Comments on: Can you recommend some piano music?

Question: Can you recommend some piano music?

Quidam — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 09:58:32 -0800

Recently I've realized that I enjoy listening to piano music, but I'm not really familiar with it. Can you recommend CDs/compilations/pieces that I might like?

My school has a lounge with a piano in it where students go and play whenever they feel like it, and I love to sit in there and listen and relax if I have a few minutes between classes. It's so soothing. I'd like to replicate it at home.

I don't have much of a knowledge of classical or otherwise instrumental music. I think I'm talking mostly about slower stuff - ballads or what have you, something I can listen to when I want to unwind.

Sorry if this is a bit vague/unclear. Any suggestions?

By: beaucoupkevin

beaucoupkevin — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:10:54 -0800

We Get Requests by the Oscar Peterson Trio is an easy-to-listen-to jazz standards record that may not be terribly experimental but is very pleasing background music.

Another jazz piano album I thoroughly enjoy is Waltz for Debby by Bill Evans. When paired with its companion piece, Sunday at the Village Vanguard, you've got a lovely two hours. They're a bit more challenging - Evans improvises and works in and out of the original melodies and sometimes seems to lose the plot for a few moments at a time - but they're more rewarding for the effort.

By: lovejones

lovejones — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:19:31 -0800

Erik Satie, will probably be mentioned several times over. Start anywhere.

By: ludwig_van

ludwig_van — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:21:44 -0800

Satie is good. Debussy, Chopin, and Beethoven all composed masterpieces for solo piano as well.

By: fake

fake — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:22:32 -0800

Yann Tiersen

Tori Amos

Beethoven

Gary Jules

Chopin

Satie

By: amyms

amyms — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:23:22 -0800

Ferrante and Teicher

By: Maxwell_Smart

Maxwell_Smart — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:29:04 -0800

Maurice Ravel:

Sonatine, Mvt 1
Jeux d'eau

By: wackybrit

wackybrit — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:29:41 -0800

Most people don't think "relaxing" when the name "Philip Glass" comes up, but Solo Piano is exactly that. You can listen to samples there on Amazon. All of the Metamorphosis pieces are good to lie back to but are still engaging.

By: AwkwardPause

AwkwardPause — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:34:09 -0800

Another jazzy recommendation: what Jan Johansson did to this collection of Swedish folk standards back in the early 60s was and is truly magical.

By: AwkwardPause

AwkwardPause — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:38:56 -0800

OK, my comment made me check youtube -- here you go: Jan Johansson.

By: creasy boy

creasy boy — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:41:18 -0800

Buy Keith Jarrett's albums. His Köln Concert is quite relaxing, a little new age. Live at the Blue Note and Changeless also feature a drummer and a bass player but they're fantastic. Jarrett also puts out classical albums, his Shostakovich's 24 Preludes and Fugues are definitely worth listening to. Basically you should buy anything he's done.

By: Rykey

Rykey — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:53:53 -0800

If you're a blues, fan, James Booker is the man to check out.

By: ottereroticist

ottereroticist — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:58:52 -0800

Keith Jarrett's The Melody At Night, With You is a lovely collection of familiar tunes.

By: Ctrl_Alt_ep

Ctrl_Alt_ep — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 11:06:14 -0800

Seconding Solo Piano by Philip Glass. I don't normally listen to anything mainstream, but I absolutely love that CD.

By: rhapsodie

rhapsodie — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 11:50:51 -0800

David Lanz - the song starts around 1:03

By: rhizome

rhizome — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 12:35:26 -0800

Brad Mehldau, on the jazzier side.

By: Dr.Pill

Dr.Pill — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 12:53:35 -0800

Angela Hewitt playing J.S. Bach's Das Wohltemperirte Clavier, Book 1

By: borjomi

borjomi — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 14:08:19 -0800

In the same vein as Keith Jarrett and Brad Mehldau, I can't recommend the Tord Gustavsen Trio enough. They currently have three albums, Changing Places, The Ground, and Being There which are all fantastic. Great lounging around the house music.

Also, the Polish jazz trio Marcin Wasilewski, Slawomir Kurkiewicz, and Michal Miskiewicz on the album Trio.

If you're looking for more piano jazz, you might want to check out this thread.

By: flaneur

flaneur — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 14:25:42 -0800

There is nothing else quite like this little album in the world:

Gonzales - Solo Piano

That's an amazon link, but there's a bit more info here. Just get it. I promise you; it's absolutely perfect.

By: eafarris

eafarris — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 14:50:49 -0800

George Winston (December is overplayed this time of year; nonetheless it's an excellent solo piano Christmas album) and Liz Story are my favorites.

By: tepidmonkey

tepidmonkey — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 15:36:35 -0800

Definitely try Chopin's Nocturnes.

By: electric water kettle

electric water kettle — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 16:41:27 -0800

Aphex Twin - "Avril 14th"

By: Quidam

Quidam — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 22:03:40 -0800

Thanks all for the great answers so far. I guess I should have mentioned in the question that I'm not much of a jazz fan, but there's a lot of really good stuff here.

flaneur, I've only listened to about the 30 seconds worth of music that's in that second link and I can already tell you I'm going to buy that album.

Satie looks particularly promising too.

You guys are great! Thanks!

By: Chunder

Chunder — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 02:17:34 -0800

Arvo Pärt "Für Alina" is amazingly soothing and relaxing; we picked it up on CD (with "Spiegel im Spiegel" on the same disc) after seeing it recommended somewhere on here...

By: odi.et.amo

odi.et.amo — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 07:33:38 -0800

Ben Folds is a good current singer/pianist.

Also seconding the classics, Bach, Chopin, Mozart, Tchaikovsky, etc.

Martha Argerich is a well-renowned pianist, as is Emmanuel Ax.
As a former pianist, these were my heroes.

Some of my favorite pieces, off the top of my head:
--Chopin's Nocturne in E minor - This is a good performance - a lot of times, I hear the piece faster, but I feel that the passion is better expressed at this tempo.
--Chopin's Grand Waltz Brilliant
--Scott Joplin's Bethena - The penultimate chord resolution is to die for. Again with the speed in this version - some folks play it too fast for my tastes.
--Tchaikovsky's Prelude in C Sharp Minor - this piece is impressive to watch - when the pianist's hands are dancing on the keyboard, the score shows 4 staves of notes for two hands to play. If I recall correctly, a friend of mine once broke a piano string on this piece :)

Hope you enjoy listening to these pieces as much as I do!

By: DandyRandy

DandyRandy — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 08:47:09 -0800

Allow me to recommend Solo Piano Radio, an Internet audio stream that features...well, you get the idea.

By: canine epigram

canine epigram — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 11:27:57 -0800

Anyone have any podcast recommendations for piano?

By: ajohnson1200

ajohnson1200 — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 22:50:30 -0800

Not all piano, but the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum podcast is pretty good:

http://www.gardnermuseum.org/music/podcast/theconcert.asp

By: Huw

Huw — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 00:38:55 -0800

I can't believe no one has recommended Glenn Gould's recording of Bach's Goldberg Variations. Especially this version which includes the 1955 & 1981 recordings.

By: canine epigram

canine epigram — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 18:23:59 -0800

Oh, I've already got that one, and it's quite good!