Contemporary Instrumental (Piano) Review: Robin Spielberg-Give My Regards To Broadway

Release Date: August, 20, 2021

Label: playMountain Music

Website

How can one woman and one piano capture an audience? Ask Robin Spielberg she has been doing it for years. I think it is safe to say that the legacy of this fine artist is in place and will continue to grow with the passing years. Robin has been very busy over the last two years. It seems it was a short time ago I covered RE-INVENTIONS, which came out last November. Now we are more than halfway into this year.

With Give My Regards To Broadway, her 21st proper studio album, due out next month, Robin takes her Steinway to the land of dreams and legends. The music that you will hear is timeless and memorable. The best thing for every listener is the recognition you will receive while listening. You do not have to be a music expert to find commonality. So, for her twentieth album, you get 20 classic tracks done the only way Robin knows how, with respect, care, love, and just enough innovative twist to make each track her own. For my ears and senses, this is the main attraction of what Robin so seamlessly accomplishes on her recordings.

The anticipation I feel with each of her releases is always a jolt of energy before I even hear the first track. Not every artist can pull that off as consistently as Robin does. I count on it, and I am never disappointed. I can understand a potential listener looking at the track list feeling it may seem like a lot of music, and it is however they run 3 plus minutes to 4 plus minutes. Keeping each track within a reasonable time span like the originals, and offering her indelible mark with that magnificent Steinway is once again, and as always, is masterful.

Instrumental piano music as a standalone form of audible entertainment has every opportunity to be boring and uneventful. The selections Robin chooses never allow that kind of atmosphere to set in. It is all quite elegant, uplifting, and relaxing. And at the same time, it can energize, be meditative, and above all nostalgic. It will have some listeners reaching back into a time and place they may have forgotten. Moments of our lives can be good, bad, or indifferent, then go by in our mind’s eye like the flickering of the film from a projector at the movies. After all, it has been said, all the worlds a stage, and we are merely actors and portrayers. If that is the case, my music-loving friends, then there is nobody better than Robin Spielberg to set that camera in motion and tell the tales that all of these 20 tracks can aspire to hold for us all.

As Ms. Spielberg tips her cap to Broadway and to you the audience (whom she suggests to give yourself a hand in the inner sleeve of the CD), I give my regards to her and all the amazing talent she brings forth through her fingers to those ivory keys. I thank her for the music I have been gifted dating back to 2015. Keep it coming my friend, it is a blessing I will always treasure once it is received. There is a large audience out there that will appreciate Give My Regards To Broadway for many reasons, but mostly because it is Robin and her piano providing all of the interpretations of these legendary compositions.

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck-MuzikMan.net Founder
August 20, 2021

Tracks:
01. The Impossible Dream        
02. Maria        
03. I Don't Know How to Love Him        
04. Give My Regards to Broadway        
05. I'd Do Anything        
06.  Dulcinea        
07. Far From the Home I Love        
08. Where Is Love        
09. Happiness        
10. They Say It's Wonderful        
11. Ten Minutes Ago        
12. I'll Know        
13. I Have Dreamed        
14. If I Loved You        
15. Heart        
16. Can't Help Lovin Dat Man        
17. If I Were a Bell        
18. Tomorrow        
19. Somewhere        
20. My Best Girl       

New Age Instrumental Review: Robin Spielberg-Another Time, Another Place

Release Date: April 28, 2015

Label: playMountain Music

Website

Robin Spielberg is known for her lyrical performances spanning the classical, traditional and pop genres. In this album of original compositions, Robin gives us piano solos that light up any dark spaces that may be in your life. Robin is an accomplished artist with over sixteen recordings in her name and she has been included in over forty compilations. Often on tour, she bonds with her audience through her grace and spiritual connectivity. 

