Pianonet

A Jazz Pianist Gets His Big Break – at 85

Richard — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 15:29:19 +0000

Back in the 1930s, Boyd Lee Dunlop taught himself to play music on a broken piano left out on the streets of Buffalo, N.Y. Only half the keys worked.

He also taught his little brother Frank to play the drums while they were growing up. Frankie Dunlop went on to record with Thelonious Monk and Charles Mingus, among other jazz greats. Boyd Lee Dunlop went to work in the steel mills and rail yards of Buffalo, occasionally playing piano at local clubs. Click here for the rest of the story.

Pianos to Plunk Down Around NYC

Richard — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 14:45:54 +0000

Consider them keys to the city: Anyone who gets a sudden itch to tickle the ivories will be able to play free public pianos in 50 places throughout New York City, from the Coney Island boardwalk to the Metropolitan Museum.

An art installation touring the world is making its first U.S. stop beginning Monday. For two weeks, players can play tunes on pianos all over New York City, at famous landmarks like the Lincoln Center, the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge, the Staten Island ferry terminal and Central Park’s bandshell.

The concept, devised by British artist Luke Jerram, has put more than 130 pianos in parks, squares and bus stations since 2008 in cities including London, Sydney and Sao Paulo. And now it’s New York City’s turn to play, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Thursday. Click HERE to read more…

‘Pianos on Parade’ lends music, quirkiness to streets

Richard — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 14:43:16 +0000

St. Paul, Minn. — Call it random quirkiness or a moment of spontaneous community, but on the streets of St. Paul it’s the summer of the upright piano.

Twenty artistically decorated pianos have been placed around the city, to lend a little music to the streets and bring its residents together.

“Pianos on Parade” is a collaboration between the city of St. Paul and the local non-profit “Keys 4/4 Kids.”

There’s a weathered mint green upright piano on the corner of Ford Parkway and Cleveland Avenue. It sits under a garden tree canopy with concrete benches on either side. Painted tropical birds are perched on its front panel. Click HERE to read more…

‘Pianomania’ Takes Persnickety Pianists To A New Pinnacle

Richard — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 14:38:01 +0000

Anyone with a piano at home can tell stories about piano tuners — or piano technicians, as they prefer to be called. In more than a dozen years of producing classical music here at NPR, I have a few stories myself about brilliant but picky pianists and the extraordinary demands they’ve made on our piano technicians. Like the time I had to page the entire building in search of a hairdryer so the felt hammers in the piano’s guts could get a blow-dry.

Now there’s a new feature-length documentary that renders any average pianist vs. piano technician nightmare utterly trivial.Pianomania, directed by Lilian Franck and Robert Cibis, takes persnickety to a new pinnacle. C lick HERE to read more…

A Toy Piano Played Like a Grand Baby

Richard — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 14:14:54 +0000

The sound of a toy piano may conjure the magic and innocence of childhood: You see toy pianos in playrooms, not concert halls.

But John Cage wrote a suite for toy pianos in 1948. In 2001, a toy piano was a central part of the soundtrack for the French romantic comedyAmelie. Pop and rock musicians including Radiohead, Tom Waits and Lenny Kravitz have used toy pianos to accent their songs. Click HERE to read more.

Cheetos Commercial in a Piano Store

Richard — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 19:39:06 +0000

If you need a good laugh, take a break and view this Cheetos commercial. It was filmed in a piano store! View video.

Painted Pianos Spring Up in O.C.

Richard — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 19:22:58 +0000

Pedestrians play some of the 20 painted pianos that were placed around Orange County, California by the Pacific Symphony Orchestra. VIdeo by Eugene Garcia of the ocregister.com. See video.

Grand Piano Found on Sandbar in Miami Bay

Richard — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 02:12:49 +0000

MIAMI (AP) — A grand piano recently showed up on a sandbar in Miami’s Biscayne Bay, about 200 yards from condominiums on the shore.

The piano, which weighs at least 650 pounds, was placed at the highest spot along the sandbar so it doesn’t get underwater during high tide.

While officials aren’t sure how it got there, they know it won’t be going anywhere unless it becomes a hazard to wildlife or boaters.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission spokesman Jorge Pino says the agency is not responsible for moving such items. And, he adds, unless it becomes a navigational hazard, the U.S. Coast Guard won’t get involved.

For now, the piano has become a fancy roost for seagulls.

For the rest of the story, click here.

The Studliest Chest You’ve Ever Seen

Richard — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 15:33:25 +0000

Handmade Studley Tool Chest from 1890s, fits almost 300 piano-making tools

If Henry O. Studley had lived 150 years later, he’d be designing circuit boards. As it stands, Studley was born in 1838 and worked as a piano maker, carpenter and mason. Sometime in the 1890s he designed this amazing tool cabinet, which has become known in woodworking circles as the Henry O. Studley tool chest. Click here for more…

Celebrating Jazz Pianist Dave Brubeck’s 90th Birthday

Richard — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 19:11:23 +0000

In 1954, polls in the leading jazz magazinesMetronome and Downbeat selected Dave Brubeck’s band as the year’s best instrumental group. That same year, Brubeck was the second jazz musician ever featured on the cover of Time Magazine (the first being Louie Armstrong).

On Monday, Brubeck will celebrate his 90th birthday. He celebrated another milestone last year, when his seminal album Time Out, featuring the hits “Take Five” and “Blue Rondo a la Turk,” celebrated its 50th anniversary. Brubeck marked the occasion with an outdoor concert at the Newport Jazz Festival. A month later, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts announced that he would be a 2009 Kennedy Center Honoree. Click here for more.