Murray Perahia has spent a lot of time with Beethoven throughout his long and successful career. Still, it was only when he passed the 70-year mark that he felt ready to perform and record the “Hammerklavier” — a sonata which is something of the ultimate test of a pianist’s technique, stamina, and musical understanding. An Unsentimental but Still Expressive Experience […]

Do you want to know how to play chords on piano? This page will provide you with the best online chord resources. Where to look depends on your purpose. Getting Started Do you want to quickly figure out the notes of a specific chord? Then visit one of the many sites with piano chord charts. Here are two of the […]

A native of Bolzano, Italian pianist Enrico Pompili won several national competitions before being one of the finalists at the Dublin International Piano Competition. In 1994 he was second to Viktor Lyadov at the Hamamatsu Competition, and the following year he was awarded the top prize at the XIII Paloma O’Shea Competition. This success launched an international career starting from […]

As a combination of supreme musicianship and Seasonal Celebrations, what would be more suitable than a traditional German Lutheran Chorale in the hands of the sensational French pianist Lucas Debargue, who is also known as an outstanding improviser and composer? Here is a video from the annual German music prizes; ECHO KLASSIK Awards in October 2017 in the Elbphilharmonie in […]

When Valentina Lisitsa came to Stockholm to play Rachmaninoff’s third piano concerto, it was a welcome fact not only for all her fans but also for anybody well aware of the enormous challenge this concerto means for any performer. In 2013 Lisitsa released her Complete Rachmaninoff Concertos on Decca and therefor this was a rare chance for Piano Street’s Patrick […]

Kathleen Supové is one of America’s most acclaimed and versatile contemporary music pianists, known for continually redefining what it means to be a pianist and keyboardist/performance artist in today’s world. After winning top prizes in the Gaudeamus International Competition for Interpretation of Contemporary Music, she began her career as a guest artist at the prestigious Darmstadt Festival in Germany. Since […]

Since the early 20th century, jazz always had a significant impact on classical music and classical pianists. Composers found the rhythms, the blue quality in melody and harmony, as well as the spontaneous improvisation immensely fascinating and irresistibly modern. Gershwin brought jazz into the classical concert venues Even though composers like Debussy, Ravel, Stravinsky and even Soviet composers used jazz […]

One of the most interesting exhibitors at the Cremonafiere Exhibition’s piano part – the so called CremonaPianoforte – this fall was a company and workshop called Piano Vintage. The company performs a type of restoration dictated from the work philosophy and experience of the “Steinway Academy”. The instruments on display at the Cremona exhibition were vintage Steinway grand pianos carefully […]

In the third and final part of the series on building a career as a professional pianist, Alexander Buskermolen gives a personal perspective on practicing routines at the piano with practising tips by Dutch pedagogue Jan Wijn. The previous parts: Part 1: Master Teacher Wijn is Growing Flowers and Plants Part 2: Hannes Minnaar: The Path to Becoming a Concert […]

“The black keys belong essentially to the three longest fingers” – CPE Bach “Please do not think that I am so naïve as to ignore the logic of the circle around which our scales are built and the center of which is C. I merely stress that the theory of piano playing which deals with the hand and its physiology […]

During the summer several interesting articles that deal with the conception of audibility vs. visibility have been presented by international media. It may seem counterintuitive, but an expert from University College London, concert pianist and psychologist Chia-Jung Tsay has brought forth a theory that general physical appeal and visual aspects of performance are more important than actual playing in the […]

Ever wonder why a certain classical piece evokes a consistent emotional response? Scientist and musician Manfred Clynes has done extensive research on the topic and discovered that many of the great composers all had their own unique signature of underlying emotional “pulse” in their music. But he was not the first to explore the music’s secret language. During the Baroque […]