Piano Key A to G

Today's piano podcast is, in timely fashion, an homage to the fallen heroes who gave their lives so that we may have ours. I will be talking briefly about the history and symbolism of perhaps that most famous of bugle calls: The Last Post. Why is this short work so infused with solemnity and meaning in our collective conscious? "At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will rem...

This podcast episode commences a new series, on contemporary pianists that I consider the absolute best currently recording. And, we had to start with my personal favourite, Canadian artist Jesse Brown! I discovered his music in 2018, and his catalogue has been my steadfast companion ever since. Given that I’ve always received the best recommendations of new music from friends - most often just vi...

Okay, I admit: shameless plug for my latest album 'Cutting Room Floor: One Take Solo Piano' which released this week. But, I also felt it an opportunity to discuss elements of refining your recordings - and sometimes, just 'letting it be' is the key. For more information: whaviland.com/podcast Happy piano playing/learning!

Initially this show was planned to showcase the many physical and mental gains we may experience, on deciding to study the instrument. However, I soon realized this was not going to make for a particularly original podcast! So, instead, I’ve decided to talk about three very personal benefits that studying the piano has gifted me. I hope this bitesize episode will be an enticement to you, at whatev...

Following on from last week’s episode, I had in my mind the idea of discussing unusual chord progressions in pop music: modern pioneers that pushed the boundaries of what was permissible to listen to. In this week’s podcast, let’s pick three perfectly eccentric examples of harmonic oddity in popular music classics, analyse their content, and speculate on how they get away with it! Following a brie...

An unlikely combination of random events hit me over the past fortnight, enough to fashion a piano podcast out of them - and apologies for the brief intermission! This weekend finds me exploring the contribution [positive or negative] of ‘altered states’ to the compositional process. Approve or disapprove, should we at least acknowledge that without the ability to temporarily step outside of the r...

An interesting juxtaposition this week: the recall of a duo of Haydn pieces I hadn't played for 32 years; and the simultaneous inability to remember why I walked into the kitchen! Thus was set in motion a podcast about memorizing your piano music, and the benefits you might reap... which interestingly extend beyond the bounds of mere concert performance. For more information: whaviland.com/pod...

A good deal of my time this week was spent messing around with a choral work by Sir Edward Elgar. It is a beautiful, delicate setting of the Eucharistic hymn ‘Ave Verum Corpus’ - in Latin, ‘Hail True Body’ - and, since I had finally managed to transcribe and record the piece, I thought it might be an ideal opportunity to look at the subject of piano transcriptions . Specifically, what are they? Wh...

Following on neatly from last week’s discussion around musical motifs, let’s explore the related, but subtly different world, of the ostinato. What exactly is it? Can we recall some famous examples? What is its purpose, both for the composer and listener? And, crucially, can we come up with some piano improvisations, incorporating first melodic and then rhythmic ostinati?! For more information: wh...

How do composers grab our attention, and maintain it when we're listening to a composition? Simple! These use 'motifs' - short musical hooks, that embed themselves in our ears, repeating and evolving throughout the work, providing familiarity and reassurance as we allow ourselves to be taken on a journey of discovery, hopefully encouraging us to return to the piece again and again. Let...

Following on from last week's podcast concerning 'aleatoric' or chance music, I wanted to continue with the improv. So, today let's explore the wonderful world of Brian Eno, and Ambient Music. Having rediscovered his 1978 masterpiece 'Music for Airports' this week, I thought: why not try to compose a short piano piece in a similar style? We'll discuss what essentially w...

Something slightly different this week, as I found myself in a creative vacuum: why not allow random chance to intervene? Like many composers before, let's take a dice roll to determine various musical parameters, within which I will attempt to improvise a short piano piece! For more information: whaviland.com/podcast Happy piano playing/learning!

I mentioned in a recent podcast about musical snobbery, and so I thought we might explore elements of this topic today. Why do many people consider the Classical genre to be the pinnacle of achievement? Why is pop music thought of less seriously? Is there an argument for a musical hierarchy? In this show, we will compare and contrast different genres, and consider the merits in each case. I will a...

Following the Victory in Europe [VE] Day celebrations this week, I thought it timely to prepare a podcast show on the topic of wartime music. So, I have chosen three of my favourite songs - all patriotic staples - which continue to move us to this day, some 80 years later. We'll listen to some musical snippets, recall poignant lyrics, and notice an unusual feature connecting all three pieces....

What exactly is a fermata, and why might composers opt to use it in their music? We'll delve into the meaning behind the symbol, and consider a couple of famous examples, together with moments of my own usage! There is more than a hint of magic embedded within this modest musical notation. For more information: whaviland.com/podcast Happy piano playing/learning!

Something a little different this week: I thought we’d explore some psychological elements of the musical experience - specifically what makes us return to our first encounter with a work? How does this initial exposure cement our ongoing impressions of the piece; and are we missing out creatively because of this unconscious bias? [I failed to mention in the podcast, but the player of the Rachmani...

Following last week’s show looking at the individual musical keys - their moods/colours, and specific composers’ preferences - I thought it followed neatly to begin a series examining a handful of classic pieces, in each Major and Minor pitch class. So, let’s start at the beginning: C Major. I’ve picked three essential compositions that I believe every budding pianist should know, and be able to p...

As this podcast is entitled 'Piano Key: A to G' I felt it about time to take a closer look at the individual musical keys . So: are the different pitch classes merely transposed versions of one another; or in fact, do they each possess inate tonal qualities/'colours', and deeper emotional associations? Many notable composers are known to have preferred certain major and minor keys...

For today's piano podcast episode, let's look at the primary chords in music, and discover how simply knowing these three triads will open up a world of possibilities musically - you will suddenly be able to play thousands of songs, spanning multiple genres: Classical, pop, rock, folk, and so on. For more information: whaviland.com/podcast Happy piano playing/learning!

Something slightly different this week! Following questions from a podcast listener, I thought I'd put together an episode outlining how you might go about recording and releasing your own piano music with the wider world. Now, it soon became apparent that this would work better as a YouTube visual, rather than simply an audio file. Hence, I am encouraging you to head over to William Haviland Pian...

Greetings piano lovers! In today's podcasting episode, we're going to take a brief look at my compositional process - specifically, how I go about putting together a new solo piano piece. This might be of interest to other composers, who wish to compare and contrast; equally, if you've always wanted to write music but have not yet attempted it, perhaps this will provide the inspiration...

In today's episode, we delve into the world of one of the most iconic film series of all time. Yes: the names Bond. James Bond. As you may be aware, the 007 franchise recently saw creative control pass [from longtime producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson] over to American behemoth Amazon, via its subsidiary MGM Studios. Now, we won’t be discussing British concerns about what this ent...

In today's episode, we look at Maurice Ravel's most popular composition: Bolero. Despite being an instant success, the writer never held it in quite the same regard as the public. Let's examine some key aspects of the score, and consider why Ravel may have been dismayed by its popularity. For more information: whaviland.com/podcast Happy piano playing/learning!

For this week's piano podcast episode, let’s investigate the concept of 'rubato' in music, and discuss why I think it matters. For more information: whaviland.com/podcast Happy piano playing/learning!

For this week's piano podcast episode: some reflections on a 15 year musical project, started by the possibilities of YouTube; and why creativity is good for the soul. For more information: whaviland.com/podcast Happy piano playing/learning!