You might have encountered audio visual art in various forms, not at least on YouTube or in the world of computer gaming. Music visualization refers to systems which convert music or sound into film, video or computer graphics. Music visualization, as a tool for multisensory learning, often occurs in pedagogical discussions. We are happy to have a chance to talk […]

Counting the beat correctly in one of the world’s most popular piano pieces, Für Elise by Beethoven, is certainly not a bagatelle… As every piano teacher knows, students often have problems playing the right number of beats in bars 14 and 37. If you are not a piano teacher, just watching around on YouTube easily confirms this fact. More surprisingly […]

A recognised authority in 20th century and contemporary music, Peter Hill turns for the first time on disc to another of his lifelong preoccupations – the music of J. S. Bach. In this exclusive interview for Piano Street, Peter shares his ideas on the world of Johann Sebastian and his praised recent recording of Book 2 of the Well Tempered […]

Before the time of television and the internet, live music performances were a primary form of entertainment. Performances were held in private homes, as well as concert halls. Many rivalries formed among pianists and composers. This created a unique angle for entertainment as individuals could then debate the merits of each musician and choose sides. One of the more famous […]

Why haven’t there been any fundamental changes of grand piano design since the 1870s? Some claim it is because manufacturers are afraid of getting beaten up in the marketplace if their pianos are seen as being “experimental”. Others say that musicians tend to be a conservative group of people and do not embrace radical changes to the touch or tone […]

In order to attract extra attention to the international Liszt year 2011 celebrations, Piano Street’s Patrick Jovell assisted by Alexander Buskermolen had the unique opportunity of speaking with internationally renowned pianist Klára Würtz. An international competition prizewinner with numerous notable recordings for the Brilliant label, Ms. Würtz was born and trained in Hungary and graduated from the Ferenc Liszt Academy […]

Chopin’s music has always posed a challenge to pianists. His compositions have retained a universal popularity and continue to be performed in virtually all corners of the world. They have been recorded and re-recorded in their thousands, so Chopin is apparently ‘well-represented’ – but many interpretative issues with respect to his music have yet to be addressed. To gain further […]

From Mozart’s fabulous legato that “flowed like oil” to Beethoven’s oceanlike surge, from Clara Schumann’s touch “sharp as a pencil sketch” to Rubinstein’s volcanic and sensual playing, The Great Pianists brings to life the brilliant, stylish, and sometimes eccentric personalities, methods, and technical peculiarities of history’s greatest pianists. Pulitzer Prizewinning (1971) critic (New York Times) and author Harold C. Schonberg […]

Conventional music notation evolved to serve the needs of composers, performers, and conductors. By contrast, Music Animation Machine (MAM) is a musical score for listeners. A musical score without any measures or clefs sounds confusing – until you see it. That’s the idea behind the Music Animation Machine, which sets the work of Bach, Satie, Chopin and other composers to […]

Creativity measured in small and large form piano compositions 
In 1834 Schumann founded the music journal Neue Zeitschrift fur Musik. For a decade, he edited and wrote music criticism for this publication. He championed the work of numerous young composers. (Read his first published article, a review on Chopin’s Opus 2) His writings embodied the most progressive artistic aesthetics of […]

Vladimir Ashkenazy, one of the twentieth century’s greatest pianists has done virtually everything. A man with nine musical lives. So his recent duo-disc and international duo-performances come as no surprise to us when he returns to the piano with his son Vovka in rarely recorded French Impressionist duets. “Debussy & Ravel: Music for Two Pianos” – Vladimir and Vovka Ashkenazy, […]

The need to play chords or scales before practicing the piano Since the first time you walked into a piano lesson, there has been one key action drilled into your mind: always start with a few scales or exercises to properly warm up your fingers. It is a drill that crosses all lines of study and virtually any piano teacher […]