Today on the show we’re talking with Michele McLaughlin, a contemporary solo pianist who has recorded 18 albums – roughly one each year since starting to release her music in the year 2000. She is one of the most popular solo pianists on Spotify and was recently interviewed in Rolling Stone magazine.

Her music may sometimes get classified as “new age”. However, as you’ll hear in this conversation, that’s a misleading label that doesn’t do justice to the emotional variety and powerful storytelling of her music.

It was fascinating to hear about her improvisational approach to composing and there are lots of ideas here for anyone interested in being more creative or expressive in their playing.

We talk about:

  • The concert she attended at eight years old that inspired her to start creating her own music
  • Her “100% emotion” approach to improvising and the process that takes her from improvising to a finished piece on an album
  • How she thinks about learning and improving her skills year by year

You’ll love hearing Michele describe her music but you must go listen to it too! We’ll have links in the shownotes, including for her latest album, Memoirs, or you can find it at michelemclaughlin.com.

This is one of those interviews that will have you itching to run off and spend some quality time with your instrument exploring new possibilities – enjoy!

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Solo pianist and composer Michele McLaughlin inspires creativity with her emotional approach to improvisation and composing.
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Transcript