think the first CD I heard of his is titled "Nightfall" and I really enjoyed it.

I listened to it until the cassette tape (yeah... cassette tape) was literally worn out.

So imagine my surprise when I got this endorsement from David:

"Your approach to learning this style of piano is easy to grasp and very well thought out, and I would recommend it to anyone getting started on improvisation, especially in the New Age style!"

Well, I was happy to say the least. I'm also glad artist's like David Lanz are still around and still playing. I consider it part of my mission to keep the New Age piano style alive.

Learn more about David Lanz at his website: http://www.davidlanz.com/