Great Pianists in Your Living Room

Appearing soon in your living room: Chick Corea, David Benoit, Tommy Flanagan and Mike Garson.

No, it’s not a dream we’re talking about, and you don’t have to be an impresario. You just need the Yamaha Disklavier, the player piano of the ‘90s. Through computer technology, this instrument--an actual, playable, acoustic piano--allows many of today’s piano greats to perform in the privacy of your home.

The Disklavier, which ranges in price from $6,000 to $25,000, comes equipped with a computer disk drive that’s hooked to light-activated sensors that cause the instrument’s keys to rise and fall.

e Disklavier doesn’t use piano rolls but floppy disks, the 3 1/2-inch kind used by many home computers. Just slip the disk in, turn on the Disklavier, and, presto, there’s an invisible Corea playing just as he would down at your local concert hall.

“It’s like having a ghost in the house,” said Garson, who has recorded several “PianoSoft” albums, as the disks are called. There are about 150 such disks available, featuring such jazz artists as Patrice Rushen, George Shearing, Dick Hyman, Hank Jones and Monty Alexander. Non-jazzers have also made “PianoSoft” sessions, with Floyd Cramer and Roger Williams among them.

The instrument is creating a new trend in piano purchasing, as approximately 50% of those buying the Disklavier don’t actually play, according to Terry Lewis, vice president and general manager of the Yamaha Keyboard Division. “We are reaching a whole new group of piano music lovers who wished they knew how to play, but may not have the time to learn,” said Lewis in a press release.

But for those who do play, there’s the pleasure of recording one’s performances with the computer, then having the instrument play them back.

The sound of the Disklavier will soon be available even for those who can’t afford it. Andy Laverne is recording a “duet” solo album, performing on one piano while the Disklavier plays previously recorded tracks. The album will be released on Steeplechase Records later this year.

Rim Shots: Frank Morgan has been signed to replace Charlie Mariano, the former Los Angeles alto saxophonist who has been living in Germany, who was booked to appear in Southern California concerts later this month. Morgan will appear with his quartet at the Hyatt Newporter Resort in Newport Beach on July 26, and with Bill Holman’s orchestra at the Hermosa Civic Theater in Hermosa Beach on July 27. Information: (310) 430-6960. . . . We left out the name of Joyce Collins, who was chosen by the Los Angeles Jazz Society to receive its 1992 Jazz Educator award. Sorry, Joyce, and congrats. . . . “Remembering Trane,” a one-hour radio documentary about the great saxophonist John Coltrane, airs Saturday, from 8 to 9 p.m. on KCRW-FM (89.9). The program commemorates the 25th anniversary of Coltrane’s death on July 17, 1967, and features interviews with Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, McCoy Tyner and Dizzy Gillespie.

Critic’s Choice: There’s a bass bonanza this week. Dave Holland, one of the most versatile upright players in jazz, makes an infrequent Los Angeles appearance Thursday through July 19 at Catalina Bar & Grill, working with guitarist Kevin Eubanks’ trio. Holland, who can play firm and steady, or wild and woolly, is heard to advantage on Eubanks’ bristling new Blue Note Records release “Turning Point.” The CD also spotlights drummer Marvin (Smitty) Smith, who fleshes out the new “Tonight Show” guitarist’s threesome.

Preceding Holland at Catalina on Tuesday and Wednesday will be Buell Neidlinger, who stirred things up years ago with his mid-’50s work with avant-gardist Cecil Taylor. Neidlinger’s a more musically mild sort these days, favoring works by Ellington and Monk. Still, he and his cohorts--namely saxman Marty Krystall--probably won’t let the engagement go by without doing something rather adventurous.