I’m a pianist. Look at my hands!
It’s always a question. What should pianists do with their hands in photographs? They’re not holding violins awkwardly, or propping flutes in inappropriate places, or hiding behind gambas…
The answer usually seems to be:
Show off their hands! Their hands that bring such gorgeous music out of the piano. Their hands that they protect and cherish and love. Their hands that they clasp, hold to their faces, fold together, drape on the piano, or hold in mid-air.
Everybody does it.
See? everybody.
(Not all of these photos are awkward individually. Some are actually great. But once you start noticing that every pianist poses with his or her hands on display, it becomes a kind of collective awkwardness. Which we, of course, couldn’t resist.)
Point taken on the pianists’ hands thing – but – really, it would be so helpful if you posted what you thought was a GOOD picture of a pianist.
July 15, 2011 at 3:20 pm
Oh, this is awkward. It sounds like you’re taking this post too seriously. A lot of these photos are quite good in themselves, as the post says. To give a few examples: the one of Maria Joao Pires is lovely, the one of Martha Argerich is simple and classy, and the one of Lang Lang is pretty cool. (The awkwardness comes in when people get too contrived or fussy.)
But! When you put all these photos together, the good and the not-so-good, they reveal a pattern that becomes funnier each time you see it. Repetition is the source of farce. Repetition is the source of farce. Repetition is the source of farce. Repetition is the source of farce. Repetition is the source of farce.
July 15, 2011 at 5:26 pm
A good picture of a pianist is a good picture of one who plays piano. It’s actually not even necessary to take a picture with the instrument. And definitely not necessary to show hands. People know pianists use their hands and play the piano.
If there is no piano, how would you know the person in the photo plays piano? These shots are most likely encountered alongside something that says these people play piano, like a website, CD, press release, etc.
August 3, 2011 at 8:01 am
Warum sollen Pianisten ihre Hände in der Hosentasche verstecken beim Fotoshooting?
March 16, 2013 at 5:32 pm
you have a beautiful website , I wish you a nice Saturday greetings from Germany ღDreams☆of☆Shadowღ
July 16, 2011 at 3:45 am
Are you going to have a contest to name all the pianists? I can do about 1/3 of them easily, maybe another ten with a little thinking and digging, but the rest I don’t have a club about presently.
July 16, 2011 at 8:54 pm
Hadn’t thought about it! But if someone wants to name them all, we won’t stop them…
July 17, 2011 at 9:11 pm
Gould looks the most relaxed, also Perahia. Why are so many of them praying?!
July 20, 2011 at 7:11 am
Kinda off topic but SHIT SON! ETERI BE LOOKIN’ LIKE A BAMF!
July 26, 2011 at 7:02 pm
I just can’t imagine what’s going on in the mind of the guy second from left bottom line. Is his left hand trying to tell his right hand it’s no longer holding a mobile phone.
August 4, 2011 at 12:12 am
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