Boring piano improvisation

  My cousin died recently, unexpectedly. He worked as a heavy machinery repairman. One morning his life was ended by an accident. Fortunately, everything happened very quickly.

I named this “Boring Basslines.” It uses descending bass patterns, common in pop music. Nothing wrong with them, they gave the piece its direction.

I spent a long afternoon with my beloved Rhodes. Trying, trying to impress! Who? Me, I guess, and you, of course. I failed. I gave up, and started drifting away. I´m in love with the sound, though.

Today, I went to greet my 1971 Fender Rhodes Suitcase, freshly back from repairs. This is a 6-minute one-chord improvisation in F minor. I’m especially happy with the second part, where the right hand drifts into its own rhythmic world.  I still have to adjust the microphone and all the things I know nothing about. I know that the state of the world is distressing me. I can't adjust that.  I’ve previously uploaded piano improvisations on my channel, and now I’m starting to record my improvisations on this beautiful vintage instrument.

  Lately I've been getting used to something new. To play to an audience. It's horrifying. They just sit there with no chance of escape, no chance of swiping to the next video. But I'm going to get back to playing alone, alone with my suitably broken Rhodes seventy-three. Coming up this winter: new videos played alone, new videos to get bored with.

  “Why don’t you play something based on Black Sabbath’s Solitude ?” asked someone over the internet. For about half a minute, I couldn’t think of a reason why not. Sad Wallpaper Waltz , inspired by  Solitude , played plainly on an upright piano ⬇️ Thank you, Ozzy (1948–2025).

 I just bought this Rhodes piano in a very good shape. It has seen the road, but clearly been cared for. I can't believe how happy I am!

  Since I'm currently taking a break from creating new improvisations, I found the perfect time to share this score animation. Originally posted without sheet music, now you can follow along with the score!

  A longish piano improvisation in the spirit of baroque counterpoint. Inspired by the expressive freedom of two masters: Keith Jarrett and J.S. Bach. This improvisation flows slowly, may I say boringly.

 It´s February. Time for a velvet hard rock.

 

 Piano improvisation is how I explore emotions and atmosphere. Inspired by the world of Studio Ghibli, I wanted to play a simple improvisation that - at times - could resemble the atmosphere of their films. I love Studio Ghibli's movies.  Well, I don't watch them anymore, but when my kids were little, I watched almost all of them. Studio Ghibli's films are true escapist works of art that you want to dive into. The atmosphere reminds me of my own early childhood, when anything seemed possible in my fantasy world.

 That’s what we did as children, didn’t we? We stared endlessly at a beetle, and nothing seemed as significant as that beetle, scurrying in the sand. It knew where it was going. The pale grains of sand hissed beneath its strange black spiked legs. I can’t see close enough anymore to watch that beetle. So, I listen to something nearby. It’s almost the same thing. A chord. I just realized that a chord is made up of multiple simultaneous sounds. It’s a chord because it resonates. Sure, you could try to write a chord on a staff, but it won’t resonate there. A chord must be played. Can only two chords be played? Yes, if no one else is listening. Let’s curl up. Let’s watch the beetle as it scurries in the sand.

I went to return bottles. The return machine at Lidl was broken. It played a discouraging yet beautiful melody: D-C. As I stood there, this descending whole-tone melody began to feel absolute. That’s probably its intention. It’s like the end of everything. D-C sounds like a V-I cadence (G-C) because D can easily be heard as a G chord. However, the message of the bottle return melody is heavier than G-C. Where G-C moves like a knight on a chessboard, D-C strips away hope. This is the end, my only friend. The end. The melodic line can also be interpreted as a modulation, a change in key. In past Eurovision Song Contests, modulations always moved upward, lifting the mood. Why should the mood be lifted? Is there something wrong with the starting point? Sergei Prokofiev (1891–1953) did the opposite: in his first piano concerto, the orchestra hammers the main theme into your consciousness in D-flat major, grandly and at length. The piano then picks it up immediately in C major, a step lower....

My YouTube channel is two years old, according to YouTube. Here is a playlist with my videos, which are no longer than two minutes. Enjoy! Here is the newest short video:

It's New Year! To celebrate it, I don't play old music but new. Improvised. 

  Lovely wool socks that Lini has knitted for me. In the beginning, she only had yarn balls of different colors. She had to decide to start knitting. That's how it must have gone. Lini used to work at the National Opera. We may be related. We both enjoy drinking sparkling wine together. We can do it without company, even though we haven´t tried it yet. This music, as well as the writing, was improvised.

This is an improvisation on a wiener Adolf Kraus grand piano (from the 1920s). Mennyböl az angyal (Angel from Heaven). A peaceful session last summer in the house of my beloved granny-in-law.

This was improvised and recorded a few years ago, and I've only just uploaded it now because, you know, it's almost Christmas. Finnish christmas carols: Varpunen jouluaamuna - Sparrow on Christmas morning (Otto Kotilainen) Joulun kellot - Christmas bells (Armas Maasalo) and Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht from Franz Gruber.

Satie´s Gymnopédie no 3 inspired this improvisation.