I got this reply to one of my emails a few weeks ago:

"As I indicated in one email, I have given up on playing piano for over 2 years except for playing it on CDs. It is far more enjoyable."

Let me give my reaction to that.

On the one hand, this sounds like a perfectly reasonable position, and based on conversations I've had, I'm guessing it applies to most people reading this email.

But, it puts me in a weird spot because...if you’ve given up on piano, what do we talk about then?

I want to ask some questions to get a sense of where this fits into your life.

Let's zoom out for a second.

What is the bigger picture?

Imagine, when you started playing piano, it was like you hired piano to do a job for you. To fill some role in your life.

What job did you hire piano to do?

After you fired piano, what replaced it?

Was it the CD player that replaced it? No, I don't think so.

I mean, even back when you started piano, you were smart enough to know that the easiest way to fill your house with music was always playing recordings. It was never piano.

So, the CD player isn’t a replacement for piano. That’s something else.

Now, you might be right. Maybe piano isn’t the answer. Maybe we should connect on something else.

But, I suspect this story has more to it.

Could we try to nail it down so that, at least, it’s a good story?

And if piano ends up being the villain in this tale, so much the better.

—Michael

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nomichaelhere.substack.com

I haven't written for a couple of weeks because I've felt like I have "nothing to say". Now, however, I'm forcing myself to write, and that’s risky.

I mean, what if you don’t care what I have to say?

But, here's the thing: I'm interested in what you’re doing.

Now, admittedly, you’re not on my mind all the time. It’s a once-in-a-while kind of thing. But, the fact is, your life is one of the things I'm interested in.

That said, I don't know you very well. I can only fill in so many blanks with my imagination.

So, let me give you some context about me, about my life.

I need money. I'm running out of money.

I'm not saying that to put pressure on you, to make you feel sorry for me, or to passive-aggressively take out my anger on you. I’m just trying to disclose my intentions.

I believe in transparency.

So, here's me being transparent.

(The truth is, I am trying to put some pressure on you. It’s not the pressure to pay me money, but something else. Honestly, I’m not sure how to articulate what it is, how to talk about it. That’s something I’m working on.)

Another thing going on with me is that I want to help you with piano.

But, some things need to happen first. For example, you have to be interested in piano and, right now, I get the sense you're not. That’s fair enough, but I can't help you until you are.

So, if you’re wondering why I’m professing to want to help you, while at the same time, not trying very hard to help you…I’m waiting for you.

I want to hear from you.

You’re wondering why I’m not posting piano articles? Why I’m just talking about me? That’s why: I don’t know where you’re coming from.

Piano’s a big topic. I’m not just going to start talking about “piano.”

Now, I'm willing to be patient. I'm willing to talk with you about other things. If piano isn’t the thing for you, I’ve got a cornucopia of topics: drawing, calligraphy, yoga, enlightenment, German diction, etc., etc., etc.

But, since piano is something in your past, and since the past has a funny way of not staying in the past, it's still there somewhere. It might be a good idea to stop ignoring it.

The other thing is this: I feel awkward talking about piano when we both know I've made money from teaching piano.

Is that a conflict of interest? I’m claiming to be just trying to educate the world, and yet, we all know in my past (and in my future), there’s money.

Now, I'm not saying that because I want you to reassure me I’m not doing anything wrong. I'm saying it because I want you to know me.

I want you to know me so that I can know you.

We’re going to have an exchange. It’s called “connection.”

What’s in it for me?

* The money.

* Knowing you.

* More interaction with the market (you).

What’s in it for you…?

Honestly, I don’t think I know you well enough to answer that.

The only thing I have to go on is that you signed up for this mailing list. I didn't pull you off the street. I was sitting here alone in my apartment and you showed up. There must be SOMETHING in it for you.

However you look at it, I want to thank you for being here.

—Michael

P.S. I suspect I have a lot to say to you and it may take time for me to catch up to myself. If you're feeling left out, you can interject at any point and maybe it'll help me sync up with you.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nomichaelhere.substack.com

This is a strange episode but I kinda like it, so I’m putting it up here. It’s audio that was recorded on February 6, 2021. It was a livestream I did on Instagram where I was playing Donkey Kong Country 3 and talking about some stuff that had happened to me in the first year of the pandemic related to:

1. The music school I’d been playing at before the pandemic, and
2. A marketing group I’d joined that year.

The whole thing is a rant, but I hope it could be of interest to you if you’re a classical musician, a video game streamer, or if you’re in any way interested in online marketing or cancel culture. I bleeped out names because I don’t want this to be about names.

