Solo Piano III & IV

With 13 dates left in his Spring European tour (and more dates in Summer), Chilly Gonzales was interviewed by “Sud Ouest” (South West), which covers news for 50 towns and villages in regional France.

In the interview, Gonzales reveals that, for him, the best way to connect with rappers or electro artists (e.g. Daft Punk and Drake) is through the piano – though lush harmonies that bring a ‘human’ element to the otherwise programmed sound. In some ways, incorporating the ‘voice’ of the piano and Gonzales’ harmonies provides electro-based songs with a ‘soul’. Weiterlesen

Master Class!

Starting with its inventor Franz Liszt, master classes provide students (professional and amateur alike) an opportunity to learn and be inspired by an accomplished concert performer. Many concertgoers have had an impromptu piano lesson (a master class) in the middle of a Gonzales concert, but During Chilly Gonzales’ current tour of France, he took time out to give a master class with students from two schools: La Classe Orchestre du Collège Saint-Exupéry and la Classe Vocale du Collège Jules Simon de Vannes. Weiterlesen

The Master Remastered

Today is International Chilly Gonzales Day aka Chilly Gonzales’ birthday. We honor His Musical Geniusness by letting others serenade him. Therefore, we compiled a selection of Gonzales fans playing his songs on YouTube. Actually, once you’ve dived deep into the waters of moving Gonzales appreciation images, you are most likely to drown or you decide to just catch some pearls and resurface. So here is a collection of people going all Gonzo and proof of what an inspiration Chilly Gonzales is to many. We tried to categorize them as good as we could. Weiterlesen

Life, Death, and Wolfstein

“I could live in this parking lot; I could be here, and I cannot”
“Parking Lot” from Wolfstein by Son

Wolfstein Cover

There’s something to be said about incumbents; the warm robe and worn slippers feeling of comfort and stability that comes with familiarity. But familiarity and conformity have a dark, Faustian side that is inherently accepted by those who choose ‘establishment’ over innovation and discomfort. Weiterlesen

Working Holidays

Once passion met profession, the way you earn money doesn’t feel like work in a classical sense anymore and the term “holidays” becomes superfluous. So it is only logical that Chilly Gonzales, between two tours*, doesn’t relax on a Southeast Asian beach getting a well-deserved massage or manicure of his precious hands, but seems to plot new collaborations and masterpieces. So there has been quite some news during the past week. What has made the internet community turn crazy – and above all the Daft Punk disciples – is the fact that Chilly Gonzales’ piano contribution to the electrorobot-duo’s forthcoming album has been confirmed. Weiterlesen

New York, New York

His first October-scheduled Lincoln Center show in New York was gone with the wind, or better: blown away by superstorm Sandy. Last Friday, it seemed the Weather God still hasn’t turned into a Chilly Gonzales fan. According to numerous tweets, people queued along the street for hours to see his two substitutional shows – in the pouring rain. It was an outpour of praise in the end which proves that it was obviously worth it. Weiterlesen

Gonzales Singled Out

It’s hard to believe that half a year has passed since Solo Piano II was released, but as a timeless album, it keeps gathering new listeners. New fans may have picked up Solo Piano, Ivory Tower and “The Unspeakable Chilly Gonzales” or other albums. With music as good as Gonzales’, there’s a certain ‘insatiable’ quality – a desire to seek out more emotionally stimulating songs. Luckily, Gonzales has an entire slew of albums and singles that you may not even be aware of. From original songs, to remakes and collaborations, there are plenty of relatively obscure discs and songs are available for purchase and download. Weiterlesen

Chilly Gonzales in Köln und die Liebe zur Harmonie

Cologne Venue Als Zeitgenosse Händels oder Mozarts blieben höchstens drei Möglichkeiten, wenn einem der Sinn nach Musik stand: Rezeption im Konzertsaal, eigenes Musizieren oder man hatte das Glück adliger Geburt und konnte sie als Bestandteil höfischen Lebens genießen. Mittlerweile ist Musik glücklicherweise stets verfüg- und reproduzierbar, und doch fühlte es sich am Samstag, 29. Dezember, fast ein bisschen so an, als wären Datenträger noch gar nicht erfunden. Denn Chilly Gonzales bot so viel neue und vor allem leider bisher unveröffentlichte Stücke dar, dass der Genuss zwar groß, aber das Bewusstsein um die Vergänglich- und Einmaligkeit allgegenwärtig war. Der Faustsche Vers: „Zum Augenblicke dürft’ ich sagen: Verweile doch, du bist so schön!“ hätte dem finalen Konzert im Jahr 2012 als Motto dienen können. Vielleicht war es jedoch auch der Fingerzeig in die Zukunft und in Richtung „mehr Orchester“? Weiterlesen

Gonz on Later

Recent tweets between Gonzales and a follower brought an injustice to our attention:

Weiterlesen

The “Downloadable” Gonzales

Chilly Gonzales has made practically every song from Solo Piano Notebooks 1 & 2 available online. That’s a total of 33 songs to download, print and start playing within minutes! There are a few options for downloading and using the sheet music; here a short guide. Weiterlesen