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69 episodes with ben finane
Jazz pianist and Steinway Artist Jason Moran, live from Big Ears Festival, talks hip hop, the next generation, the algorithm, Monk & Duke, visual art, and creative approach.
Grandmasters Aman Hambleton and Eric Hansen, the principal hosts of Chessbrah, talk techno and chess and what makes Magnus Carlsen the GOAT.
Steinway Artist Ádám György will play his own transcription of the Union of European Football Associations Champions League Anthem at the UEFA Final Saturday June 10 in Istanbul. György joins Soundboard to discuss football and Franz Liszt.
Steinway Artist Alexander Krichel joins Soundboard to celebrate Sergei Rachmaninoff's 150th birthday.
Anthony McGill takes us behind the scenes in his role as Principal Clarinet of the New York Philharmonic and speaks to the wonders of chamber music.
Steinway Artist Gerardo Teissonnière discusses the wonder of Beethoven's Last Sonatas.
Steinway Artist Andrew Rangell discusses the keyboard music of Johann Sebastian Bach. His latest — of many — Bach releases is The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II on the Steinway & Sons label.
Steinway Artist Dr. Karen Walwyn speaks to the legacy and vibrancy of African American composer Florence Price.
Steinway Artist Rufus Wainwright takes us behind his live album with Amsterdam Sinfonietta.
Steinway Artist Jean-Yves Thibaudet discusses his latest album, CARTE BLANCHE, his ultimate goal of making the piano sing, and the utility of the sostenuto pedal.
Steinway Artist Kristhyan Benitez discusses the rich diaspora of Latin American piano music.
Branford Marsalis joins Soundboard to discuss his Emmy®–nominated score for the History Channel documentary TULSA BURNING: THE 1921 RACE RIOT.
The pianist Khatia Buniatishvili speaks to the intimacy of performance, finding her own rhythm, and her love for Schubert and Liszt.
Composer Daniel Felsenfeld wonders at the brilliance of Steinway Artist Alfred Brendel.
Steinway Immortal Van Cliburn and legacy of classical music in America
Steinway Artist and Emmy Award–winning composer Kris Bowers takes us inside penning the soundtracks to such projects as GREEN BOOK and BRIDGERTON.
Steinway Artist Mahani Teave hails from Rapa Nui, aka Easter Island. Teave is the first professional concert pianist from Rapa Nui. But after years spent concertizing all over the world, she returned to her island and founded a music school.
Ann Mincieli takes us inside is owner and operator of Jungle City Studios in New York City and longtime recording engineer for Alicia Keys. She takes us behind the scenes into a session in her studio.
Steinway Artist Jeanne Golan takes us inside her latest release on the Steinway & Sons label, ‘It Takes One To Tango.’
Steinway Artist Ray Angry takes us on his journey from classical pianist to polymath producer.
Comic book artist and writer Sandy Jimenez pens illustrated stories about the South Bronx. He joins Soundboard to discuss his craft.
Pulitzer Prize–winning composer and Steinway Artist John Corigliano talks about improvising at the keyboard, his compositional process, and a legacy of teaching.
Young Steinway Artist Amir Siraj is completing a dual degree in astrophysics and piano performance. His research has explored the moon, comets, asteroids, black holes, and, of course, Beethoven.
The violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter speaks on arts advocacy, Beethoven, John Williams, and her process behind learning new music.
The fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi sees fashion as telling stories of women’s lives. He discusses the intersection of music and fashion, couture vs. QVC, his new concert series — and becoming himself.
The Grammy Award–winning composer and conductor discusses how he writes choral music — as well as his influences and technological ventures.
Piano Technician and Audio Engineer Lauren Sclafani discusses her craft.
Singer-songwriter-multi-instrumentalist-rockstar-designer Lenny Kravitz talks inspiration for his music and for the Kravitz Grand Limited Edition from Steinway & Sons.
New York City–based playwright Kenneth Jones discusses his craft — and the streaming premiere of his 2015 play ALABAMA STORY at Oak Ridge Playhouse.
Writer, novelist and columnist Drew Magary talks about the twenty-first-century shift in the media landscape and the launch of Defector, a new subscription-only sports blog and media company.
The composer Christopher Tin, on the occasion of his latest release — To Shiver The Sky (Decca Gold) — speaks to keeping your music in listeners’ ears.
The pianist Michael Gallant discusses how he creates solo-piano covers of rock classics.