I think it works well as audio. You can watch the video on YouTube.

Hope you like it.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nomichaelhere.substack.com

Lately, I’ve been a cheerleader for boundaries. That’s funny because the second episode of this podcast was called “Stop Setting Boundaries”. In this episode, I explain how my thinking has changed by reacting to Episode 2.

Timeline:

0:00:00 – Introduction
0:03:09 – Reacting to Episode 2: “Stop Setting Boundaries”
0:04:37 – Drama Triangle & The Empowerment Dynamic
0:08:00 – Boundaries let you have conversations
0:10:37 – How I look at boundaries these days
0:13:01 – “Violating” boundaries
0:14:49 – Topics on which I’ve demonstrated how to set boundaries
0:17:05 – Restraining order threat
0:18:08 – Being a Challenger
0:22:47 – Training your friends
0:24:29 – Virtue-signalling, being the bigger person
0:27:59 – “Accountability”
0:29:28 – Emotional issues
0:31:26 – Rosenberg Stage 2
0:34:18 – Jordan Peterson, responsibility
0:38:52 – Be explicit with the language
0:42:26 – It’s like a BPD thing
0:44:19 – Back to the list
0:46:06 – Teaching
0:46:22 – Friend zone
0:47:49 – “Michael, you’re acting like a victim.”
0:49:42 – I got derailed
0:52:37 – Back then I was all about acceptance
0:53:54 – Don’t say it to them
0:54:51 – You don’t need to justify
1:01:15 – Just stand still
1:04:18 – I wouldn’t even say any of that
1:07:57 – That’s it for this episode

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nomichaelhere.substack.com

Spiral Dynamics is a framework for making sense of the forces that drive culture. It helps you understand why YouTube commenters are such jerks. Also, why the Godfather cares so much about respect. And why Osho started his cult. And why air traffic controllers aren’t to blame for mid-air collisions.

I’d take it to a desert island.

Stay tuned for more episodes on the other colors.

(Instagram live, April 26, 2023)

0:00 – Introduction
3:17 – The Ice Cream Truck Song (the Entertainer)
6:55 – Spiral Dynamics
10:23 – Overview of the colors
20:01 – Zagreb mid-air collision
27:27 – Osho, Wild Wild Country
28:50 – Yellow (systems thinking)
31:19 – Purple (animism, shamanism)
34:08 – Still DRE
39:46 – Leo Gura (actualized.org)
42:55 – Red
44:29 – Sacred cows in FB groups
46:10 – Revenge of the Nerds
47:27 – Instagram algorithm
50:41 – Respect
51:40 – The Godfather
54:09 – YouTube comments

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nomichaelhere.substack.com

Only you can teach yourself how to read music. I have no power over you. The Universe will do its thing, and no, it’s not fair. But here’s a placebo to keep you company. It might even work.

(Instagram live, April 24, 2023)

0:00 – Introduction
1:30 – How to read music
10:44 – Major and minor keys
16:48 – The Karate Kid (homework 1)
18:21 – Major and minor chords
19:05 – The Empowerment Dynamic
27:36 – C major chord, treble/bass clef
30:02 – Spiral Dynamics (homework 2)
35:22 – Teachers don’t care about you
40:17 – Philosophy is stupid
42:32 – Weird Al
44:46 – Bo Burnham “Inside” (homework 4)
47:42 – Seventh chords
51:56 – Parting words

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nomichaelhere.substack.com

All about meditation, language, non-duality and waking up to b******t. This is graduate-level piano material. Actually, it’s a bit beyond that.

(Instagram Live from April 22, 2023)

0:00 Introduction
0:48 Meditation
10:10 Is classical music better than contemporary music?
11:30 Enlightenment
21:52 Form vs Function
25:45 A language exercise
30:43 Duality vs Non-duality
35:30 Why YouTube comments suck
40:40 B.F. Skinner, “Verbal Behavior”
41:42 The pandemic was a good thing
42:28 AI, revenge porn
47:48 Marshall Rosenberg, Amtsprache
51:49 Asleep vs awake people

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nomichaelhere.substack.com

Welcome to 4-dimensional space. Glad you could join me on this higher plane of existence. Now, let me set the record straight about some of y’all’s problems with me.

