Piano Guidance
Photo by Mateusz Dach Pexels Logo Photo: Mateusz Dach

How much was Marilyn Monroe's piano?

Marilyn Monroe's Baby Grand Piano ($662,500)

Did Elvis have perfect pitch?
Did Elvis have perfect pitch?

'I am reminded of a comment made shortly after the death of Elvis Presley by a musician he had worked with. He pointed out that despite an...

Read More »
Can I burn my DVDs to a hard drive?
Can I burn my DVDs to a hard drive?

For burned and homemade DVDs that come without any copy protection, you can directly copy and paste audio_ts and video_ts from DVD to internal or...

Read More »

Composite of Marilyn Monroe and her white baby grand piano. 1, 2

The backstory of this white lacquered piano produced in the early part of the 20th century (original manufacturer unknown) is recounted in Marilyn Monroe’s posthumously published autobiography: One day a grand piano arrived at my home. It was out of condition. My mother had bought it secondhand. It was for me. I was going to be given piano lessons on it. It was a very important piano, despite being a little banged up. It had belonged to the movie star Fredric March. ‘You’ll play the piano over here, by the windows,’ my mother said, ‘and here on each side of the fireplace there’ll be a love seat. And we can sit listening to you. As soon as I pay off a few other things I’ll get the love seats, and we’ll all sit in them at night and listen to you play the piano.’ Marilyn Monroe from My Story 3 Sometime later Monroe’s mother was taken to Norwalk Mental Hospital, and Monroe was sent to an orphanage. All their belongings including the piano were taken away. I never forgot the white painted house and its furniture. Years later when I was beginning to earn some money from modeling, I started looking for the Fredric March piano. After about a year I found it in an old auction room and bought it. I have it in my home now in Hollywood. It’s been painted a lovely white, and it has new strings and plays as wonderfully as any piano in the world. Marilyn Monroe from My Story4 In her will, Marilyn Monroe left the majority of her estate to Lee Strasberg, her acting coach and confidant. After his death, Monroe’s estate then transferred to Strasberg’s wife, Anna. Under her care, she hired CMG Worldwide to manage the licensing of Monroe’s name making Monroe’s estate a fortune. In her will, Monroe stated that she wanted her personal effects and clothing to go to friends and colleagues. But in 1999, Anna Strasberg commissioned Christie’s to auction off many of those items… NPR from Monroe’s Legacy Is Making Fortune, But For Whom?5

Mariah Carey purchased the piano from the October 1999 auction stating:

Who popularized tapping?
Who popularized tapping?

Eddie Van Halen went on to popularize the two-handed tapping technique in the late 1970s. Van Halen claims that his own inspiration came from Led...

Read More »
Does learning piano get easier?
Does learning piano get easier?

With consistency, learning the piano gets easier for most players. Although challenging for beginners, it feels easier when experience gives you...

Read More »

Can you chew gum in Israel?

A prominent Israeli rabbi has ruled that spitting gum on a sidewalk or hiding it under a desk is a violation of Halacha or Jewish law, the Yediot Ahronot newspaper reported on Thursday. ”Gum cannot be thrown where others are liable to be disgusted by it,” said Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, the rabbi of the holy city of Safed.

Your chewing gum has just lost its flavour, but there is no garbage can in sight. What do you do?

According to Jewish law, get ready to swallow it.

A prominent Israeli rabbi has ruled that spitting gum on a sidewalk or hiding it under a desk is a violation of Halacha or Jewish law, the Yediot Ahronot newspaper reported on Thursday. ”Gum cannot be thrown where others are liable to be disgusted by it,” said Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, the rabbi of the holy city of Safed. Improperly discarded gum may appear to be hidden, but ”God knows” where it is, Eliyahu said, according to the newspaper. Swallowing the gum is a better solution, the rabbi said, though he criticised the use of chewing gum in general. ”Chewing gum is the practice of lower forms of life. It expresses inner tension and lack of control. People with self-respect do not chew gum except on special occasions because of special circumstances,” he said. — Sapa-AP

How many octaves do I need to learn piano?
How many octaves do I need to learn piano?

Generally, a piano has 7 and 1/4 octaves. A standard modern upright, grand or digital piano has seven and a quarter octaves; seven full octaves,...

Read More »
What is the number 1 instrument in the world?
What is the number 1 instrument in the world?

It might surprise you to know that 21 million Americans play the piano! No wonder it is number 1 on our list. The piano is possibly the most...

Read More »
What keyboard is used in Denmark?
What keyboard is used in Denmark?

QWERTY Danish The Danish keyboard is often used in Denmark. Also this keyboard has a different layout than the international keyboard. The Hek key...

Read More »
How long is a melody?
How long is a melody?

Balance is also important: your melody should usually be 8 bars long, so you should break it down into two parts or "phrases", (this is called...

Read More »