Assisted Living Residents Make "The Clavinova Connection"

BUENA PARK, CA (April 2, 2004) — For millions of adult Americans who may not have had an opportunity to play a musical instrument, news about the stress relief and wellness benefits it can offer has provided a reason to take the first step. Now, a new program from Yamaha is bringing the joy of musical discovery to people in their own communities – in a remarkable new way that includes all the fun, but none of the tedium of traditional lessons.

"The Clavinova Connection," a music making and wellness program, combines all the benefits of group and individual instruction with Yamaha's century of piano and educational expertise, and unlocks the vast wellness benefits of piano playing for adults of any age or skill level. Recently, residents of Brandywine Assisted Living at Haverford Estates in Haverford, PA and Beaufont Towers Senior Resident Community in Richmond, VA, experienced The Clavinova Connection first-hand.

"This was a real treat for our residents," says Haverford Estates Executive Director Randy Hampton. "I know so many people who have always wished they could make music, and now the barriers have been removed."

The program uses a Yamaha Clavinova digital piano and a scientifically designed program of music and wellness exercises. Each member of a session group uses a Clavinova, and all of them are linked to another one used by the group facilitator. In a technological breakthrough, the facilitator can activate The Clavinova's new SmartLIGHTS™, and transmit lighted notes from the facilitator unit directly to each student unit in the group. There are no scales, notes or repetitions – just follow the lights and enjoy the music you're actually making yourself.

Turner Classic Movies, Film Music Magazine, Ascent Media and Tonos present the competition, now in its fourth year. It is sponsored by Guitar Center and is a part of Turner's program for film restoration. Judges for the first round of finalists included competition spokesperson and film composer Elmer Bernstein, and highly regarded film composers Mark Watters and Mark Holden. For the finalist selection, judges included composer/educator and judging chairman Don Ray, film and television composers John Ottman, Marco Beltrami, Mark Holden and Vivek Maddala, music publishing consultant Laura Levinsky, film and television music agent Jeff Kaufman, Lon Bender and Craig Harris from Ascent Media, and Charlie Tabesh and Dennis Millay from Turner Classic Movies.

To make the program even more attractive to musical novices, Yamaha has also developed the "Welcome Mat," a plastic template that goes over The Clavinova's control panel and reveals only the buttons first-timers will need to participate in the program.

The Clavinova Connection is more than a technological enhancement. It's a music and wellness program designed from the ground up by Yamaha, with input from physicians, musicians, music therapists and music educators, including renowned experts like industry guru Karl Bruhn, prominent psychoneuroimmunologist Dr. Barry Bittman and software innovator Craig Knudsen.

According to Knudsen, The Clavinova Connection introduces people to music in much the same way that they learn their native languages – by just doing it, before any formal instruction in reading or writing it. Knudsen adds that test programs in Florida, Iowa and California were met with enthusiastic reactions.

Each Clavinova Connection session includes multiple components including a wellness exercise, a keyboard drum circle, an opportunity to improvise and a "StarLIGHTS" Song of the Day. Unlike other music making programs, it places experience before instruction, and lets first-timers feel what it's like to actually play the piano.

For more information, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Piano Division, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622; telephone (714) 522-9011; or e-mail infostation@yamaha.com.