(Piano Time Live on Instagram, April 21, 2023)

Timeline:

0:00 – Introduction
1:39 – Golden Hour
5:48 – 3-step exercise to play with both hands
10:51 – The 4th dimension
19:18 – Für Elise
22:26 – Moonlight Sonata
24:59 – The Empowerment Dynamic and the Drama Triangle
28:56 – Jordan Peterson is awesome
31:49 – Nerds who correct “misinformation” on social media
34:19 – Osho, Wild Wild Country

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nomichaelhere.substack.com

I invited Dr. David Servias to have a conversation with me about the Bach Toccata & Fugue fiasco. We discuss the history of the piece, why the NERDS can’t process one out-of-place note, and how I’m dealing with hate on my YouTube channel.

For the backstory, watch the original video (and read the comments )

Thanks for listening.

If you have not taken my course Learn Piano in 5 Days yet, that would be a good starting place for you. You can access it for $5.00 here: https://michaelkorman.com/learn-piano-in-5-days/

Or, if you’d like to work with me 1-1 (online), you can sign up for the Intensive Song Study: https://michaelkorman.com/intensive-song-study/

Both of these are for beginners. No experience needed. Just willingness to try new things.

Timeline:

00:00:00 – I posted a cute little piano tutorial and the music theory NERDS freaked out.

00:02:39 – Bringing Dr. Servias on to help settle the debate.

00:04:22 – The list of accusations against me. Responding “appropriately.” Two kinds of nerds.

00:05:57 – David explains the controversy. What’s the Toccata and Fugue? What did I play? What were they expecting me to play?

00:11:32 – Does any of this matter? What would Bach have said? Would you have to follow his orders?

00:13:56 – The history of the Toccata & Fugue in D minor. Why’s this such a big deal? There’s no manuscript. Disney’s Fantasia.

00:26:09 – My pinned comment. Are they lying? Evolution vs. creation.

00:36:21 – How do I respond to all this? Your mom jokes. Credibility.

00:39:17 – The time a hater quoted MY OWN TEACHER to prove me wrong. Urtext editions. Was Glenn Gould a troll?

00:49:17 – Why I used “your mom” jokes to reply to comments. Are mom jokes insults? Using offense as a weapon.

00:53:24 – Doubling down. Agreeing with the haters. Making fun of yourself first. Taking the wind out of their sails. Trying all the different approaches.

00:55:43 – My videos are for adults, not kids. But I’m not making this an 18+ channel to protect the kids. Sorry.

00:56:26 – Is it wrong to delete comments? It rubs them the wrong way. Free speech. But you’re all guests at my party. Why I hate inclusivity. Facebook groups that have rules about respecting everyone’s opinions are a mess.

01:01:01 – They can make their own videos and talk about anything they want. Even trash-talking me.

01:08:23 – Why I’m not going to prove I have a master’s degree. Negotiating with terrorists. I’m not good at piano but I’m better than all of you.

01:09:50 – They don’t like my personality. How I don’t conform. They’re envious. They want respect and view it as a scarce resource.These people hate children. Generational trauma.

01:13:20 – “Bro pinned his own comment!”, “Bro wrote a WHOLE ESSAY!”. Artists vs. graffiti vandals. “You’re just doing it for views!”

01:15:47 – Am I a “troll”? There are two kinds of trolls. The word is ambiguous. I’m a “classical troll.” Trolls vs. haters. “Piece” vs. “song”. HTML the “programming language”. I’m going to keep trying to rock the boat. Paris Hilton. Howard Stern. Amy’s Baking Company.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nomichaelhere.substack.com

Let’s talk about how to learn to play the piano. It’s a big subject, but we’ve gotta start somewhere.

Timeline:

0:00 – Should I change the name of the podcast?
0:47 – Pandemic regrets. Being taunted by the piano in your living room.
2:31 – Why I get irritated when people want to learn piano. My experiences with language learning and classical guitar.
4:40 – What makes Michael Korman good at piano?
5:48 – Piano’s an old instrument.
6:35 – What the pedals are all about.
8:03 – Do you have to take lessons?
9:24 – Can you learn from YouTube?
10:16 – Why adults can’t learn piano.
12:08 – Why kids have no problem learning piano.
14:41 – About my 5-day course.
14:59 – Why it shouldn’t take years to be able to play “River Flows in You.”
16:27 – Why you’re addicted to being “impressive”.
17:41 – A quick reminder that this isn’t philosophical nonsense.
19:08 – Why I can’t relate to beginner pianists.
20:42 – About my tutorials where I write numbers on the keys.
22:04 – Octaves, notes, names of notes, visual orientation/memory.
23:55 – How to learn to read music.
24:36 – I don’t care about helping you learn to read music.
25:28 – Why I’m good at reading and you’re not.
26:55 – I should really stop being so judgmental.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nomichaelhere.substack.com