MADISON, Wis.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--With pianists abuzz for his virtuosic-level arrangements, composer, pianist, and music educator Jarrod Radnich, and Musicnotes, the leader in digital sheet music publishing, have partnered to meet worldwide demand as they build an extensive new collection showcasing Radnich’s advanced-level arrangements of popular works. While many traditional channels are seeing a decline in sales within the music products industry, the “Lisztian” Radnich and his arrangements are what some say is the force that is making the piano cool again.
“We received a great number of requests for Jarrod’s music and reached out to explore what we could do together. It didn’t take us long to figure out that as a partner, Musicnotes could help bring back a virtuoso style of musicality that entertains and inspires,” explained Kathleen Marsh, CEO and co-founder of Musicnotes and the current president of the Music Publishers Association. “With creative thinking and our long-standing relationships with music publishers, Musicnotes embraced Jarrod’s unique style to demonstrate the thrill of playing an instrument.”
As a teenager, Radnich found a void in available advanced-level piano sheet music – contemporary arrangements were far too simple and lost the impact and sound of the original music that usually contained vocals, guitar, percussion, and keyboard, and the old-world classical arrangements were not what most of his peers and audiences wanted to see and hear. So, Radnich created his own arrangements that incorporated all the important parts played by each instrument in a single, two-handed, virtuosic-level piano arrangement. Early initiatives generated considerable interest and excitement, and now Radnich and Musicnotes have partnered to make these extraordinary arrangements accessible to all. “I couldn’t ask for a better supporter and publisher than Musicnotes,” said Radnich. “I’ve used their service and products for years as a consumer and have always been very pleased, so I knew that partnering with them as a content creator would be fantastic.”
A keynote speaker at the 2013 National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy, Radnich terms his arrangement technique as “Lisztening” in deference to Franz Liszt who, in the 1800s, rearranged for piano those musical works that were contemporary and popular at that time. Liszt’s arrangements and performances elevated the solo piano to previously unseen levels of popularity and spawned an enormous resurgence in piano study. Liberace admittedly followed Liszt’s model for piano performance as a social, interactive, and theatrical event, and now Radnich and Musicnotes are continuing what Liszt began nearly two-hundred years ago, but with an exciting twist. What neither Liszt nor Liberace had at their disposal was YouTube®, and the new team has embraced the visual aspects of performance to increase interest in and an understanding of the new arrangements.
“Jarrod’s performances are visually and musically stunning and, as a pianist myself, seeing him actually perform his arrangements is extremely motivating. There’s an element of aspiration pianists feel when watching Jarrod play, and that ignites enthusiasm about practicing,” added Marsh.
With that inspiration and motivation in mind, Radnich’s latest Musicnotes arrangement has been released simultaneously with another new YouTube® video…and it’s a blockbuster. Released just three days before the Emmy Awards, the piece is an original medley created from music made incredibly popular by HBO’s award-winning series, Game of Thrones, which had more Emmy nominations this year than any other show. Radnich performs donning a sword, arm bracers and full period-based attire, on top of a precipice over a rocky ocean shore, and with a few other cinematic surprises. To view the new Game of Thrones music video visit http://youtu.be/KkN4nCkvISc and purchase sheet music through Musicnotes at http://mnot.es/1p0zA9W.
About Musicnotes: As the leader in downloadable sheet music, Musicnotes.com offers the best selection of 100% officially licensed and legal arrangements for nearly any instrument, genre and skill level. Founded in 1998, Musicnotes has transformed the way people purchase and play sheet music by fostering strong partnerships with music publishers, creating an ever-expanding catalogue of more than 260,000 pieces, and pioneering new technologies, like their top-rated sheet music apps for iOS and Android devices as well as Musicnotes Cloud. Musicnotes has sold more than 20 million downloads to more than 4 million customers since inception. For more information, visit www.musicnotes.com.
About Jarrod Radnich: As president of Mastermind Studios, Jarrod Radnich creates high-end music content for listeners, musicians, educators, and those involved with cinema, gaming, and theater. Through his compositions and commended virtuosic piano solo performances, he claims the top position on Reverbnation as the most popular living independent classical/instrumental musician and has more than 80 million viewers worldwide. His is a co-inventor of PianoTube LIVE, and volunteers his time to be the maestro and arranger for the Joshua Tree Philharmonic, an intergenerational community orchestra. He also donates his time as the President and artistic director of the Hi-Desert Cultural Center. See www.jarrodradnich.com.