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Piano Puzzler

American Public Media

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Every week on Performance Today™, Bruce Adolphe re-writes a familiar tune in the style of a classical composer. We get one of our listeners on the phone, and our caller listens to Bruce play his Piano Puzzler™. They then try to do two things: name the hidden tune, and name the composer whose style Bruce is mimicking. From American Public Media.
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Welcome to Piano Meditations Podcast by Blake Rowe. For the past six years (with occasional breaks), Wednesday nights have been devoted to creating freely improvised music for about 45 minutes. Known melodies may come to mind and may be explored, but the pieces are primarily “spontaneously composed”. The music tends to follow an arc from introspective to energetic and back again. The first few notes become a motif to be explored; sometimes a piece is more structured and and other times more ...
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Tonight I needed to be patient as I got into the music. It can be tempting to compose "from the ego", where I'm playing what I know will sound good but I've also done it a million times. It's a little harder to wait until the music suggests itself where it wants to go. The music may meander for a while, or be seemingly stagnant as I'm repeating not…
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Towards the end I played along with a pad sound on my iPad, but I also had a borrowed Theremin! I didn't record the other instruments on their own track, so they are far back in the mix, but I thought I'd include them anyway. Also, one of my microphones finally ran out of battery, so I recorded the music in mono using one mic. Hey, one does what on…
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Time to dig into improvisation! It's hard, it's mysterious... but it doesn't have to be. Follow these easy tips to make fast and substantial progress.Also...Have you been trying to learn jazz piano with youtube videos, dvds, teachers but feellike you're still constantly guessing, can't play any tunes without copying what someone else has played, an…
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Did a couple waltzes tonight. The last piece I took the opening motif from Beethoven's Fifth and had a bunch of fun with it. It morphed into Fiddler on the Roof and Fly Me To the Moon, so go figure. I had a couple note accidents; it is surprisingly difficult to play faster than one can think! ;)By Blake Rowe
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Jazz piano comping is one of the easier things to do because it just requires knowledge of voicings and rhythms. I'm going to teach you about what voicings to use where on the piano to comp in this podcast.Also...Have you been trying to learn jazz piano with youtube videos, dvds, teachers but feellike you're still constantly guessing, can't play an…
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One piece is definitely not relaxing, be warned. I started off just playing with staccato (light, separated notes) but didn't find my footing right away. At some point the left hand turned into a fast walking bass, then a kind of ragtime. My deal with myself is to practice "Yes, and..." when it comes to the direction the music is going, so I didn't…
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Time to tackle some uptempo solo piano strategies! These strategies are a little bit difficult but they absolutely work and will have you sounding great if you practice them.Want the solo piano system course at jazz piano school? Get a discount by going to the link below.https://jazzpianoschool.com/solo-piano-system-discount-1-day/Also...Have you b…
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Quite the large audience tonight! I never know, nor does it matter, but it certainly is fun. I followed a common pattern of starting off with a few single notes which becomes the thematic material for the piece. Later pieces can have more energy and movement, and we bring it home with a simple tune to say goodnight. At the very end, I played a litt…
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We are on to part 2 of my 3 part Solo piano Framework. If you missed part 1, go back and watch it when you get some time. But today, we'll be tackling slow swing. My live programs are starting back up in September! My 3-month Accelerator program and 9-month Innercircle Mastermind.For more info go to...https://jazzpianoschool.com/groupAlso...Have yo…
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My friend and flautist Paul Harris joined me again tonight. It is always such a treat to play with him. It is rare indeed to meet another musician who can jump in to free improv, listen for harmonic shifts, know when to play and when to pause, take the lead and generate ideas for us both to develop, indeed a treat. I have been away for several week…
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It's time to teach you my Solo Piano Framework. This is a 3 part live stream I series that I recently did so you'll be listening to me teach live and answer questions live.Some students said this was the BEST solo piano education they have ever received. It's 3 parts total so watch it all and take notes. Enjoy!My live programs are starting back up …
