Consumer Critique: The Piano Guys, Volume 2

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I got to review the first album by The Piano Guys, a quartet that is only two musicians, only one on piano. The name actually comes from a piano store in Utah. Store owner Paul Anderson created a Facebook promotional page and a YouTube channel featuring “New Age Classical” pianist Jon Schmidt, who teamed up musically with Steven Sharp Nelson, an innovative cellist. Together, Schmidt and Nelson form the musical core of The Piano Guys, with Anderson - who has since closed the store. Al van der Beek, the fourth “Guy,” heads up the group’s studio operations, and also assists in co-writing and arranging, as well as percussion and vocal texturing. They create their music videos all together.

They are back with a new album, The Piano Guys - Volume 2, including music from Pachelbel to The Turtles to Bruno Mars. The Deluxe version DVD includes the CD plus the 12 corresponding music videos. The creative arrangements and original recordings combine to make a fun CD to listen to - even without the visuals. To get a taste of what they do, watch the music video for “Berlin” on YouTube, inspired by a recent trip to Germany. They also collaborate with talented violinist Lindsey Stirling on the movie theme “Mission Impossible.” The video is well worth watching, and the CD is well worth listening to. My husband, a music major, and I, also a musician, both loved it.

 

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