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

"Libertango" Score

Greg,
How can I get the score to your piano duo arrangement of Piazzolla's Libertango?
- Many Questioners

Dear Libertango aficionados,

Thank you for your interest in my music! Unfortunately the Libertango arrangement is not for sale. Not only have we decided to make a couple of our arrangements exclusive for a while (I know, how nasty of us!), but we are dealing with messy hand-written scores and a multitude of legal issues. The day I settle the copyright issues and put the score into the computer, I will post the news on my website and email the mailing list. I hope that day won't be too far into the future!

However, in the meantime, there are a number of other scores available for purchase. Visit the scores page for more information. For those of you looking for wild four-hand/one-piano music, consider the Sabre Dance arrangement. 

- Greg