Legends of Jazz Piano
This Week —
I started studying piano at 14 years old. I was never fantastic at it, but I love playing the piano nonetheless because of how forgiving it is. Unlike the violin—which squawks like a sick goose after I go without practicing for only a few days—the piano keeps my musical blunders to itself. It doesn’t hold grudges. No matter how I play, it simply whispers back: “I got you.”
Listen to —
Early on, jazz pianists were called Ticklers. These were virtuosos who made playing the piano sound simple, smooth, swinging, and funny all at the same time.
I’d like to highlight three women musicians in particular: Nina Simone, Dorothy Donegan, and Mary Lou Williams, who is considered one of the foremost swing pianists and arrangers of all time. Quite frankly, this woman deserves an entire playlist to herself.
The Tickle Ivories —
If you’d like your kiddos to try their hand at piano playing, do yourself a favor and skip the clunky so-called “kid pianos”. Instead, go right for this simple Casio keyboard— with 100 instrumental sounds, 50 rhythms, and 10 integrated songs. We have one in our living room, and when the Elf casually tickles (or pounds his fists upon) the keys, the piano simply whispers back: “I got you.”
Happy playing!
Don’t have Spotify? Listen on YouTube!