Steinway Artist Ahmad Jamal discusses his influences and approach to music.
Vera Anselmo, founder and artistic director of The Piano School of New York City, discusses music education for the underserved.
Composer and Steinway Artist Chad Lawson unpacks his philosophy behind his minimalist aesthetic.
Steinway Artist and NEA Jazz Master Ramsey Lewis reveals how he has benefited from remaining open to what could be.
Steinway Artist Anny Hwang talks about making classical music more flexible and getting her Gershwin to groove.
Pianist, composer, arranger, and producer Peter Bence discusses his approach to pop covers and composition — and how he built a YouTube following of millions.
Steinway Artist Connie Han talks jazz influences and the importance of a jazz language we can all comprehend.
Steinway Artist Matt Rollings discusses lessons learned from the many legends he has worked with over the course of his illustrious career as a pianist, composer, arranger and producer.
Steinway Artist Pascal Rogé reveals why there is always more to say about Claude Debussy.
Steinway Artist Vijay Iyer talks influence, responsibility, jazz, hip-hop, and the importance of right now.
Steinway Artist Ric'key Pageot discusses performing with Madonna — and introduces us to speakeasy-soul / prohibition-funk.
Stephen Brown is an avid crafter and crafty fellow who created Glitterville, which offers handcrafted ornaments for every occasion.
Steinway Artists The 5 Browns are five sibling pianists who are also five Juilliard–trained pianists. They discuss playing together on their latest album, Christmas with The 5 Browns, available on the Steinway & Sons label.
Grammy Award–winning composer Mason Bates speaks to the wedding of classical music and electronica.
Steinway Artist Harry Connick, Jr. takes us inside his new album — True Love: A Celebration of Cole Porter — on which he plays piano, sings, orchestrates, arranges and conducts.
Jazz trumpeter and composer Ralph Alessi talks about the practice of improvisation and the art of jazz.
Steinway Artist Robert Glasper launched the Soundboard podcast. In honor of the multi–Grammy winning jazz pianist's October takeover at Blue Note New York, we offer a prequel interview with Glasper, live from the Steinway Factory in New York City.
Steinway Artist Jesse Carmichael took a year-and-a-half hiatus from the chart-topping pop-rock band Maroon Five to pursue studies in music and the healing arts. During this time, he started a musical side project called 1863. He speaks to Soundboard producer/host Ben Finane about his influences, and writing and performing music.
If you still think of Stewart Copeland as the progressive drummer for the seminal rock band The Police, that’s so “four operas ago.” His second act as a film composer and performing-arts collaborator has been unfolding for over thirty years. He speaks to Soundboard producer/host Ben Finane about his experiences in and lessons gleaned from orchestral music.
Steinway Artist John O'Conor discusses his love for Haydn Sonatas and John Field Nocturnes with Soundboard producer/host Ben Finane at New York City's Steinway Hall.
Steinway Artist David Fung discusses his forthcoming album of Mozart sonatas for the Steinway & Sons label with Soundboard producer/host Ben Finane in New York City.
Steinway Artist Regina Spektor talks about her creative process in advance of her five-concert retrospective on Broadway. The Soviet–born American singer–songwriter spoke to Soundboard producer/host Ben Finane at New York City's Steinway Hall.
Steinway Artist Olga Kern, who won the eleventh Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2001, speaks to Soundboard producer/host Ben Finane at New York City's Steinway Hall about her love for the music of Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff.
Steinway Artist Scott Price is the musical director for Céline Dion, one of the best-selling artists of all time. Price takes us behind-the-scenes of working with the diva superstar.
Michael Idov's fortunes as a writer dramatically changed for the better following the publication in 2005 of “Bitter Brew”, an article he penned for Slate.com about his failed business venture to launch a café in New York City.
Sean Jones, trumpeter and bandleader for NYO Jazz (Carnegie Hall’s Jazz National Youth Orchestra), talks jazz, race, and music education.
Steinway Artist Simon Mulligan is the most recorded pianist for the Steinway & Sons Spirio, the world’s finest high resolution player piano. Mulligan discusses his arrangements for the instrument, including songs by Queen, with Soundboard producer and host Ben Finane.
Pianist/composer and Steinway Artist Moira Lo Bianco explores the imaginative possibilities of improvisation across musical genres and styles.
