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Hi Robin,



Can you share the fun, or is it too "technical" to explain?

Hi Elssa,

Yeah, maybe too technical for me (a non-teacher) to explain. I have this piece I've written called "Waltz of the asparagus People"--same title as the book-- and it's a light little waltz that originally that started with a bit of a Satie feel to it, and then opened up with the left hand playing running eighth notes. I'm pretty good at this style, plus the sound of it actually pleases me, but it has been known to send my bass-player husband running from the room. (Bassists, understandably so, do not much like pianists with bust left hands).

Anyway, old dog, new tricks. He suggested I keep the feel but lose most of the notes in the left hand. At first it sounded very empty to me but now I am really enjoying all the space in the music. (I'm trying to do this in life, too!)

I'm okay with this open style for the composed part of the piece, but I tend to panic and revert to old habits when I improvise. We'll see what happens in the studio--I'm usually pretty calm in there, it's a nice environment and I really trust my engineer.

What's funny to me is that I've had to practice being silent, or playing LESS. You'll hear this piece and think, she had to practice THAT? It sounds so simple! But sometimes simple can be very difficult--no pyrotechnics to hide the flaws.

I just heard a program on one of the local radio stations about accompanying oneself on the piano. I thought it might be useful to some of you. The program information is here: Voice Box. The show can be heard on KALW's media player for the next week.

What a wonderful thread this is -- and with something for everyone to learn, whatever their field of music.

Good stories, and excellent ideas for improving our own keyboard skills.

Many thanks. I was particularly interested in techniques like: echo runs and fills; waterfall runs; half-stage progressions. And I had to look up on the internet for meaning of Shell Voicing (it's all new to me!)

A different adventure for someone like me who is in their mid-70s.

Don't worry - I'd never heard the term "shell voicing" either, though I think I've been doing it for nearly 50 years :-)

Anything that stops pianists plonking down close-position triads in the LH is good by me! Those auto-accompaniment tous on home keyboards have a lot to answer for :-)

ANd beware of "waterfalls" and other filigree. A little goes a long way. Too much is what gives "cocktail piano" a bad name!

Whoa, I've never heard of any of those! ..But I can imagine what they are.

Hey Tea Girl,
I see you over there……I resemble that remark! Now Leigh and I will definitely have to attend your high tea gig there…..requesting My Fair Lady tunes……

Be careful what you wish for!

Are there any copyright issues with playing songs in public?
I'd Imagine, technically yes, but no one bothers?

The venue which presents the live music usually, and should have, has a contract with ASCAP or another performance/royalty-collecting entity. It's not a "copyright", it's a "performance" right. Generally it's not the pianist that pays the performance fees

If you were going to record a piece for a cd you'd need a "mechanical license."

If you're copying the sheet music you need permission from the copyright holder.

At least that's my understanding, in a nutshell.

From what I've read on the topic, and heard from professional musicians, it can be a bit of a muddle. There are lawyers who specialize in this kind of thing, and agents, etc.

I don't worry about it when I play for a senior center, but I'm sure the performing rights organizations could have a fit if they wanted to, and be legally in the right. One of them went after a folkdance venue here in NM, and it now pays a yearly fee - and I can bet my bottom dollar that very few Bulgarian folk musicians ever see a dime in royalties from them anyway :\ Radio stations turn in their playlists so the fees can be divvied up. I'd guess people like Robin would appreciate it if people were fairly scrupulous about fees for her music, and rightly so.

So, it's not strictly a copyright issue, AFIK. But the professional performers here will know a lot more than me, and have a lot more accurate information

Cathy

Jotur is right about all of this.

In Germany, GEMA is very strong. GEMA is the German version of ASCAP or BMI, but run by the government and much more effective. Every place I play pays GEMA fees, usually an all inclusive monthly fee that covers all of their music. Those fees go into a big GEMA pot. I fill out forms, then receive a payment that is based on some formula I will never understand.

I receive regular payments for live perfomances of my music (mostly by me)—whether it's in a formal concert setting or just as background cocktail piano. There are loads of forms to fill out, but the money does indeed trickle down to the composer. Usually takes about a year.

I spent fifteen years playing original music in NYC hotels (who paid fees to ASCAP) and never received a penny. That may have been my fault—I was pretty naive about such things back then.

As a composer I am listed with GEMA. But my publishing company is with BMI. Complicated. I just keep filling out forms and hoping for the best. Seems to be working out.

Cathy, there is also a lot of outrage over here about GEMA patrolling school, community, and charity events. I think there's a much lower rate for these types of events, but still, it's too much for many of these organizations to pay. Don't know what the answer is---the fee sometimes causes event planners to drop the music, which is never a good thing.

On the other hand, the promoters pay for food, beverages, lights, a stage, everything! Why is it so often the case that musicians (and composers) are expected to work for free when just about everyone else is getting paid? I'll bet at that Folkdance venue there were many other expenses that no one argued about. I'm betting the beer was not donated, nor were the services of the local electrician.

