‘Brilliant Songs’

David Rosenthal, Billy Joel’s longtime music director and keyboardist, on working with and arranging for The Piano Man

By Ben Finane

Same Hits, Different Day

Living legend 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.

By Ben Finane

A New Vision

Ludovico Einaudi on defining his music; his mentor, Luciano Berio; his compositional process; and his recordings for Steinway & Sons Spirio

By Ben Finane

At the Atomic Level

Chilly Gonzales makes a case for the piano as the great reducer and delivers a blueprint for the compositional process.
By Ben Finane

Unscripted

Igor Levit on improvising; his ‘very direct’ and personal sound; and his love for Frederic Rzewski, Marina Abramovic, and voices beyond the classical canon. 
By Ben Finane

Far-Flung Pianos

Distant Steinways tell diverse stories.

By Brian Wise

Seven Centuries in Eighty Minutes

In an ambitious program, Jeremy Denk surveys the history of Western music.
by Catherine Womack

Writing Songs in Reykjavik

In conversation with singer–songwriters Markéta Irglová and Helgi Jonsson on craft and craftsmanship in Iceland
By Ben Finane

Mozart In Rosendal

Reportage from Leif Ove Andsnes’s chamber music festival
By Ben Finane

Learning Their Craft

Young pianists tour New York’s Steinway Factory.
 

Sprinting Toward Music

Aisa Ijiri on athletics and pianism
By Ben Finane

Jazz Lightning Strikes Twice

Two archival discoveries present Steinway Immortal Bill Evans in 1968 alongside Eddie Gomez and Jack DeJohnette.

by Bradley Bambarger

Piano Became My Confessor — Jean-Michel Blais

Jean-Michel Blais on his music, his Tourette’s, and finding his Steinway Sound.
By Justin D. Joffe

Chang-Yong Shin — Musical Expression

Pianist ChingYong Shin on grappling with the Classical repertoire
By Ben Finane

Freezing a Moment of Infinite Possibility

Pianist Jeremy Denk on the stakes of recording Bach’s Goldberg Variations
By Thomas May

The Humanist — Murray Perahia

Murray Perahia discusses the pull of Bach, the invention Of Haydn, his love for Mozart, editing the Beethoven Sonatas, the influence Of Heinrich Schenker, and the importance Of rubato.
By Ben Finane

Leon Fleisher

The heroic pianist reflects on his discography.

By Bradley Bambarger

Portrait of a Portraitist

The Life and Times of Virgil Thomson
By Jed Distler

Writer's Respite

Music as solace from words
By Ben Finane

Writing at the Piano

The piano as quintessential machine for songwriting
By Damian Fowler