Musicians article index

This section provides news and information about leading pianists and synth musicians.

OMD to reopen legendary Liverpool club Eric’s

Eighties band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) reopened an iconic Liverpool club earlier this month.

Closed since the 1970s, Eric’s once saw the likes of The Sex Pistols, The Ramones, Blondie and Joy Division as well as OMD.

Long before the Wirral band found fame and fortune, McCluskey’s dad worked at Stanlow, and in April this year, 50 OMD fans from across Europe travelled to the refinery to pay homage to the place that inspired their heroes.

The original recording even used ambient sounds recorded in the refinery in 1980.

Andy McCluskey said: “If Eric’s had not existed then neither would OMD. Even though you cannot recreate what Eric’s meant to our generation over 30 years ago, it will be fun to play on the same stage again remembering the past whilst hopefully celebrating a new and different future.

From the beginning, OMD’s Paul Humphreys and Andy McCluskey launched their own unique style of electronic melodies and thoughtful lyrics to carve out a reputation for intelligent pop.

Read more at the Chester Chronicle.

2nd Annual Moog Circuit Bending Challenge Finalists announced

If circuit bending is your thing, check out the three finalists at this year’s Moog Circuit Bending Challenge.

Watch videos of Jeff Boynton, Daniel Baum and Dr Moonstien as they do some serious mods to a CX-500, Fujitone II and a ‘guitar sequencer thingumajig’.

Read more

Lana Lane, The Bob Moog Foundation And The Wall Of Doom To Join Erik Norlander At RoSFest 2011

The Galactic Collective, an innovative re-imagining of the best of Erik Norlander‘s vast instrumental catalog, is scheduled to perform at the prestigious progressive rock festival RoSFest on Saturday, May 21st from 5-7pm with a very special guest appearance by symphonic rock icon Lana Lane.

Norlander’s band of stellar musicians includes guitarist Freddy DeMarco, bassist Mark Matthews, and drummer Nick LePar, all from the Akron, Ohio area. Also joining this performance will be Asheville, North Carolina vocalist Debrissa McKinney who worked with Norlander on the Moogus Operandi concert last year. An additional highlight of the concert will be Norlander’s Wall of Doom, a massive Moog modular analog synthesizer whose core dates back to 1967. Michelle Moog-Koussa, Executive Director of The Bob Moog Foundation, will be introducing the band on stage and hosting a table for the Foundation throughout the festival.

The Rites of Spring Festival 2011 (RoSFest) will be hosted by the Majestic Theater, 25 Carlisle Street, Gettysburg, PA May 20th – May 22nd. A limited amount of tickets are still available and can be purchased at http://www.rosfest.com.

Has Susan Boyle bought a grand piano?

We’re not much into celebrity gossip at Piano & Synth Magazine, particularly when the source is a British tabloid paper, but then again we are quite interested in who gets their hands on a grand piano.

So…

The Sun is reporting that singer Susan Boyle, despite being on a £300-per-week allowance, has splashed out on a grand piano:

“Recent purchases include a grand piano, a top iPhone – worth £600 – and some new furniture from Edinburgh’s finest department store, Jenners, for her gaff in Blackburn, West Lothian.”

What amused me straight away is that journalist Gordon Smart obviously has no clue how much a grand piano costs. Note that he swoons at “a top iPhone worth £600″, yet an acoustic grand is likely to cost at least 20 times that.

If true, that’s quite some spend.

Jazz legend Chick Corea endorses the Yamaha AvantGrand hybrid piano

Legendary jazz pianist Chick Corea recently took Yamaha’s newly launched AvantGrand N3 hybrid piano for a “test drive.” Initially skeptical about the world’s first stringless piano to feature the sound, touch and action of a concert grand, the 67-year-old jazz superstar was quickly won over.

“My standard of comparison is the Yamaha CFIIIS concert grand piano with a gorgeous, beautiful sound, so I was a little apprehensive when I first saw the AvantGrand,” says the Yamaha Artist, who was recently named JazzTimes’ 2008 Artist of the Year.

