7 Reasons

Tag: Greatest

  • Guest Post: 7 Reasons Why The Piano Is The Best Instrument Of All Time

    Guest Post: 7 Reasons Why The Piano Is The Best Instrument Of All Time

    Forget guitars. Forget the drums. Forget the bass. The piano is the best instrument of all time. Think we’re kidding? Well read on.

    There’s nothing more beautiful in the world of music that a piano concerto. It’s an instrument which (believe it or not) is easy to play, versatile and social – yet complex and steeped in history.

    With that in mind, here’s 7 reasons why we think the piano is the best instrument of all time – we hope you agree!

    7 Reasons The Piano Is The Best Instrument Of All Time

    1.  Teach Yourself. Although the piano is a difficult instrument to master, there is piano sheet music available for every level of capability, from beginner to expert. This means that, generally speaking, if a toddler has learnt to sit up properly, they can start learning to play the piano. These skills will then grow with them throughout their lifetime, accompanying and nurturing them whatever their circumstance. With a piano as their means for expression, they’ll celebrate life, lament loss and all the while continue to learn and develop as a pianist.

    2.  Versatility. The piano is an extremely versatile instrument. From freeform jazz to dreamy pop ballads, the ivories have been tinkered across a plethora of musical genres, and to great effect. Whilst other classical instruments, (flutes, trumpets, cellos) seem committed to their classical constraints, the piano transcends genre.

    3.  It All Starts At The Piano. Musicians from every field take to the piano because it offers an easy means for composition. Whilst it takes years of training to produce a simple note from woodwind or string instruments, the piano is the perfect platform for writing and rehearsing intricate melodic and harmonic arrangements. Once a piece of music has been composed, it can then be played on any number of instruments.

    4.  Sing-a-longs. Playing the piano is a very social, creative and unifying experience for everyone involved. Picture a soporific Sunday afternoon with the whole family stood around the piano, singing along to an old war tune. Sure, it sounds old-fashioned, but at least everyone is together and sharing in something positive. One person’s talent radiates into the lives of others which in turn encourages creativity and motivates musical innovation.

    5.  There’s Humanity In The Piano. The sheet music of Chopin, Mozart and Beethoven is centuries old and yet still extremely relevant. These pianists continue to resonate with listeners of today because they captured the essence of humanity and the complexities of emotion like no other instrumentalist can. Without lyrics for emotional manipulation or music videos as visual stimulus, these composers created something which everyone can relate to despite its apparent age.

    6.  Timeless Tinkering. And, surely, like the best wines, music only matures with time? Who will still be listening to Tinie Tempah in 200 years? Very few, it can be assumed. But names like Tchaikovsky and Handel and Schubert will remain eternally imprinted on the list of musical greats because they will always be significant. The piano has been around since the early eighteenth century and has turned men, who would otherwise have been lost to the sands of time, into musical deities. It’s rich and diverse history only accentuates its superiority.

    7.  One Instrument Band. The piano does not need the support of a choir, an orchestra or even a single voice. Whilst it’s versatile enough to cater for any genre, voice or orchestral composition, as a stand-alone instrument it’s powerful enough to lead a whole movement to a crashing and memorable crescendo.

    This guest post was written by www.musicroom.com. For all your sheet music needs, please visit our website for more information.

  • 7 Reasons ‘Last Christmas’ Is The Greatest Music Video Ever.

    7 Reasons ‘Last Christmas’ Is The Greatest Music Video Ever.

    1.  The Set-up. The start of the video could very well be the start of a James Bond film that stars Jennifer Aniston. Two jeeps pull up in the snow. A door opens. A man gets out. He turns around. And that’s where is ends. You could never have a Bond villain with a hairstyle like that. Well, not unless Bond himself was played by Mika.

    2.  The Waving. Let’s be honest about this, it’s horrendous. It is not proper waving. It is five people auditioning for a job as a window cleaner, 0:24 – 0:30. Personally I would give the job to the woman in the middle. She was getting right into the corners.

    3.  The Tinsel Drop. Nice moves George. Or not. The idea is that he drops the tinsel onto last year’s lover, so that he can crouch down, apologise and stare into her eyes. Watch it though. At 1:27 there is a cut in the video. Only for a split second, but it can be seen. This is because George Michael is useless when it comes to dropping tinsel. They did 132 takes and everytime George missed his lover. In the end they decided just to chuck a bit of tinsel over her and merge the two segments. It didn’t work. But it’s lovely that George has his faults.

    4.  The Ice Cool Dude. Look at this guy at 1:40. It’s freezing outside yet he has been in the woods chopping up a tree without gloves or a hat. It took me a while to work out why this might be the case but it came to me eventually. He wasn’t wearing a hat because if he was he wouldn’t have been able to hear the director shout instructions at him. He wasn’t wearing gloves because he’s an idiot.

    5.  The Chat Up Lines. You just have to look at the two girl’s faces at 2:19 to know that they have just been asked by the smarmy git on the left if they fancy a threesome. Unfortunately they cut away from them to show George preparing to inhale wine through his nose, so no one quite knows whether the threesome happened or not. Nothing wrong with imagining though.

    6.  The Irony. There is quite a lot of it in Last Christmas, but the main one is George Michael supposedly giving his heart away 365 days previously. To a girl. You seriously expect us to believe that George? With that running style between 3:00 and 3:05? But that’s what’s so great about it. For four minutes and sixteen seconds we convince ourselves to believe it. Then we pretend we can’t stand this song.

    7.  The Skis. Oh, they had skis with them – 3:50. I am sure I am not the only person to notice that they didn’t actually do any skiing. All we saw them do is drink wine, run around in the snow, look at each other seductively and eat a birthday cake (2:11 – don’t ask me why, it was probably someone’s birthday. Jesus’ probably). But that’s fine, it means Wham! were in touch with reality. Sure, people mean to attack the slalom when on a winter holiday, but as soon as they start on the Quality Street they decide it’s just not going to happen. Real people. Real attitudes to getting fat.