A Breeze from Alabama

Here's a lively piece called 'A Breeze from Alabama' by Scott Joplin. I'm still nursing a bit of a hand injury and so there are some flubs in playing this piece, especially about 3/4 of the way through. I usually get through that part. Anyway, decided to put this video up. I used the middle pedal to give it bit of a more muted/softer sound. And when I do get around to playing this again, hopefully it'll be in much better form! So, for now, enjoy my piece.

The video was taken using my new Sony Handycam DCR-SR68 camera. It has a great microphone to pick up the sound. Great sound quality. And no more blurry hand movements! Yay!

As you may know I'm a deaf/hh ragtime pianist. I'm not sure if there are others like me who like to play ragtime all the time. But it's good to know that there are other deaf/hh pianists out there as well.

A tuned piano...

Last week I finally got my piano tuned and it certainly sounds so much better. It was tuned by a blind piano tuner named Kevin. Real nice guy and we talked briefly over the two hours it took to tune the piano to its crisp and melodic sound. The piano really needed the tuning after two moves and then subsequently across several states to its final destination after I bought it brand new back in December 2008. Now with the ragtime pieces I'm playing they sound so much better but some pianos do sound better with certain rag pieces than other pianos, even newer ones. Even my aunt's player piano sounded really great when I played several ragtime pieces for year. Another dream of mine is to get an antique player piano someday. It'd be a really great center-piece for my house (aside from a baby grand piano) and a fun one to play on. So many rags to choose from, the list just keeps growing. Ain't that great or what?

Kohler and Campbell Piano

Here's a better picture of my Kohler & Campbell 46.5 inch high studio piano I bought last month.

My new Kohler & Campbell KC118 Piano

Ok. Here are my pictures taken from my laptop webcam. Not very good. The morning sun was a bit bright, washing out the colors but it'll do for now. Enjoy.

New Piano Arrived Safely

Well, it snowed Friday night and my backyard recieved about an inch of snow. Temperature plummeted from 50 degrees down to 19 degrees in several hours which made certain section of the road I was traveling on a bit "treachorous" as I made my way to Albuquerque, NM Saturday morning with a rented Uhaul trailer. The whole trip took 9 hours but the roads were dry on the return trip.

Here's what my piano looks like, a Kohler & Campell 46.5 inch high (KC 118) ebony piece. My piano is quite similar to the picture below.



Even though I was tired from the tip I sat down and played and practiced my piano for 4 1/2 hours going through some ragtime pieces, some classical pieces and a Jelly Roll Morton piece (at a very slow pace). I'll get photos of my new piano soon enough.

A new piano

Well, finally got around to it. After wanting my own piano after 20 years of playing old, crappy piano, I got myself a new Kohler and Campbell studio piano (KC 118 model) which is 118 cm or 46.5 in height that come with a 12 year full warranty. The piano I picked wasn't quite the upright (at least 50 inches high) that I wanted but the price was right and the piano comes with excellent play, feel and sound quality. For any serious pianists two things are important, the sound and the feel. Not to mention the amount of money you're willing to spend that could limit the selection process.

I bought my Kohler and Campbell (KC) piano in Albuquerque at a piano store that was in business since 1995 and was having a going out of business sale. Needless to say I just drooled looking at all the new and used pianos, especially those grand pianos, when I stepped into the store recently this Sunday. But my budget was limited and so I picked a new Kohler and Campbell piano brand. The picture below is a 121 cm KC piano which is very similar in style, color and height of the KC piano I bought. Until I get it this upcoming Saturday the picture below will do for now.



At the same piano store there was one excellent grand piano I played on. It was the Estonia. Price tag? Around $26,000 at a markedly reduced price. The Estonia grand piano I played on was absolutely rich and the notes resonated so exquisitely. There were others like Yamaha, Cable and Kawai grand pianos, including baby grand down to 5' 1" in size. Some were good. Others had a heavy feel or stately. Some were light, airy. Each piano was different and had a character and flavor of it's own. Each pianist's taste is different while one may prefer a particular piano for it's feel and sound while another would pick a different one not suitable to other pianists. I can distinctly tell the differences in sound quality and feel at each piano I played at the store. Even though I have a hearing loss I can certainly tell as a person who is deaf/hh. The KC118 I picked had a very good feel to it as well as sound quality which was richer in tone and vibrance. The price tag was reduced from $5400 to just under $3000 and it came with a 12 year warranty (for new pianos only).

Praying that it doesn't snow on Saturday when I go and pick it up. It'll be an 8 hour round trip towing a rented enclosed U-haul trailer. It's about time I got a decent piano. Until I save enough for a baby grand someday, I'm one step closer to getting a piano I can only dream of. For sure, I will enjoy immensely my new piano and the beautiful and exciting sounds I'll be producing in my upcoming YouTube videos for ya'll in my continuing quest to play novelty rags, early jazz and ragtime pieces. The only deaf/hh Ragtime pianist around.