Grand Pianos - Too Expensive?

Okay, piano music afficianados...many thanks to Edward Weiss for contributing his thoughts on the relative merits of buying a grand piano, upright piano or digital:

Do you know what a guitar player has to spend to get a good quality acoustic instrument? Anywhere from $500 to $2000 depending on make and model. Do you know what a piano player looking for a grand piano has to spend to get a similar quality instrument? Anywhere from $5000 to $100,000 and up!

Who has this kind of money? Not the average Joe on the street. No. Grand pianos are beautiful and great sounding but are way out of the price range of the average family. What to do? Well there's the baby grand. Here we have a nice instrument that can be bought used for as little as $2000.

While the sound won't be as full and resonant as the grand piano sound, still, it's worth looking into. Many baby grand pianos have the look and feel of a grand without the high price tag AND they actually fit in your living room. Grand pianos on the other hand are 6 feet in length or more and require substantial space to house them.

If a baby grand piano is too expensive for you, there's the upright piano. This is the choice most take. Why? Because they are relatively inexpensive and take up very little space. Some sound as good as baby grand's depending on make and model. And they have their charm as well. Look to spend anywhere from $1000 to $3000 for a decent piano of this type.

Or you can go digital. Now, digital pianos these days sound as good as the grand pianos they are sampled from but... they will never give you the sound you can get from an acoustic instrument. There's just no way a digital piano can capture the many overtones and harmonics that "real" pianos give but, they are quite a deal if that doesn't bother you!

Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music's online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Stop by now at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/piano_lessons.html for a FREE piano lesson!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Edward_Weiss

Rare Picture of Richard Strauss

Hey, I found a great picture of Richard Strauss on a website owned by Alex Ross, music critic of The New Yorker. The picture shows Strauss in old age with a craggy smile on his face, and it dispels the myth of the ice-cold Emperor of Music he is often portrayed as. The picture was supplied by oboist John De Lancie, who asked Strauss to compose the piece which eventually became the Oboe Concerto.

I guess Strauss isn't famous for piano music - although he wrote a Burlesque for Piano and Orchestra, it isn't my favourite Strauss piece. But I love Strauss' music and find the picture presents a touchingly human aspect of the great composer, so I wanted to share it in this piano blog.

Alex Ross, by the way,is working on a book and has been gathering stories from US soldiers who met Strauss in Garmisch after the end of the war. I will repeat his plea here: if anyone reading this knows a GI who met Strauss between 1945 and 1949, please write to: Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 4 Times Square, NY NY 10036, or to axlroth [at] hotmail.com. The 10th Armored Division and the 103rd Infantry Division were in the area at the time.

Here is the link: Picture of Richard Strauss in Garmisch, Bavaria,
1945

How 'Easy' Is Piano Playing?

Piano music

Emily Sigers has contributed this article, written in 1923 by Conrad Wirtz, on the art of playing piano music:

Has anyone ever told you how easy a thing it is to play the piano? Have you ever had people convey to you the idea that piano playing involves little skill, and therefore, does not stand very high, in their estimation, as an art - that it cannot be classed with the art of say, painting or sculpture, as an indication of the possession of brains? Such opinions only show that anyone holding them has given the subject little, if any thought. Until we begin to think, very few people realize what a really complicated thing it is to play even simple piano music.

We have, first of all, to read notes on two staffs - bass and treble. The same sign, placed in the same way is, for example, G on the bass staff and E on the treble staff. We must, therefore, always know whether we are reading bass or treble notes. Various signs of different shape denote various time lengths which must be exactly correct when played. Other signs denote periods of silence (rests) between the tones, also of exact duration. We must be able to place the right finger upon the key which each particular note represents, with the right kind of touch, at the right moment. We must read not only one note, but chords of three, four and even ten notes at a time. We must use the right kind of finger, hand, wrist and arm actions and play, at the same time, with movements which are totally different in each hand. We must always keep in mind the proper key signature and be prepared for all accidents, and for changing from treble to bass in either hand or vice versa.

Now added to all this, we must observe all marks of expression, shading, phrasing and tempo, use the pedals properly, and finally interpret the style and spirit of the piece in such a manner that the composer's ideas will be carried out.

When we consider this outline of what a player really has to do, we can readily see that it is not so easy a matter to play, even simple music, correctly.

The writer has among his acquaintances a violinist, a man about thirty years of age, a fine player on his instrument, who had held a position in a first class orchestra for some time, who decided that he would learn piano playing. After a trial of over a year he came to the conclusion that he could not learn, because he could not conquer the difficulty of reading two different staffs at the same time. Had he begun the study in early life he, no doubt, would have compassed his desire like many another has done. This illustration emphasizes the contention that every musician, be he violinist, vocalist, or what not, should begin his musical studies with a certain amount of piano work. While we may not admire the violinist's lack of perseverance, it nevertheless shows that reading from two staffs, at the same time, is a difficulty.

It is only through constant and plentiful practice that we finally can conquer all these difficulties. Were it not that through doing these various acts, one at a time, over and over again, until they become fixed habits, we would never succeed in playing at all, but could only stumble through, making a most unpleasant and unintelligible jumble of the music.

Even as it is, it takes practically all of our senses ever on the alert - sight, touch, hearing, feeling, and we might almost say taste - to play the piano acceptably. When we realize all these difficulties it will help teachers and parents to be a little more patient with those who are trying to master the difficult but at the same time most delightful art of piano playing.

