Today's piano podcast is, in timely fashion, an homage to the fallen heroes who gave their lives so that we may have ours. I will be talking briefly about the history and symbolism of perhaps that most famous of bugle calls: The Last Post. Why is this short work so infused with solemnity and meaning in our collective conscious?

"At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will remember them."#LastPost#PianoCover#RemembranceSunday#RemembranceDay#ArmisticeDay#MilitaryTribute#FallenHeroes#PianoMusic#Remembrance2025#LastPostCover#MemorialMusic#VeteransTribute#EmotionalPiano#WarMemorial#TributeToHeroes

For more information: whaviland.com/podcast

Happy piano playing/learning!

This podcast episode commences a new series, on contemporary pianists that I consider the absolute best currently recording. And, we had to start with my personal favourite, Canadian artist Jesse Brown! I discovered his music in 2018, and his catalogue has been my steadfast companion ever since. Given that I’ve always received the best recommendations of new music from friends - most often just via hearing their background playlists, and being curious - I thought it might be nice to share my own discovery journery with you. We’ll delve a little into the background of this composer, and also listen to snippets of three special works, analyse their genesis, and certain interesting features. Chosen tracks as follows:

Flocks [2018]

Havana 2012 [2019]

Reading the Clouds [2021]

For more information: whaviland.com/podcast

Happy piano playing/learning!

Okay, I admit: shameless plug for my latest album 'Cutting Room Floor: One Take Solo Piano' which released this week. But, I also felt it an opportunity to discuss elements of refining your recordings - and sometimes, just 'letting it be' is the key.

For more information: whaviland.com/podcast

Happy piano playing/learning!

Initially this show was planned to showcase the many physical and mental gains we may experience, on deciding to study the instrument. However, I soon realized this was not going to make for a particularly original podcast! So, instead, I’ve decided to talk about three very personal benefits that studying the piano has gifted me. I hope this bitesize episode will be an enticement to you, at whatever stage of your life, to consider delving into the fascinating world of the keyboard.

1 Talking to the composer

2 A hidden world of magic and mystery

3 The power of musical self-expression

For more information: whaviland.com/podcast

Happy piano playing/learning!

Following on from last week’s episode, I had in my mind the idea of discussing unusual chord progressions in pop music: modern pioneers that pushed the boundaries of what was permissible to listen to. In this week’s podcast, let’s pick three perfectly eccentric examples of harmonic oddity in popular music classics, analyse their content, and speculate on how they get away with it! Following a brief reminder of David Bowie’s ‘Changes’, we’ll look at the following:

Wuthering Heights Kate Bush

Lay Lady Lay Bob Dylan

Mad About The Boy Noel Coward/Dinah Washington

Please write in to the podcast if you have other examples you think merit a mention - there are many - we just picked three here to keep the show short!

For more information: whaviland.com/podcast

Happy piano playing/learning!

An unlikely combination of random events hit me over the past fortnight, enough to fashion a piano podcast out of them - and apologies for the brief intermission! This weekend finds me exploring the contribution [positive or negative] of ‘altered states’ to the compositional process. Approve or disapprove, should we at least acknowledge that without the ability to temporarily step outside of the room, the canon of musical creativity might be significantly less than as it currently stands?

Let’s briefly talk about David Bowie, Christine McVie/Fleetwood Mac, and in a smaller way, my own output and evolution. 

[This show is dedicated to the absolute one-off that was Ozzy Osbourne.]

For more information: whaviland.com/podcast

Happy piano playing/learning!

An interesting juxtaposition this week: the recall of a duo of Haydn pieces I hadn't played for 32 years; and the simultaneous inability to remember why I walked into the kitchen! Thus was set in motion a podcast about memorizing your piano music, and the benefits you might reap... which interestingly extend beyond the bounds of mere concert performance.

For more information: whaviland.com/podcast

Happy piano playing/learning!

A good deal of my time this week was spent messing around with a choral work by Sir Edward Elgar. It is a beautiful, delicate setting of the Eucharistic hymn ‘Ave Verum Corpus’ - in Latin, ‘Hail True Body’ - and, since I had finally managed to transcribe and record the piece, I thought it might be an ideal opportunity to look at the subject of piano transcriptions. Specifically, what are they? Why might we be interested in attempting them? And how would you go about making one in the first place?

For more information: whaviland.com/podcast

Happy piano playing/learning!

Following on neatly from last week’s discussion around musical motifs, let’s explore the related, but subtly different world, of the ostinato. What exactly is it? Can we recall some famous examples? What is its purpose, both for the composer and listener? And, crucially, can we come up with some piano improvisations, incorporating first melodic and then rhythmic ostinati?!

For more information: whaviland.com/podcast

Happy piano playing/learning!

How do composers grab our attention, and maintain it when we're listening to a composition? Simple! These use 'motifs' - short musical hooks, that embed themselves in our ears, repeating and evolving throughout the work, providing familiarity and reassurance as we allow ourselves to be taken on a journey of discovery, hopefully encouraging us to return to the piece again and again.

Let's define precisely what we mean by motif, and explore some super famous examples. Finally, just how easy is it to come up with a cool new musical motif? Hmm...

For more information: whaviland.com/podcast

Happy piano playing/learning!