“I thought, ‘look at this little thing, what’s it going to do?’ It blew me away,” recalls Corea. “I sat down and adjusted the volume to make it sound like a big piano and immediately went into reverence at the R&D department and how they pulled it off, because it’s quite an accomplishment.”

Priced at a fraction of the cost of a concert grand, the N3 features the exquisite sound of the acclaimed Yamaha CFIIIS concert grand piano in a stunning grand piano style cabinet.

Currently on tour as a member of the Five Peace Band, also featuring John McLaughlin, Corea will be making select solo appearances, including the Nice Jazz Festival in Nice, France and the Detroit Jazz Festival in Detroit, Michigan. He will also perform with Stanley Clarke and Lenny White for several dates in September.

“Once I started playing the AvantGrand and getting into the musical flow of it, I could lose myself in the music just like I like to do. I could certainly envision using this instrument in my louder bands, my electric bands.”

Fusing 21st century music technology with Yamaha’s century-long heritage of piano craftsmanship, the N3 features highly advanced sound reproduction and sampling technology, without the tuning, cost or footprint of a comparable stringed instrument.

One of the greatest challenges in creating a true acoustic piano experience electronically is to accurately re-create the vibrations integral to the playing experience. The AvantGrand Series are the first pianos to actualise the physical connection with their instrument that pianists could only experience – until now – with an acoustic grand.

Its innovative Tactile Response System transmits “string” vibrations through the keys to player’s hands. Even the foot pedal action became subject to Yamaha’s demanding criteria. In traditional pianos, resistance is created in proportion to how deep the pedal is depressed. To replicate this, Yamaha created a new, specialized grand piano pedal for AvantGrand that reproduces the finesse of acoustic pedals, duplicating the spring, friction and inertia of traditional pedals.

The placement of the four-channel, three-way Spatial Acoustic Speaker System mimics the points where the original grand piano samples were taken, while the Soundboard Resonator create a non-directional sound dispersion directly in front of the player, duplicating the subtle reproduction of the buildup of sound felt by concert pianists. These technologies combine to authentically re-create the depth of tone of the Yamaha nine-foot CFIIIS grand piano, the choice instrument of many of the world’s top musicians and performance venues.

In addition to the remarkable grand piano sound sample, the N3 also features electronic piano and harpsichord voices.

The AvantGrand N3 is slated to ship in July 2009. The AvantGrand N2 upright model will be available in September 2009. Both include a matching padded bench.

Artist Profile: Jade Simmons

Honing her musical creativity and electrifying audiences worldwide is merely the warm up for Jade Simmons. The Yamaha pianist, whose mission is to “expand the boundaries of classical music,” seeks nothing short of a musical revolution.

Simmons recently joined the Yamaha Artist roster, which includes acclaimed pianists such as Abbey Simon, Frederic Chiu, Alexander Kobrin, Oxana Yablonskaya, Olga Kern, Maria Joao Pires, Elton John, Alicia Keys, Gavin DeGraw and Norah Jones.

A musical force of nature, Simmons champions a diverse mix of repertoire from the classics to the cutting edge, designs her own concert wear, writes articles on the arts, and maintains a busy performing, speaking and lecturing schedule. Simmons will also serve as the inaugural host for the Cliburn Competition’s first interactive live Webcast later this month. This confluence of imagination, talent and drive resulted in Simmons being named as one of Ebony Magazine’s 2007 “Young Leaders Under 30.”

According to the former Miss Illinois and 1st-runner up at the 2000 Miss America Pageant, her affiliation with Yamaha “was inevitable”. Recently, when considering some of her most significant and successful performances, it became clear which brand she had come to rely on the most.

“The one thing that was consistent was Yamaha; I really believe in their product,” said Simmons. “There’s a consistency there that is lacking with other brands. There’s a comfort level there. Even when you don’t have time to warm up, when your fingers are cold, a Yamaha piano will work with you and not against you.”

The Charleston, South Carolina native recently experienced the CFIIIS concert grand piano at a recent performance Dublin, Georgia. “I was drawn to it because of the variation in colour, and the responsive action of the keys,” she recalls. “It was 4:30 and I only intended to practice 15 minutes. I didn’t leave until 7:30 when it was time to change for the performance. Despite being road weary, the instrument made me want to practice.”