Jazz alto saxophonist Tim Berne's latest release — along with guitarist David Torn and percussionist Ches Smith — is SUN OF GOLDFINGER on ECM records. Berne is also the frontman for the jazz quintet Tim Berne’s Snakeoil. He speaks with Soundboard producer and host Ben Finane on finding your groove in improvisation.
Reid and Sara Farrington are a husband-and-wife, director-and-playwright New York City theater team. Their current work in progress is BrandoCapote, based on Truman Capote’s 1957 New Yorker Magazine profile of Marlon Brando, “The Duke in His Domain.” The play is the Farringtons’ follow-up to the 2017 Drama Desk–nominated “CasablancaBox.” With host Ben Finane, the Farringtons discuss Marlon Brando, Truman Capote, and creating theater from unlikely sources.
Natasha Paremski discusses tackling Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition and premiering Fred Hersch's Variations on a Theme by Tchaikovsky — and speaks to the greatness of Sviatoslav Richter.
Marc-André Hamelin discusses the music of Debussy, Feinberg, Haydn, Liszt, Ives and more.
Davell Crawford discusses the rich jazz tradition of New Orleans, the fall of New York, moving forward, and employing the multiple personalities that live within you.
Bill Murray discusses American letters, Mark Twain, James Thurber, absurdity vs. ridiculousness, failure, getting to work, writing vs. acting, rhythm and flow, and improvisation.
Steinway Artist Billy Joel talks about the staying power of his music, the alchemy and process of songwriting, the origins of his aesthetic, Beethoven and The Beatles, and what he's trying to learn now.
On this episode of Soundboard, Ben Finane speaks with English pianist and Steinway Artist Paul Lewis on Beethoven, Schubert, their musical personalities, taking a deep dive, the trials of chamber music and the magic of Mussorgsky.
On this episode of Soundboard, Ben Finane speaks with jazzman and Steinway Artist Robert Glasper on crossing over, showing all your sides, Radiohead, jazz reference points, hip-hop and the ancient art of the loop, and Thelonious Monk.
We've all had moments when our mind has wandered during a Wagner opera, a Bruckner symphony or perhaps a long Mozart recitative. Some of us have even dozed off. But maybe we shouldn’t beat ourselves up when our thoughts drift to a grocery list or an e-mail we forgot to send earlier. Boredom in the concert hall may actually be a good thing, says John Crace, a features writer for the Guardian newspaper. In a recent article he argued that the slow, tedious moments in classical music make the exciting ones that much better. Among the works Crace cited is Wagner's six-hour Parsifal, which puts extremely high demands on modern listeners. "There's an hour-and-a-half of absolutely sublime music, which makes it all worthwhile," he told host Jeff Spurgeon. "And then there are bits, especially in the second act, when my mind starts to wander." It probably was the fault of Wagner – not the listener or the performer. "He expected his audiences to come along for the ride with him," Crace continued. "And I don’t think audiences are always prepared to do that." But other industry-watchers disagree that the blame rests with the composer. "Before I would go attacking the repertoire per se, I would first take a look at the performance," said Ben Finane, editor-in-chief of Listen magazine. "I think it’s incumbent upon the singers to establish good chemistry on stage for those [Mozart] recitatives. It’s incumbent upon the conductor to keep things moving, and when that happens, I’m not dosing off." In 2011, BBC Music Magazine asked 10 leading music critics to name the most boring masterpieces in classical music. Responses included Mahler's Eighth Symphony, Bruckner's Seventh Symphony, Vivaldi's Gloria and several operas: Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, Puccini's Madam Butterfly and Rossini's Cenerentola, among others. "There was no common thread, which shows that one man’s meat is another man’s poison," said Jeremy Pound, the magazine's deputy editor. Wagner has frequently come in for criticism, and some critics say it's a rare opera of his that couldn't be improved by taking 20 minutes (or more) off the running time. "That’s the trouble with Wagner is there’s so much good stuff in there but you have to sit through the dreary stuff in between," noted Pound. Crace believes that opera is a challenge because, unlike a play, it's difficult to cut in performance. "No one would dream of performing Hamlet at five hours," he said. "But there is a feeling in opera that somehow there’s an irreverence attached if every note of every bar is not included." Perhaps the media has unfairly hyped epic works and created unreasonable expectations in audiences, said Pound. But just as important to realize is that, with age, a listener's concept of time starts to change. "What was boring to me 20 years ago now I absolutely adore," Pound added. Listen to the segment above and tell us: Are there pieces that sometimes make your mind wander? Leave your comments below.
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