“First Dance” is the introductory piece on the album. Like two ribbons winding up from a ballerina’s slipper this song is a whisper of movement across a dance floor. Steady and methodical, the dancer strives to perfect her form. With each failure comes opportunity and the gift of hope. The rich emotive quality of this piece makes it one of my favorites on the album.

“Cherry Blossom” is a breath of fresh air. Spring has showed its face in the crisp morning hours and the buds on the cherry tree awaken. Sweeping piano movements drift like a branch swaying in the wind. Sunlight settles on your face and the sweet promise of a fresh season beckons.

“Whisper in the Wind” at first reminded me of the “Flower Song” from Delibes’ Lakme. A beautiful song, it is interpretive in only the best way a performer can hurl talent into the wind and bring back something artful and dripping with muse. Textured and thought provoking, the piano sequences invoke images of a windswept cliff with the possibilities of a lifetime just waiting for you to make the first leap.

Robin Spielberg is a force to be reckoned with in this album. Swirling watercolors meet introspection and artfulness as her work captures the listener’s imagination at every turn. Another Time, Another Place is an album I listened to again and again not once losing interest. The precision and melodic quality of the work is one hundred percent. There is nothing better than to sit down after a busy day and feel yourself unwind to music of this caliber. Robin Spielberg is an artist I will be watching out for and I may just have to investigate those sixteen albums…
 

5/5 Stars

Key Tracks: First Dance, Cherry Blossom, Whisper in the Wind

Tracks:
01. First Dance
02. Ship to Shore
03. Another Time, Another Place
04. Cherry Blossom
05. The View from Here
06. In My Dreams
07. After All
08. The Time Traveler
09. Candlelight Waltz
10. A Whisper in the Wind
11. O Mio Babbino Caro
 

Dana Wright, Sr. Staff Writer

April 29, 2015

Review Provided By New Age Music Reviews

Instrumental New Age Reviews: Robin Spielberg-On the Edge of a Dream - Music for Dreaming, Relaxation, Contemplation, Meditation, Medical

Release Date: March 2, 2018

Label: playMountain Music

Website

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On the Edge of a Dream - Music for Dreaming, Relaxation, Contemplation, Meditation, Medical Therapies is Robin Spielberg’s 18th album. That is a lot of recorded music! Piano-based music requires an imaginative mindset in order to give a potential listener some variety. A lot of this type of music seamlessly flows into each other making it sound like one piece of music. I find in most cases I feel that way because of my own tastes and interpretations, this could be entirely different for each listener.

Sometimes things come to you in your life at just the right time. For me it always comes with purpose, a good reason whether it is positive or negative. That is the way life is, however, it is all how you look at what is happening. This is where dreams come into it for me. This album is all about the dream state. Most recently I have had some amazing clear dreams and last year I started keeping a journal. This is exactly what Robin does and she wanted to share her dreams through the music of the piano. The other purpose in my estimation is that this music could help you to not only relax but get to a point where you are ready to enter the dream state or possibly all the way to REM stage. All of this I have found fascinating. I also believe that dreams are a window into your soul and we can learn lessons or be warned through them. It clarifies things and opens the door to change.

There is no doubt that science has a fascination with the different stages of dreaming. What I have learned through my own research has opened the door to an entirely different attitude about the subject. So how does music, particularly Robin’s new release, come in to play? I think this music is perfect for the dreaming experience before, during and after. So, during those three stages, you can utilize this beautiful music. Of course, there are more useful ways to use the music as a tool - for simple relaxation, contemplation or meditation. As I mentioned earlier, certainly the music can guide you beyond the meditative state into dreaming, particularly if you are listening with a good pair of headphones or earbuds (Bose makes a terrific set of earbuds that are reasonably priced on eBay).

On the Edge of a Dream is another example of how music can integrate with your daily life. The workspace I am in daily allows us at times to put on music like this recording. It can help you to de-stress as you continue with your multitude of tasks. If you are in an office setting you should try it, it really helps!