“Jade is the kind of artist you formally welcome into the fold after, it turns out, you’ve been working together all along,” says Yamaha Artist Services Director James Steeber. “She makes a brilliant impression, has a presence which fills the room, and plays with authority and dedication – something which benefits Yamaha tremendously. Additionally, her outreach to young people in the name of classical music is vital.”

Simmons’ latest CD release, Revolutionary Rhythm is the first installment of “The Rhythm Project” which features repertoire that capitalises on the piano’s rhythmic and percussive nature. This connection was nurtured by her father, who plays African drums, and her mother, who plays piano. An avid bucket drummer, Simmons enthusiastically drummed with her high school and college marching bands (“number 4 bass, baby!”).

According to the artist, Revolutionary Rhythm reflects her affinities and influences, highlighting American composers Samuel Barber, John Corigliano, Russell Pinkston and in pieces by DBR, she is complemented by Hip-Hop beats she co-produced. She sums up the recording as “the musical story of a pianist enamored with rhythm, indebted to classical music, drawn to modern music and surrounded by technology and popular culture.”

After a recent performance at the CD launch, an admirer offered Simmons “one of the best compliments I ever received. He said, ‘I feel like am witnessing the beginning of a movement.’ That personifies what I am trying to do. I want people to leave enjoying the whole musical package.”

Since her days as Miss Illinois, Simmons has spoken across the country to great acclaim, offering humorous and inspiring presentations as part of her “Where Do You Stand?!” speaking series. “The most fulfilling part of my touring is going to schools and community centers, speaking with kids and encouraging them to find their passion.” She has appeared on a variety of radio and television programs speaking on topics from the arts to youth suicide prevention, a cause that she’s “passionate about”.

As an advocate for the arts in education, she has created a presentation entitled “Mozart on the Move” for elementary school students. “My message is don’t let someone look at you and limit you,” says Simmons, who grew up listening to Lauren Hill and Missy Elliott, and is drawn to Beethoven, Timbaland and Rachmaninoff. “I am careful to say that what I do, meaning classical music, is not better than popular music,” adding that “the mixing of genres feels like second nature to me.”

At the 2000 Miss America Pageant, Simmons performed Chopin’s Etude in C-sharp minor, Op.10 No.4 live, before a television audience of millions. In 2006, she became the first ever New Music, New Places Fellow for the esteemed Concert Artists Guild organization. Under this initiative, she helps to build new audiences and generate interest in concert music by bringing traditional and new works to non-traditional and alternative venues.

Recent engagements include Symphony Hall with the Chicago Sinfonietta, Seattle’s Meany Hall, Detroit’s Institute of the arts, the National Academy of Sciences in Washington D.C. and New York’s Town Hall, Merkin Hall and Symphony Space. A soloist, recitalist and chamber musician, her performances have been broadcast on PBS and National Public Radio affiliates. Abroad, she has performed in Spain, France, Greece, Italy and The Canary Islands.

Winner of numerous awards and scholarships, Simmons is a graduate of Rice University’s prestigious Shepherd School of Music and received her Master of Piano Performance degree as a Provost Fellow. In 2001, she completed her undergraduate work at Northwestern University, where she co-founded the popular percussion and dance ensemble Boomshaka! As a follow up, Simmons formed the progressive, contemporary Collide Trio which performs a mash up of hip-hop, electronica and art music.

Simmons is Founder and Artistic Director of The Impulse Artist Series, which provides performance opportunities and career building support for emerging pianists. “It’s increasingly important that students coming out of art and music schools to present something different and exciting,” Simmons notes. “You have to be creative. I am lucky that I found a platform that is not a gimmick, but allows me to express myself as an artist.”

Simmons’ artistic and life philosophies seem to converge in her CD liner notes, where she writes: “If we’re lucky, when we die maybe a handful of people will remember us vividly. If we’re really fortunate, we will leave this earth having made an indelible impact, having rebelled for a purpose, having revolutionized something.”

For more information on Yamaha artists or the extensive Yamaha product catalog, please visit www.yamahaartists.com.

