Can I just say this?
I'm bored with new music these days.
I listen to what's new for piano on Pandora, on Youtube, and elsewhere, and I'm
just -- not impressed. Over-patterned, monotonous spa music that lacks melody.
Yanni and Enya copycats. New age crap that is just -- too pretty. Harmonies
that are maintained for half a minute before changing. Where is the grit; the
risk-taking? Where is the struggle and loss you hear in Beethoven and Chopin?
Is the well-sculpted phrase a relic of a bygone era? Is it too risky to
penetrate a listener's soul; to have an angry alter-ego in the C section? I
find so-called artists hunkered under the label of minimalism, which -- let's
be honest, is often an excuse for shoddy creative skills. And can we please
have some composers take on the challenge of blending classical and jazz a
little better? (Hiromi and video game composers like Koji Kondo are onto this,
I think). I'm all for an "inter-racial" marriage of styles. My take
on the situation?
We need an artistic revival; a sharpening of the craft of
high art, specifically, music.
I don't know exactly what that means, but Japanese female
pianist-composer Hiromi inspires me much more than say, Phillip Glass or George
Winston. Don't think this is a feminazi manifesto, either. I also love what
Jarrod Radnich is doing to bring back virtuosity to piano arranging, and he's
clearly a GUY; a guy who's talent is off-the-charts (though sometimes heavy on
the trills). Kyle Landry is another guy with excellent arranging skills. His
very nuanced and emotional arrangements require some skill to play, though I
don't see him on www.musicnotes.com yet (look him up on Youtube...he's quite
prolific and covers all the popular stuff kids love).
But back to the origin of this boredom. Today I took a little joy ride through
classics (the masters are the best example of superior craft, after all, and I
make all my students study them). I was sight-reading through this classical
book, mainly piano transcriptions of symphonies (Brahms, Beethoven, etc) and...
I got SO bored.
Not bored with the core musical intentions of the composer, but bored with the
arranger's interpretation. Now. This is a popular "Classics" book
that I see on the shelves of every music store. (Sigh...) While my little
journey reminded me of the yearning build in the first movement of Brahm's
fourth symphony, I felt cheated with these stripped-down versions. They were
unimaginative and unchallenging. I wanted to add a thousand notes and details
that weren't written. I guess that's why I've gone almost exclusively to
playing from lead sheets over the years, with the exception of solo piano
works. There's no limit to how I interpret the piece. I can add more color to
the chords, dress up the melody, shake up the rhythm, and add drama and
suspense. I can make it as difficult or as simple as I want. My right brain is
on fire the entire time I'm playing spontaneous arrangements. Arrangements or
accompaniments that are scripted and spelled out have become -- a prison for
me. Forcing myself into that classical mold is like planting a moisture-hungry
fern in a desert. I discovered that lead sheets and composing were my sweet
spots in the past five years, and I've tried to be more truthful to my
authentic musical self.
So, obviously, this evolution of self influenced my teaching. I have been
teaching creative lead sheet interpretation for about eight years. Frankly,
that rigid classical approach just doesn't work for everyone. And I have found
that -- some kids THRIVE on this. These kids would otherwise fall through the
cracks in a more traditional, classical curriculum. That's not to disqualify
classics as critical to piano study; I make these same students apply classical
techniques to their artistic interpretations. Beethoven, Bach, and
Copland...they were both creatives and piano teachers. I'm sure they would
approve of my approach. And hopefully I am planting a seed that will germinate
and blossom into future composers and arrangers.
