This is so true. I’ve played everything from classical piano to metal guitar to jazz, and others, and I produce music. It helps a lot having such wide range of experience and I suggest it to everyone. I notice it makes me feel comfortable changing things up and thinking creatively.

One of your finest videos yet, please show more of your own work, maybe break some of it down for us please

I agree with you. I prefer the first version of the prelude - of course, many in the classical "establishment" hated Glenn Gould too, but the wider world loved him, as do I. I love the idea of historical performance, but there's lots of room for interpretation too. I have a lot of respect for the classical world, they can certainly be a bit stodgy, there's value in that, but limitation as well.

One of the important things as an artist is to learn not to be what is expected or to sound like what is expected, but to do what you like. If other people like it too, so much the better.

Very true! Thanks for sharing

Good to see another video Phil. Sorry you were so discouraged when young. I think you play and sing very well personally. Warmest regards, Chris

I like your voice!

A sooo interesting “discussion” you hold here. Style-related confidence… I have been accustomed to listen to classical music since the age of 5. In the end, I realize that I stopped listening to my old records from classical or academic interpreters and still enjoy listening to pianists like Alexis Weissenberg or Cyprien Katsaris who had/has a strong vision and confidence on how they want their music to sound like, regardless of what others may think. Whether we agree or not in their style approach, only emotion fits in their requirements. You gained probably that confidence because you were strong enough, even in your young age, to realize what is important and what is not in playing music, for you and your life. Anyway, thank you and, by the way, it would be interesting to hear you thoughts also on singing. After all, singing and piano fluency may be probably related 😉

Thank you for sharing this very personal story. It helps us understand you as a person, musician and teacher, which I really like to do. I totally love your way of playing Bach and Brahms (an artist which I thought I did not like, but perhaps I simply did not like the way his music is performed). I don't dislike it, but I find your Mozart a little too "approximate". I am sharing this not to criticize, but just to say that it does not have to be black and white for everybody. In fact, Mozart himself commented that he wanted perfection in his world and that his life was a mess (me paraphrasing) and as such he tried to achieve exact perfection in his music. I think that among all of the music I know, Mozart is the one that really sounds very good when performed "perfectly" (still not "computer like perfection", obviously). I do not know where this comes from: I listened to all genres since childhood and I particularly liked Jazz first, then classical, and only later a few things outside of these "categories". It is just the way it is for me and I thought you might be interested in hearing it, so I am sharing it. Thanks again for this!

Your "jazzy" way of playing these classical pieces to me sounds a lot more "natural" (i.e. like the composer might have intended it) then the "stiff" and "perfect" performance often heard, trying to avoid "human" feel not explicitly found in the score. -Michael