Joseph Bertolozzi’s Bridge Music: is this one of the biggest object to be sampled?

I’ve just read an interesting article over at the Naxos blog which talks about Bridge Music, an album by composer Joseph Bertolozzi.

The composition features ten movements comprised of nothing but sounds recorded from the Mid-Hudson Bridge itself, including “Bridge Funk” and “Rivet Gun”. There’s also an “audio tour” bonus track.

In something of an irony, the bridge’s designer, Ralph Modjeski, was a skilled pianist, so it’s fitting that his engineering feat is being used for music creation.

Both as a pioneering engineer and as a musician who loved the music of his own time, I think he would be intrigued to experience this boundary-shattering synthesis involving his beloved bridge and the music of our own time,” writes Bertolozzi.

Not sure when or if the album is going to be available, but apparently “Bridge Music is available free to the public, beginning in June 2009, through Listening Stations on the towers of the Mid-Hudson Bridge and FM transmitters in waterfront parks along the Hudson River.”

Cello meets computer: Zoe Keating creates classical music with technology

There’s a fascinating article and video over at Wired.com featuring classical cellist Zoe Keating.

She uses her Apple MacBook Pro to record her cello, and then creates loops and layers based on that.

Instead of trying to get fifty cellists together in one room, she is the sole instrumentalist. In fact, it probably gives her more creative freedom – why try to organise a load of human musicians when you can do it all yourself?

It’s reminiscent of some of the work Mike Oldfield has done, building up layer upon layer of instruments.

“My music is the fusion of information architecture and classical music,” Keating says in this Wired.com video. “The way that you problem-solve in the world of technology … really lends itself to problem-solving with the kind of music that I do.”

Software wise, she uses Ableton Live, SooperLooper, and some DIY AppleScript, plus a set of ten MIDI foot pedals which can control it all.

Definitely worth watching.

Lang Lang chosen as worldwide ambassador to 2010 Shanghai World Expo

Superstar Chinese pianist Lang Lang has been chosen as one of three official worldwide Ambassadors for the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, alongside NBA player Yao Ming and the actor Jackie Chan.

Lang Lang, the most popular contemporary classical musician in the world, will be involved in various Expo activities including the opening ceremony, music videos promoting the event, plus various marketing and promotional activities.

The theme of this year’s Expo, which takes place from May 1st through October 31st, is “Better City, Better Life”.

By dedicating a 3.28-square-mile area at the core of the city to exhibitions, events, and forums on this theme, Shanghai hopes to build a powerful and lasting pilot example of sustainable and harmonious urban living. Officials anticipate that more than 70 million people will visit the 2010 Shanghai World Expo.

iPhone musician to play Wembley Stadium

When the iPhone was first launched it didn’t immediately jump up and shout about its music creation credentials. Sure, it’s an iPod, but that’s really about playback of music — the closest I really expected it to get to music creation was by hooking two or more together with some digital decks and DJing with them.

Nevertheless, two years on and with third-party applications aplenty, the iPhone has such gems as Star Guitar, noise.io, PaklSound1, Bloom, SynthPond, and numerous other music composition and synth creation tools.

Perhaps, then, it’s no surprise that the iPhone will be the gadget star of forthcoming concerts at Wembley Stadium:

The London Evening Standard reports:

Singer, songwriter and producer Gary Go will be playing his iPhone instead of guitars and drums at a series of Take That concerts in July.

Go, 24 – real name Gary Baker – has already written several tracks for his first album using software downloaded to the phone. He used it to recreate guitars, drums, piano and horn sections.

All the demos for his album were laid down using a virtual four-track recording studio installed on his phone.

“I think it’s pretty amazing that I’m going to be using a mobile phone on stage at Wembley Stadium in front of so many people. I grew up behind the stadium, and used to listen to concerts in my back garden, ” said Go, whose single Open Arms is released on 11 May.

“My biggest worry is that my phone will ring mid-song.”

We’ll be ramping up our coverage of iPhone musical apps over the coming weeks, because (particularly for a mobile phone/entertainment device) there’s some pretty nifty bits of software available to complement or even replace recording studio and live performance gear and PC software.

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