I came across Hans Groiner the other day, and I think I may have to switch piano teachers. I’ve watched all the videos and worked through the practice drills at PianoGroove, but until I heard Groiner’s explanation of sus and drop2 chords, I never really got it. His handling of passing chords and turnarounds is also very helpful.
In his profile at Smalls (the Greenwich Village jazz club), he discusses his interest in Theolonius Monk:
Although his music fascinated me, I had very mixed feelings. On the one hand, Mr. Monk had obvious talents, but on the other hand, his piano playing was very messy, and his songs had many funny notes and rhythms. Over the many years that I have been studying his music, I have grown to the conclusion that his songs would be much better, and much more popular, if many of the dissonances, or “wrong notes,” were removed. With my new CD, “Hans Groiner Plays Monk,” I have done just that.
You can hear an example of this in the opening of the video, which offers a brief overview of some of the instructional topics he covers.
Let’s try not to abandon Hayden all at once.