It has become increasingly difficult to make a living as a songwriter or composer. We do what we can.

I think it was BMI that decided to collect the folk dance fees. It's just that I don't think very many of the recordings are registered with BMI, so I don't, in fact, think the performers are getting anything from it. I don't think we've ever filled out a form for which Swedish cd from 20 years ago we've danced to that night :\ . Or casette, as the case may be. And I think most of us own our very own copies of every cd we used It's a folkdance thing.

The live music at dances is often traditional tunes. There are, of course, new tunes composed in a traditional style, and when they're recorded they're recorded with permission. My brother got mechanical licenses when he made his cd - he actually hired someone to do all that for him. But I've never heard of a traditional tune composer getting a royalty for having their tunes used at a contra dance. Maybe I should ask Peter Barnes, or Bob McQuillen. The number of times McQuillen's "Amelia's Waltz" has been played at a contra must be in the kazillions. They *are* copyrighted, and one should buy the book they were published in - I have a lot of tune books.

But I've just never heard of it working very well in the folkdance world. Which is not to say it shouldn't. Hm. We often buy the cds right from the band. I'm pretty sure they expect us to use them to dance to. It's a conundrum.

But playing a Robin Goldsby piece, or a David Nevue piece, or whatever, for a "performance" - like on the Santa Fe Plaza or something - yeah, I think the producer has an ASCAP and/or BMI license. And should.

Is there a "one time" license for things like charity events, rather than a full year's license? That might help with costs. But the big charity events put on by the non-profits I've worked for have paid the actual musicians, tho I don't think we ever got a performance license for the music. On the other hand, maybe the hotel or ball room had one. Again, tho, I don't remember any paperwork on which pieces were played.

So I think it's far from a perfect system. I have a brother who's a professional musician, and for sure think he should get paid when his pieces are played. But it seems like kind of an honor system to me.

For some events I don't mind if the music is donated by amateur musicians. I'm kind of big on volunteers. Goodness knows there are church treasurers everywhere that do what I do for a living, but as volunteers. There are events where the food is donated, too. But yeah, if it's catered, then pay the musicians, too. And more than just a meal in the kitchen

I do think it's confusing for the non-pros, tho, to know what they need to do. It's a pretty complex field. I was dismayed when I first started learning about it. Whew! I began to think we could never play music.

But it's cool that you get royalties for playing your compositions I just hadn't thought about the paperwork you yourself would have to go through.

Cathy

Hello. I would just like to say that I really like this thread. I am new to Piano World. I've been teaching piano part time for many years and have played for many weddings and funerals. I am really hoping in a a couple of years that I can retire from my day job and be able to get enough work as a pianist to keep me going. Some wonderful tips on this thread.

Welcome bobcat! If you've been out there playing weddings and funerals then I'll bet you have tips to share with us, too.

Here is my latest tip: Learn the music from "The Wonderful World of Amelie." Maybe it's a European thing, but people just flip out over these tunes, and they are fun to play.

Thanks for the Welcome Robin. I'll be sure to check out your suggestions. I'm always looking for new music and styles that can help me grow.

I wonder if anybody would recognize that here. I've found that tourist Americans walking through 'my' grand hotel flip over "What a Wondeful World" lol!

Robin: Something about this still ends up
"smelling"..you open up a store..say a pizza parlor...and after awhile "the boys" stop in to see how business is..and they want you to make a monthy contribution to their fund..and they will protect you from any bad thing that might unexpectantly happen to your place..I know writers have been unpaid..
but still having people going around sniffing out business still has that "old smell"..only now the "the law" is doing it..

Yes, Tea Girl! "What a Wonderful World" is always popular. And rightfully so. Do you know Louis Armstrong almost didn't record it? Lots of resistance from record company officials.

This is a good idea to help budding cocktail pianists: Let's post song titles that seem to be popular with listeners. I still maintain that a player should really love a piece of music to go to the trouble of adding it to his/her repertoire, but with all the great music waiting to be learned it's not difficult to find a piece to love.

Here's one of my favorites: John Barry's "Music of Goodbye" from Out of Africa. You'd be surprised how many people either recognize this song or come to the piano and ask, "What was that piece of music?"

Hi Robin,

Just curious, do you take requests when playing out and, if so, how often do you get requests to play classical pieces or themes? With me, it's "Clair de Lune", which I love but usually flub if trying to play by memory.

I just love it when I'm playing "Fly Me to the Moon" and someone comes up and asks for a Rachmaninoff piano concerto. "Is this a test?" I ask. "I fail."

In the USA I used to fake my way through classical repertoire, but over here, where people actually know how the pieces are supposed to sound, I just say no. I also never play with music in front of me, so I often will tell the customer: "I'm sorry but I don't have the music with me and I can't improvise my way through Bach (or Ravel or Chopin). People seem to respect this.

Hope that helps!