Jamie Cullum Tours The Yamaha Piano Factories: The Artist, The Craftsman And The Instrument

AIR
EARTH
FIRE
WATER

The Artist, The Craftsman And The Instrument

Explore the unique relationships and passion involved in creating a Yamaha piano; from design, to the factory, to Jamie Cullum performing in Tokyo. It’s artist meeting artist, masters of craft and precision who come together to produce music. It is dedication.

It takes many skilled individuals to craft a single piano, each person contributing a part of themselves. Their labours strive to create a piano that is as carefully honed as the artists that give the piano breath, artists like Jamie Cullum. Each note must carry a symphony of tonal colours, to create emotions at the intentions of the musician. Each element must work in harmony with the others, and such elements can only be created by experienced artisans. Being constructed by Yamaha in Japan allows each individual piano to benefit from that craftsmanship, filled with detail and precision, to orchestrate beautiful music. It is this that makes Yamaha unique. To bring together the artisan, the artist and the instrument.

These films explore the process of creating a piano. From the perspective of every person involved in the creation of a piano with Jamie Cullum, it is artist meeting artist, masters of craft and precision who come together to produce music. It is dedication. A commitment to creating a perfect product; from forging the iron for the frame, through to choosing the perfect spruce that forms the soundboard of the piano, to playing a masterful piece of music. Each craftsman carries a passion for their work; each understands that their contribution makes every piano more than the sum of its parts. The passion of the audience at Jamie’s performance at the Orchard Concert Hall in Tokyo is the culmination of the passion of each craftsman at every stage of the process.

Earth: Yamaha pianos are made of living, natural materials. The variations between these materials mean that a true craftsman is required to draw out the best in each piano.

 

Air: All pianos produced by Yamaha are carefully honed, so that every key can be ‘touched’ a thousand ways. It is this that gives each piano a personality, that lets a performer express emotion through their music.

 

Fire: It is metal casting, making piano frames from molten iron at Yamaha’s Iwata factory, which provides the strength in each piano that contributes to the unique sound.

 

Water: The parts formed from many different processes; created for very specific purposes, flow together to share one unified vision, to create a piano, to create the emotion of performance.