When I did my retirement home tours, feisty tunes were more well-received than the melancholy Prelude no. 2 in C# minor. Everybody knew Gershwin’s “I Got Rhythm,” and “Rhapsody in Blue,” plus a truckload of Hoagy Carmichael favorites. So, looking back, I should have thought twice about featuring this musical gem as my opener. (as… Continue reading George Gershwin’s Prelude no. 2, and the retirement home circuit (Videos)
Category: Yamaha Disklavier
DREAM PIANO: Overview and Acknowledgments
My two-year long romp on the piano finding trail with York as my professional companion and consultant had been worth all the time spent in, around and under pianos. How else would I have acquired knowledge about the piano’s harp, or cast iron plate were it not for his having the bravado to dismantle it… Continue reading DREAM PIANO: Overview and Acknowledgments
Cato, his Killer Keyboard, and a round of piano lessons!
Ralph Cato had been scheduled to come for his first piano lesson soon after we had a chance meeting at the Guitar Center in Fresno a few years ago. At the time, he was combing the store in search of a “killer” digital keyboard, as he described it, for his 10 year old daughter. Christmas… Continue reading Cato, his Killer Keyboard, and a round of piano lessons!
Is the Acoustic Piano Culture at Risk?
I'm worried. I drove over to Fresno Piano on Ashlan this afternoon after my return from the Bay area. With an instant camera tucked in my pocket, I would prove my point that acoustic pianos were on their way out and digitals were fast taking over the marketplace. Even before I reached my destination, I… Continue reading Is the Acoustic Piano Culture at Risk?