Composing for Five Pianos

Dear Greg,
I just recently saw the 5 Browns in concert and they played a few of your transcriptions. How do you do it? Also, I was wondering - do you tour? If so, how could we mid-westerners catch a glimpse of you, or better yet, you and Ms. Roe??
 - Eliza

Dear Eliza,

How do I compose for 5 pianos? Hmmm. I generally begin by conceptualizing how to best take advantage of my instrumentation (5 pianos). Even with the most challenging situations (slow and quiet music for five pianos, for example), I try to find ways to musically justify the existence of all the instruments on stage. I want my original compositions and arrangements for five pianos to sound like they couldn't have been written for any other instrumentation. In the case of arrangements, that often means completely rethinking my original musical source.

Unlike many composers, I don't really work at the piano. Instead, I usually hear everything in my head at once, and then I spend most of my time translating what I'm hearing to staff paper. The process usually takes a couples months to produce just a couple minutes of five piano music.

Do I tour? Yes, I do! You can check my website for the latest updates in my schedule, or take a look at the Anderson & Roe Piano Duo schedule. 

- Greg