This article, written by Conrad Wirtz, was taken from the May 1923 issue of magazine "Etude Musical Magazine." This article is featured at www.thepianopages.com, along with free piano lessons, sheet music, products, and lots more.

Provided by ArticleFeeder.com

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Caring for a Piano - From the Moment of Purchase

Piano music - many thanks to Charles Kassotis for making available this excellent article on caring for pianos:

If you have a piano, you've probably made it the centerpiece of a particular room. There's no doubt that pianos are a beautiful piece of furniture and can be a wonderful addition to your home. But where should you put it? And how do you care for it? These are questions you may not have considered until the delivery van is in the driveway or the first layer of dust has accumulated. Take some tips from the pros.

One of the first things to consider is that your piano is probably going to have to stay where you put it for some time. Unless this is a compact model, moving it from one side of the room to another is going to be a major undertaking. Even with wheels, youre likely to damage flooring.

Get the exact measurements of your piano before it arrives and take careful stock of your room. Clear the spot you want the piano, then mark off the space the piano will take up. Is there comfortable room for someone to be seated on the bench to play? Making a paper or computer outline of your room and placing your furniture in the model is a good idea if you have the time and patience for this kind of undertaking.

If you have central heating, be sure your piano isn't going to be blocking a vent. Not only will it knock down on the distribution of heat, but the direct stream of air isn't good for the piano. Be sure there's a light source for the pianist, but you also shouldn't put the piano in direct sunlight.

Remember that little critters may very well take up residence in a piano, especially one that's not used often. With that in mind, it's probably a good idea to keep a grip on mice and bug infestations. If you have a piano in storage, be sure the area is "vermin free."

Cleaning a piano is not a tremendously difficult chore if you start with a few simple rules. Never play with dirty hands. It's especially important to enforce this rule if you have children in the house who take lessons or simply can't resist touching the piano. Keeping the cover closed is a good start, but kids tend to be fascinated by the instrument and dirty hands can cause some serious cleaning issues.

If keys do get sticky, a slightly damp, soft cloth is probably your best bet. Be sure the cloth isn't wet enough to drip. Wipe the top of the keys first, then depress each key to clean the sides of the keys beside it. Remember that grime on the sides of the keys can cause the keys to stick. Avoid harsh cleaners and keep in mind that many household cleaners will leave a sticky residue. For tough stains, try a bit of lemon or alcohol on your cleaning cloth.

As for the case, it all depends on the material. It's best to follow manufacturers suggestions, A general rule of thumb is to clean a wood case as you would any other wood, but be careful that you don't allow any cleaner or water to drip through cracks and crevices in the case.

For more information about your piano, including how to care for it, visit Piano Set

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Piano Music Merchant

Piano music merchant

There is a great piano music resource I'd like to share with you: one of the best online musical instrument merchants.

They have a great selection of name-brand products - not just pianos and keyboards but also guitars, basses, drums and percussion, amps, recording gear - everything needed by the gigging musician, or beginner looking for a digital piano to learn on.

This merchant has won the trust of thousands of customers - their low prices and super low shipping costs make them highly competitive - some online merchants display low costs and add on high shipping costs at the last stage of the purchasing process - not zZounds.

zZounds offers the widest selection of name-brand instruments at guaranteed lowest prices. You can purchase over 125,000 different products from their website 24 hours a day. Check out this great piano music resource!

Nb: zZounds does not currently ship outside of the USA.

Piano music merchant

Piano Music

Piano music in all genres - classical, rock, jazz - piano music is a vital ingredient in music-making.

Luckily most people don't share Andre Segoiva, the great classical guitarist's aversion to the piano - he once described it as a monster who screams when you touch its teeth!

Well, in good hands, the piano can be made to sing as beautifully as the guitar.

If the days when there was a piano in every parlour, and much family entertainment involved gathering around the piano to make music together, are gone - long since replaced by radio and TV - there is a renewed interest in piano music today, fuelled by the availability of affordable digital pianos.

Digital pianos have certain disadvantages compared to real pianos, but they also have many advantages - they never go out of tune, they take up less space. The best ones have weighted keyboards to imitate the feel of a real piano. It is quite possible to learn on a digital piano.

Movies have recently created interest in piano playing, too. An obvious example is "The Piano", starring Harvey Keitel and Holly Hunter, set in mid-nineteenth century New Zealand, a story of repression and forbidden love revolving around the heroine's beloved piano which accompanied her from Scotland when she moved to New Zealand to join her husband.

More recently, there is Polanski's "The Pianist", based on the true story of a Polish concert pianist who survived internment in a concentration camp and against all odds kept himself alive among the ruins of the Warsaw Ghetto, helped by an altruistic German officer. In a sense the true star of the movie is the haunting piano music of Frederic Chopin.

Learning a musical instrument can teach a child all kinds of skills useful in everyday life, and piano lessons can be part of a good all-round education.

It is good that interest in the piano is growing as strong as ever. Piano music can be heard more and more in schools and people's homes.

Piano music

Other Piano Music Resources

If you find this blog interesting there are more piano resources to found at these sites: piano lesson, piano sheet music, and upright piano

Piano Music

Welcome to my piano music blog. Here you will find great piano music resources, and piano music lessons for people of all abilities.