My Approach to Harmony and the Piano

My purpose is to create the best music (as I could imagine), but still listenable. That's why when it comes to the harmony as I play the piano or compose (and I also compose when I play the piano), I often use the way of my inner-self and the hearings that opens up the new section in each melodic or both chordal progression I make. But when I say I use the elements from baroque to today, it's definitely not "copying". Let's put it in this way, I use the textures as what the media says "chords", I don't think about any chords but movements. Yes, I play "chords" but they don't even have a name. We can name them after I play and talk about them for hours but during the performance (in both recording too), I try to reach something; something soulfully needs to make me satisfied. For this, I can go to 17th century or I can make myself feel like I'm playing in a jazz club or a concert hall which is full empty or full of listeners, or more as my imagination would let me.

In this "making music" finds its own way like Tarantino says "the characters find their own ways". Because of the large amount of compositions that were made by the composers and the players (improvisers), almost all the ones that will make the musical side and the listener side satisfied are done, they happened before. That's why let's say I use 2 sounds of a texture (a chord) and keep one sound repeating (when I play solo piano) to make the "drive" happens or create the "atmosphere" with it, then I use maybe a simple melodic line but I don't use long melodic lines which many of the great ones happened before, I try using a lot more simple melodic lines and break the "chordal" feel once to make both listener don't get what they expect in a harmonic resolution but as the picture and the independent lines would allow to get a result after that section of that depended movement. I do this to create a new music that don't have a certain "type" jazz or classical but as the figures would make it, it can be both named as a modernistic jazz or classical music. (I do the universal music. That's why the greatest source is classical, and then a small part jazz). Can you hear even bebop in my music? Yes, but not the total of it. Can you hear a non-functional move like Chick Corea or Herbie Hancock? Yes, but not the total of them. Can you hear something like Schoenberg? Yes, but not the total of his music (his approach).

For the recordings. Specially the velocity of the keys are very important because of that I use electronic piano (sometimes), if I'm away from being able to find a studio that would meet my recording expectation with a great conditioned piano.

I get the questions: "What are the scales you are using?". I don't know (I don't think about it). If we look at the scales we can analyze them we can make them as small parts to name them easier. Let's say a "dorian" scale over a "mixolydian" scale, or a "melodic minor".. It really doesn't matter. The important part if we remove anything or add anything does it feel the same? If the answer is yes, then this is not good. There shouldn't be any decoration. I can put a space there or make another line with the left hand on the bass side of the piano. I can use my left hand for the high positions as well, if the "feel" will be right. (I played bass guitar for many years which means I played solo with my left hand in the treble side of the bass's keyboard.)

For the sitting position. I use the middle of Glenn Gould and Horowitz's height. I do it because if I need to play lyrical I go with the Horowitz side, if I need to pull the sounds (keys) then I go with the Glenn's way (this is also like bass guitar; instead of pushing the keys, pulling them like pulling the bass guitar strings.). And there are more when it comes to the piano technique (because each expression would need something special technically to make it happen) and the sitting position...

My purpose is to create the best music (as I could imagine), but still listenable.

I use the order of first soul, then mind and heart, the latest one is the body; then the sound needs to be produced.