Welcome to Living Pianos! I’m Robert Estrin. Today we’re going to explore something a bit different—something that gets to the heart of how we create and connect through music and art. Recently, Apple released an ad called ‘Crush,’ and it got a lot of people talking… but not in the way Apple intended.
In this ad, we see pianos, paints, cameras—all tools of creative expression—literally crushed by a massive hydraulic press, only for an iPad to emerge from the debris.
The message was clear: ‘You don’t need these tools anymore. The iPad can do it all.’ But this imagery—this destruction of instruments and artistic tools—struck a nerve with many musicians and artists. The ad has been called ‘tone-deaf’ and ‘insulting’ by those who see their creative tools as extensions of themselves, not just objects to be replaced by a screen. I think this ad reveals something deeper about where we’re headed as a society—away from the tangible, the physical, and the personal, toward an increasingly digital, disconnected world. And yes, the piano, an instrument that has inspired people for hundreds of years, is a casualty in this transformation. We’re seeing a shift where creativity is being funneled through screens, apps, and devices, often at the expense of the rich, tactile experience of creating music with our hands, on real instruments.
When you play the piano, you’re not just making sound.
You’re interacting with the wood, the felt, the hammers. The vibrations resonate in your body and in the air around you. It’s an organic, visceral experience that a digital interface simply can’t replicate. And this extends to many other art forms—painting, photography, sculpture. These are processes where the tools themselves influence the outcome, and that connection between artist and medium is becoming increasingly lost.
The concern here isn’t just about technology replacing tools—it’s about the mindset that comes with it.
The idea that a device like an iPad can replace centuries of artistic tradition might be convenient, but it also risks trivializing the depth of what it means to create. There’s a big difference between playing a note on a piano and tapping a virtual key on a screen. And that difference matters. It’s about the soul of the music. We’ve seen this play out already with music itself. Digital audio, streaming platforms, and MIDI technology have revolutionized how we make and consume music, but they’ve also led to a certain ‘flattening’ of creativity. Musicians are expected to do everything on their laptops—compose, record, mix, and master—without ever touching an actual instrument. The craftsmanship that goes into playing an instrument is being sidelined. And in a way, the piano is becoming a symbol of this shift—something that represents the tangible creativity we’re losing in the rush to go digital.
Don’t get me wrong—technology has its place.
Digital tools like the iPad can be incredibly powerful, offering accessibility and convenience that can be beneficial, especially for young creators. But the danger lies in thinking that they replace traditional creative tools. They’re just different. The piano, for example, is not just a means to an end; it’s an entire experience of expression. And that experience is something worth preserving. At the end of the day, creativity is about the connection between the artist and the medium. Whether it’s a piano, a paintbrush, or a camera, these tools have shaped the way we express ourselves for generations. Losing that connection in favor of digital convenience? That’s a loss we can’t afford.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. Is there a place for both traditional tools and digital technology in the future of art and music? Let me know in the comments here at LivingPianos.com and on YouTube! Thanks for joining me, and I’ll see you next time!
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9 thoughts on “The DEATH of Traditional Creativity?”
There’s an old saying: If the only tool you’ve got is a hammer, everything becomes a nail.
We have pianos for playing and studying music. We have computers for work and play. Everything has a purpose. There is no “one size fits all” do-everything tool in this broken and fallen world of ours.
I just read an article that police departments tried utilizing chatGPT to assist with police reports with disastrous results. People fail to realize that chatGPT isn’t “neural” or self-learning, but a glorified algorithm that scrapes the web and regurgitates what we put in.
It’s been showing as of late to be getting dumber as a result of over reliance .
The fact that people depend on it for their business and municipal decisions is an indictment on their own apathy.
Your comment is precise and important. It’s not just music….art too is being pushed toward screens and digital programs, the intimacy between the player and the instrument, as well as the artist to the brush and physical paints is part of the creative spirit. Humans use such to express and that expression is blunted, necessarily, by digital devices.
As well so much time is spent learning all the commands and elements of programs. And one questions why youngsters today are not being taught to hand write the language, again only to manipulate a screen and keyboard.
Again thanks for your comment, always apppreciated…
I am grateful that you posted this. I, for one, am not a fan of AI or any digital anything replacing the real nuts and bolts of creativity in any platform – be it painting, photography and especially music. I believe that all of this technology has a place in science – medicine, anything that will technically make things easier – like dentistry, vehicles, aeronautics, televisions, computers. NOT THE ARTS.
Comment re: Lost Use of Piano and Other Artistic Endeavors Verses Dependence on Technology
You requested comment and I will oblige even if I impose on your valuable time. You have touched on a very important subject that needs to be brought to the attention of the thinking public and educators who expose curiosity, innovation And creativity to our youth.
Technology is a substitute for individual thought. A computer and the like is a convenience to duplicate individual tasks without the necessity of thought. Dependence on technology suppresses rational thinking and leads to a lazy mind. Revelation, ingenuity and creativity come from a free, unbounded source human thought. Making music is both emotional and logical at the same time. The human mind is capable of combining many sources of stimulation without the requirement of repetition and duplication. That is the opposite of technology which is single minded and conforming.
In sum, I agree with your observation and philosophy.
Could not have stated it any better. “Mental atrophy” leaps to mind.
Poke your nose into what passes for “music” amongst many – not all! – of the younger generation and you get a sickening whiff of the advent of Idiocracy. Can such a culture produce a Bach, a Beethoven, a Michelangelo, a Shakespeare?
Bob, you nailed it. Bravo
2024.10.10
Dear Robert, What a wonderful and inciteful Living Pianos episode! You put words to a developing phenomenon that I have perceived for some time, but couldn’t express properly. But you have done it with this video and its accompanying transcript. Thank you so much! Charlie-in-Albuquerque
We are all trying to adapt to new technologies. But let’s not forget about traditional avenues of expression, like the piano!