Dueling pianos have been a part of the entertainment landscape since at least the late nineteenth century. In the Victorian era, patrons would watch to see which of two piano players could play not only better, but also more quickly, than the other.
Nowadays, the field has changed. Instead of battling, the two musicians are more likely to work with each other in a collaborative spirit as they try to engage and amuse the audience, sometimes even inviting the crowd to sing with them in order to create a lively feeling for the performance. There are now clubs and bars that specialize in this kind of entertainment.
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.
Most of the time, sheet music is required to pull off the request. Piano players who work in this field usually carry a songbook with them, which includes the music for hits that they think are likely to be requested, and will have practiced enough to be able to play well, but will not have memorized the way they would for a pre-planned concert program.
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
Nowadays, the field has changed. Instead of battling, the two musicians are more likely to work with each other in a collaborative spirit as they try to engage and amuse the audience, sometimes even inviting the crowd to sing with them in order to create a lively feeling for the performance. There are now clubs and bars that specialize in this kind of entertainment.
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.
Most of the time, sheet music is required to pull off the request. Piano players who work in this field usually carry a songbook with them, which includes the music for hits that they think are likely to be requested, and will have practiced enough to be able to play well, but will not have memorized the way they would for a pre-planned concert program.
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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