Keytar - Keyboard Guitar Hybrid of the 1980s

The Keytar - Keyboard Guitar Hybrid of the 1980s is making a comeback.


First let's hear one in action.
Rogerio Carvalho - a youtuber performs on the Keytar - in fact a
Roland AX-Synth, which came out in 2009. He performs the following hits:

Europe - The Final Countdown
A-Ha - Take On Me
Depeche Mode - Just Can't Get Enough
Ray Parker Jr - GhostBusters
OMD (Orchestral Manoevers in the Dark) - Enola Gay
Van Halen - Jump



So did you enjoy that? I certainly did, as someone who grew up in that decade. This year, there's a launch of a new Keytar - the Alesis Vortex Wireless 2. So Keytars will be back en vogue.
Let's hear a few demos.

What's also very cool, is that you can play 'lead guitar' on the keytar. And you can simulate the vibrato sound of bending those strings too!



Hope you enjoyed the blog!

The Piano Stomp - the Elephant Whisperer

Paul Barton, British ex-patriate living in Thailand has performed to blind elephants at one of their sanctuaries. Elephants are intelligent animals, with the largest brains of all animals, and  said to be able to distinguish the difference between languages, mourn their dead, and have long memories.

Here's Paul playing to an elephant and watch the reaction! 

Remember Saint-Saens? The Carnival of the Animals. The Swan is probably one your recognise. But little known is the Elephant:

For the Piano Duet music follow this link on IMSLP.

Fantasia on Greensleeves - piano transcription by Vaughan Williams

Greensleeves, is an Elizabethan period piece, that is sometimes attributed to King Henry VIII on his courtship of Anne Boleyn.  You may often hear the piece sing a Christmas Carol under the hymn "What Child is This?". In 1934, Vaughan Williams arranged a Fantasia on Greensleeves that is often performed in orchestral manner. However you can find piano transcriptions of this fantasia and
here is Paul Barton, an Internet sensation himself performing the piece on youtube:

 

You can download the sheet music free of copyright (depending on your location) from the
Petrucci Internet Sheet Music Library Project.

For more information on the background and for more recordings read the Classic FM article.

Vladimir Putin conquers the piano

Russia has a long history in modern times of producing great pianists, think of Richter, Vladimir Horowitz, etc. Putin has a blackbelt in Judo.  Putin has been in the news recently with Ukraine, Crimea. I can imagine the Premiere relaxing after long discussions and deliberations with a bit of piano. Here it is.



 All in the name of good causes and charity, here's a video of Vladimir playing the piano. One finger left hand technique to assist the right hand.

 Here Vladimir Putin jazzes it up with a rendition of Blueberry Hill

Piano Prodigies on the Ellen Degeneres Show

I love watching piano prodigies in action, in just shows the potential of awesome talent at such a young age. This particular video has had over 3 million hits, I think due to Elias' eccentric personality and clowning around. Anyway he or she performs Carl Emanuel Bach's solfeggietto briefly as well I might add!