Elton John Signature Series Red Piano Turns Heads At EG Expo
BUENA PARK, Calif. — In early February, innovators in the worlds of technology, entertainment and design converged upon the EG Expo – "The Entertainment Gathering" – at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, California. This premier assembly of the world's foremost intellectuals, business leaders, musicians and artists offered a forum to share ideas that shape the future of these disciplines. In this rarified setting – which in years past has served as the launch pad for such revolutionary products as the Apple Macintosh computer and the Segway personal transportation device – one invention stood apart: the Elton John Signature Series Red Piano.
"Everyone was fascinated by the Red Piano," recalled Disklavier marketing manager Jim Presley. "The nature of the conference was such that everyone had time to come up, ask questions and take a closer look. Interest and questions came not just from musicians, but from software designers, writers, inventors, and one of the greatest architects of our day."
"The instrument was continually crowded with observers that were amazed not only at the piano, but at the software and the overall experience of Sir Elton performing 'live'," recalls Mike Bates, manager of Yamaha Institutional and Commercial Services.
Yamaha was joined at this year's Expo by such diverse sponsors as McKinsey & Company, Wired Magazine, Yahoo, Sony, Starbucks and Starwood Hotels. This session featured an eclectic range of presenters such as Wired Magazine editor-in-chief Chris Anderson, Island Records founder Chris Blackwell, magician David Blaine, Bill Nye "The Science Guy", internationally renowned architect Frank Gehry, Simpsons creator Matt Groening, musician Herbie Hancock and legendary music producer Quincy Jones.
Yamaha has been a long-time musical provider for the internationally recognized conferences created by entrepreneur and intellectual visionary Richard Saul Wurman, including TED, TEDMed and TEDNewYork. The original TED conference was born in 1984 out of Wurman's realization at the powerful convergence between technology, entertainment and design. Though trained as an architect, the singular passion of Wurman's life has become that of making information understandable. Each of his 80 books, including the best seller Information Anxiety, focuses on a particular subject or idea that he personally had difficulty understanding. EG2006 was announced as the last conference in this long and distinguished series.
"What struck me as interesting was that in this room of the latest technology sat a Yamaha acoustic piano, whose basic design has not changed in 50 years or longer," mused Jim Presley. "Yet, merged with Yamaha's Disklavier technology, it was one of the coolest, hippest, and latest technologies in the room."
The Red Piano captured the imagination of the many high-profile musicians attending the Expo. In addition to Quincy Jones, the instrument was also used by a number of the speakers at the seminar including Herbie Hancock, and premier winner of the Van Cliburn Amateur Piano Competition Mike Hawley, as he accompanied cellist Yo Yo Ma in an impromptu performance.
Pastor and A Purpose-Driven Life Author Rick Warren was also on-hand, and commented on how much the staff and congregants of Saddleback Church enjoy their Disklavier piano and praised the reliability of all the Yamaha products they use.
While the Elton John piano turned heads, red was not the sole color of interest at the expo. According to Bates, architectural icon Frank Gehry – best known for his titanium-covered Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain – asked if he could get a Disklavier for his new home in Los Angeles, but "in green."
For more information, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Piano Division, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622; telephone (714) 522-9011; or email infostation@yamaha.com.
About Yamaha:
Yamaha Corporation of America manufactures a complete line of musical instruments, professional audio products, customer-driven support products and computer-based products targeted to both the amateur and professional markets.
 Entrepreneur and intellectual visionary Richard Saul Wurman, creator of such conferences as EG, TED, TEDMed and TEDNewYork. |
"The instrument was continually crowded with observers that were amazed not only at the piano, but at the software and the overall experience of Sir Elton performing 'live'," recalls Mike Bates, manager of Yamaha Institutional and Commercial Services.
Yamaha was joined at this year's Expo by such diverse sponsors as McKinsey & Company, Wired Magazine, Yahoo, Sony, Starbucks and Starwood Hotels. This session featured an eclectic range of presenters such as Wired Magazine editor-in-chief Chris Anderson, Island Records founder Chris Blackwell, magician David Blaine, Bill Nye "The Science Guy", internationally renowned architect Frank Gehry, Simpsons creator Matt Groening, musician Herbie Hancock and legendary music producer Quincy Jones.
 Van Cliburn Amateur Piano Competition winner Mike Hawley accompanies cellist Yo Yo Ma in an impromptu performance. |
"What struck me as interesting was that in this room of the latest technology sat a Yamaha acoustic piano, whose basic design has not changed in 50 years or longer," mused Jim Presley. "Yet, merged with Yamaha's Disklavier technology, it was one of the coolest, hippest, and latest technologies in the room."
The Red Piano captured the imagination of the many high-profile musicians attending the Expo. In addition to Quincy Jones, the instrument was also used by a number of the speakers at the seminar including Herbie Hancock, and premier winner of the Van Cliburn Amateur Piano Competition Mike Hawley, as he accompanied cellist Yo Yo Ma in an impromptu performance.
Pastor and A Purpose-Driven Life Author Rick Warren was also on-hand, and commented on how much the staff and congregants of Saddleback Church enjoy their Disklavier piano and praised the reliability of all the Yamaha products they use.
While the Elton John piano turned heads, red was not the sole color of interest at the expo. According to Bates, architectural icon Frank Gehry – best known for his titanium-covered Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain – asked if he could get a Disklavier for his new home in Los Angeles, but "in green."
For more information, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Piano Division, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622; telephone (714) 522-9011; or email infostation@yamaha.com.
About Yamaha:
Yamaha Corporation of America manufactures a complete line of musical instruments, professional audio products, customer-driven support products and computer-based products targeted to both the amateur and professional markets.
 |
| © 2010 Yamaha Corporation of America. All rights reserved. |