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When I discovered this little rhythmic trick it was an absolute game changer for my improvisation! Let's learn it!My live programs are starting back up in September! My 3-month Accelerator program and 9-month Innercircle Mastermind.For more info go to...https://jazzpianoschool.com/groupAlso...Have you been trying to learn jazz piano with youtube vi…
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Let's integrate the easy church/gospel movements I taught you from last week's podcast into the beautiful hymn, "I Surrender All". My live programs are starting back up in September! My 3-month Accelerator program and 9-month Innercircle Mastermind.For more info go to...https://jazzpianoschool.com/groupAlso...Have you been trying to learn jazz pian…
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I use these four, easy, church movements everytime I play on Sunday. If you want to get a church/gospel sound fast, learn these today! My live programs are starting back up in September! My 3-month Accelerator program and 9-month Innercircle Mastermind.For more info go to...https://jazzpianoschool.com/groupAlso...Have you been trying to learn jazz …
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Contemporary Piano Music Ep185 - Modern Classical - Ambient Neoclassical - Ethereal Instrumental mix https://www.youtube.com/@NewAgePianoMusicmixes Masakatsu Takagi - Niyodo Amy Lauren - North Shore Abandoned Toys - A Soft Shadowed Innocence Anthesteria - Nicholas 1914 Jim Brickman - Nothing Left to Say Hideyuki Hashimoto - Naoshima Pill-oh - Night…
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Contemporary Piano Music Ep184 - Modern Neoclassical - Ambient Classical - New Age mix https://www.youtube.com/@NewAgePianoMusicmixes Joe Bongiorno - Mystical Suzanne Ciani - Megan's Dream Abandoned Toys - Requiem for Annissa Ralph Zurmuhle - My Father's Eyes Rick Wakeman - Lothlorien Luigi Rubino - Melancholic Lisbon David Nevue - Mourning-rebirth…
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Learning tools and theory is one thing, but knowing how to effectively practice them is a different skill set entirely. Let's look at how to efficiently practice and use scales. Want my full Improvisation Mastery course? Go to the link below for a huge one-time discount!https://jazzpianoschool.com/improvdiscountAlso...Have you been trying to learn …
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Contemporary Piano Music Ep183 - Modern Classical - Ethereal Instrumental - Ambient Neoclassical - New Age mix https://www.youtube.com/@NewAgePianoMusicmixes Luigi Rubino - Last Dance Jean-Michel Blais - Le Lac Abandoned Toys - Spiraling into the Sun Jean-Michel Blais - La Ferme Daniel Robbins - Love Theme Yuhki Kuramoto - Lovingly Rick Wakeman - L…
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All good friends who know the drill here tonight. I edited out the clapping. I spent most of today doing paperwork and purging emails, so I was in a blah state when people arrived. I told them there were no guarantees; the music may put people to sleep or I might start banging as loud as I could. Kinda did a bit of both! Enjoy?…
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Finding your own voice in music can seem like a daunting task. We look up to so many great jazz composers, but how did they discover their own sound as composers? The best thing to do is to start writing your own music. This simple composition exercise which Sterling will show you will help you create your own music right away! Go to for practice m…
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Several new friends tonight! Had about 12 people in the the audience. The piano was tuned today by the great Victor LaGamma, so I naturally was drawn to the most sonorous of harmonies. I seem to be averaging about ten minutes per piece. That's not a plan, but an observation! Some melodies were circling around in my head that might have been a nod t…
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We're on to part 2 of my chord scales lesson. In this lesson I'm going to teach you 3 easy chord scales you have to know to make your improvisation sound great, and you'll get to practice them with me through the tune "Take The A-Train".Want my full Improvisation Mastery course? Go to the link below for a huge one-time discount!https://jazzpianosch…
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Contemporary Piano Music Ep182 - Modern Classical - Ambient Neoclassical - Ethereal Instrumental - New Age mix https://www.youtube.com/@NewAgePianoMusicmixes Yiruma - Kiss the Rain Clara Ponty - Fifer's Tale Abandoned Toys - Vermillion Reflections Hideyuki Hashimoto - Klock Matt Stewart-Evans - Fragile Etude #1 Ralph Zurmuhle - Dreamesque Sommer - …
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I was busy doing house chores and paperwork and din't have a chance to set up sounds for using the electronic music studio, so once again tonight is solo piano only. But hey, that's how this whole thing got started so I'm not worried I'm not meeting expectations... Anyway, had a good sized group tonight, and more than one person seems to have visua…
