Since the late 1890s, dueling pianos have been a source of entertainment. When this trend first started, it was essentially a race for the two performing artists, who would try to play faster than each other to win the duel.
In the modern day, there are bars and clubs that are known specifically for this kind of act, but the spirit of it has changed since its origins. Instead of being competitive, it is usually more collaborative. The pianists now work together to entertain the crowd and create an upbeat atmosphere, often going so far as to invite the audience to sing along and be part of the show.
The style of playing in a dueling situation is very showy, with more flourishes than you'd see in a traditional recital. The performers will sometimes throw in impromptu banter, prepared jokes or funny lyrics. Sometimes the performers will work in regular teams, like a comedy duo, and other times they will be strangers or nearly strangers and will figure out their act on the fly, based on whatever their chemistry turns out to be like.
Most bars that offer this kind of entertainment allow patrons to request songs from the popular musical canon. In addition to old favorites, the musicians must be ready to play a wide range of hits from the contemporary rock and pop charts. This means a repertoire that is too varied and wide for the musicians to have memorized every single song, but they must still be ready to try and please an audience by fulfilling a request.
Many players will carry a book of sheet music which includes a lot of the songs they may be expected to be able to play. The performers will have practiced these songs in order to be able to play them, but they will not have necessarily memorized them all before a show, which is why the sheet music is helpful.
There are different ways that bars allow patrons to request songs, from signing up on a list to simply calling out a song title, or passing a napkin to the performers with the song's title written on it. Whether it is a casual or formal atmosphere, and regardless of the specific request procedure, it is expected that audience members who make a request will tip the musicians out of gratitude. There will almost always be an obvious receptacle for leaving a cash tip.
Some piano players who work in this line have classical training, whereas others come from a rock background, but regardless of where they learned their trade, playing a dueling pianos show lets the artist share his or her abilities with a lively crowd, and help the patrons have a fun evening out. After more than a hundred years of delighting audiences, this kind of show seems like it is here to stay.
dueling pianos
In the modern day, there are bars and clubs that are known specifically for this kind of act, but the spirit of it has changed since its origins. Instead of being competitive, it is usually more collaborative. The pianists now work together to entertain the crowd and create an upbeat atmosphere, often going so far as to invite the audience to sing along and be part of the show.
The style of playing in a dueling situation is very showy, with more flourishes than you'd see in a traditional recital. The performers will sometimes throw in impromptu banter, prepared jokes or funny lyrics. Sometimes the performers will work in regular teams, like a comedy duo, and other times they will be strangers or nearly strangers and will figure out their act on the fly, based on whatever their chemistry turns out to be like.
Most bars that offer this kind of entertainment allow patrons to request songs from the popular musical canon. In addition to old favorites, the musicians must be ready to play a wide range of hits from the contemporary rock and pop charts. This means a repertoire that is too varied and wide for the musicians to have memorized every single song, but they must still be ready to try and please an audience by fulfilling a request.
Many players will carry a book of sheet music which includes a lot of the songs they may be expected to be able to play. The performers will have practiced these songs in order to be able to play them, but they will not have necessarily memorized them all before a show, which is why the sheet music is helpful.
There are different ways that bars allow patrons to request songs, from signing up on a list to simply calling out a song title, or passing a napkin to the performers with the song's title written on it. Whether it is a casual or formal atmosphere, and regardless of the specific request procedure, it is expected that audience members who make a request will tip the musicians out of gratitude. There will almost always be an obvious receptacle for leaving a cash tip.
Some piano players who work in this line have classical training, whereas others come from a rock background, but regardless of where they learned their trade, playing a dueling pianos show lets the artist share his or her abilities with a lively crowd, and help the patrons have a fun evening out. After more than a hundred years of delighting audiences, this kind of show seems like it is here to stay.
dueling pianos
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