What is the Best Piano at the 2025 Chopin International Piano Competition? A Bit of History Let’s first take a look back at how the competition has evolved in terms of the pianos used. Before 1980, Steinway dominated the competition, along with som
Welcome to LivingPianos.com. I’m Robert Estrin. Today we’re going to explore a fascinating subject: the three types of memorization. What you feel, what you hear, and what you see. These different aspects of memory work together to create
Welcome to LivingPianos.com. I’m Robert Estrin. You hear concert pianists playing trills that sound jewel-like, and you might wonder: how can you achieve this in your own playing? Today, I’m going to share three simple techniques that can mak
Welcome to LivingPianos.com. I’m Robert Estrin. Today we’re going to explore how Beethoven fundamentally transformed classical music. And that’s no exaggeration. When you listen to the music that came before Beethoven and compare it to what
Welcome to LivingPianos.com. I’m Robert Estrin. Have you ever heard someone play the piano and every chord just sounds beautiful? Whether they’re reading written music or improvising, the chords seem rich and perfectly balanced. Yet when you
Welcome to LivingPianos.com. I’m Robert Estrin. Today we’re exploring an important question for anyone beginning their piano journey: What is the ideal first piano? You might wonder if it should be an upright, a digital, or something else ent
Welcome to LivingPianos.com. I’m Robert Estrin. If you’ve watched my videos, you know I’m not a big fan of doing endless exercises. In fact, I often suggest turning your music into exercises. That approach can solve many problems while also
Welcome to LivingPianos.com. I’m Robert Estrin. Recently, I had the pleasure of visiting the Piano Performance Museum in Hunter, New York, right in the heart of the beautiful Catskill Mountains. This incredible place is filled with historic key
Welcome to LivingPianos.com. I’m Robert Estrin. Today we’re exploring the third and final movement of Clementi’s Sonatina in C major, Opus 36, No. 1 — one of the most iconic beginner-intermediate pieces in the classical piano repertoi