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Contemporary Piano Music Ep181 - Modern Classical - Ethereal Instrumental - Ambient Neoclassical - New Age mix https://www.youtube.com/@NewAgePianoMusicmixes Ola Gjeilo - January Robin Spielberg - Just Float Away Abandoned Toys - Within a Lilac Clutch Keiko Matsui - Beyond the Light Yiruma - Chaconne David Lanz - Dancing on the (Berlin) Wall David …
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My friend Paul Harris came again tonight with his gorgeous flute playing! This is the first podcast posting, however. I'm a bit backed up with a few evenings that I never mixed down. If you suddenly see three or four episodes on one day, that's what's going on. We played Manha de Carnaval from the movie Black Orpheus, and chose an Arabic scale to m…
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Think you don't need chord scales? Think again. In this video I'll show you what happens if you DON'T use them. Want my full Improvisation Mastery course? Go to the link below for a huge one-time discount!https://jazzpianoschool.com/improvdiscountAlso...Have you been trying to learn jazz piano with youtube videos, dvds, teachers but feellike you're…
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Contemporary Piano Music Ep180 - Modern Classical - Ethereal Neoclassical - Ambient Newage mix https://www.youtube.com/@NewAgePianoMusicmixes Helen Jane Long - If I Could Michael Allen Harrison - In Flight Abandoned Toys - Where Tide Defy the Mooon Danny Wright - In Memory Arc of Doves - Impression Kevin Kern - Imagination's Key Joe Bongiorno - I h…
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Small but appreciative audience tonight. I stayed in the lyrical realm, using the first few improvised notes as the thematic material for the pieces. There was a Spanish-sounding piece (happens with the Phrygian Mode), a pop-chord piece at the end, some impressionistic arpeggios and something that was at times in 7/8. Enjoy!…
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Contemporary Piano Music Ep179 - Modern Classical - Ethereal Instrumental - Ambient Neoclassical mix https://www.youtube.com/@NewAgePianoMusicmixes David Nevue - Hymn of Rememberance Ola Gjeilo - Firefly Abandoned Toys - The Siren's Final Serpent Joe Bongiorno - I hear you cry Michael Jones - Evening Bruno Bavota - Home Luigi Rubino - He is her Hid…
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We have had several weeks with guest musicians! The downside is that I need to spend time mixing and editing, and the end result is procrastination. Tonight was just solo piano, however, so here it is. I felt like I was digging into the music tonight, and felt very focused on following the flow.By Blake Rowe
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Here are my 5 best secrets to improvising over super fast tempos so you sound like a pro!Also...Have you been trying to learn jazz piano with youtube videos, dvds, teachers but feellike you're still constantly guessing, can't play any tunes without copying what someone else has played, and don't know how to connect all the tid bits you've learned? …
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On to practice Round 2! We'll be practicing structure 2 of our rootless voicings at 5 different tempos. Here we go! Have you been trying to learn jazz piano with youtube videos, dvds, teachers but feellike you're still constantly guessing, can't play any tunes without copying what someone else has played, and don't know how to connect all the tid b…
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Contemporary Piano Music Ep178 - Modern Classical - Ambient Neoclassical - Newage - New Age mix https://www.youtube.com/@NewAgePianoMusicmixes Sophie Kazandjian - Glass Slopes Amy Lauren - Gales of Indigo Abandoned Toys - Said the Sun to the Moonblind Shadows Isaac Shepard - Gentle Aeterna Nox & Gothic Nox - Get Close to your Heart Clara Ponty - Gl…
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Contemporary Piano Music Ep177 - Modern Classical - Ambient instrumental - Ethereal New Age mix https://www.youtube.com/@NewAgePianoMusicmixes Rikiya Yamashita - Full Moon Rob Costlow - Forever Abandoned Toys - As Anastasia Shimmered Unearthly Amy Lauren - Fly Away Brian Crain - Fire David Nevue - Forest Cathedreal Yuria - Flutter and Shame Anna Ro…
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This episode will be something I've NEVER done before. This will be a practice lesson that will allow you to practice your rootless voicings with me! Sounds fun right? Well, more fun then practicing by yourself I would imagine. I'll keep you tips, keep you inspired, and be your coach as I stick with you throughout this entire practice session! Let'…
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Contemporary Piano Music Ep176 - Modern Neoclassical - Ambient Classical - Ethereal New Age mix https://www.youtube.com/@NewAgePianoMusicmixes Yuichi Watanbe - Silk Tapestry Keiko Matsui - Ever After Abandoned Toys - Lorelei's Chamber of Verdure and Blossom Eiko Yamashita - Eternal Dream The Tumbled Sea - Emily's Song Philip Aaberg - Elegy Goldmund…
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