 

Another bonus offered for your experiences with this music is a dream journal, which can be purchased separately or as a companion item with the CD. I highly recommend getting both. It starts with the 14 tracks on the CD, then writing down what happened in your dreams. This process will allow a lot of insight you previously did not have. It is all part of a spiritual growth you can initiate if you choose.

I am grateful that artists like Robin Spielberg are willing to share their blessings with us, and shed some light on a human process that many folks are not looking at enough. On the Edge of a Dream could be the start of a new beginning. You can begin as a casual listener then evolve to meditation then dream interpretation. A tremendous wealth of information about your life and the future days ahead is at your disposal (there is a lot of info out there). And who would have thought one recording could lead to so much personal development? I highly recommend this path for those who are already aware and for those seeking more awareness.

5/5 Stars

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

February 18, 2018

Founder of:

MuzikMan Productions

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Tracks: 
01. On the Edge of A Dream  
02. We Meet Again
03. Drifting
04. Spellbound  
05. Nightfall
06. The Secret Path  
07. Stargazing
09. Illusion
10. Into The Night  
11. Safe and Sound  
12. Meeting Monet
1.  We Meet Again (Recurring Dream)
14. Blue Moon Rising

Interview: Robin Spielberg The Final On Vinyl Podcast

I had a great opportunity today to speak to an artist I have been covering for many years, Robin Spielberg.

Robin provided some great insight into her life and music.

Thank you Robin!

Track Spotlight: Dan Chadburn-Keys of Light

Dan Chadburn has created some gorgeous music on his new release Keys of Light. The title track is the focus of this feature. It pulls and tugs on your heartstrings, it is both beautiful and majestic as Chadburn's fingers caress the ivory keys.

I first heard this after looking at pictures of myself and my daughter when she was little and it brought a river of tears. Although I felt saddened by her recent departure (another bird spreads their wings and leaves the nest), the music was therapeutic. For me this is called "feel then heal." So as pain is released and we move on and to become better people through listening to music that brings us closer to our creator and the people we love.

Dan Chadburn has a gift and if you listen you will most certainly receive it most gratefully. Here are one of the many keys of light he offers you...

Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck - 5/5 STARS!

Sell music on itunes at ReverbNation.com

More About Dan Chadburn:

http://www.danchadburn.com

(Artist Bio From Reverb Nation Artist Page) 

Sweeping melodies, resonating chords and rich textures … these are the trademarks of Dan Chadburn, a composer/pianist who invests the New Age / adult contemporary genre with a uniquely passionate sound.

A native of Oregon, Dan began taking piano lessons when he was nine years old and continued through high school where he also served as the accompanist for the choral groups and stage plays. Several times in junior high and high school, he was selected as an Oregon Music Teacher's Association (O.M.T.A.) syllabus winner, which resulted in his performing in recitals on the state level. He went on to earn his Bachelor of Music degree in piano performance at Pacific Lutheran University, where he studied with Dr. Calvin Knapp. Following three national tours as a pianist and singer/songwriter, Chadburn moved to Los Angeles and enrolled in the Film Scoring Program at UCLA. Soon he was scoring for television and working as a session musician.

Wanting to further expand his musical vision, Dan moved to London and studied ElectroAcoustic Composition under two pioneers in the field, Denis Smalley and Simon Emmerson. “I was very grateful for the opportunity to learn from these two masters in the genre and grow as a composer. This was a non-traditional form of composition that some would say was on the outskirts of avant-garde. In this genre, traditional instruments and melody are frequently absent. My primary focus was to record odd sounds, transform them with audio processing, and insert them into symphonic works. For one piece, 'Dreams,' I recorded and altered sounds made by various kitchen items such as jelly beans dropped into a bowl, spatulas hitting cake pans, water shaken in a jar, portable oven timers, etc., ultimately creating a surreal collage of sound to represent what one might hear and see after falling asleep." Chadburn earned his Masters of Music degree in ElectroAcoustic Composition from London’s City University.

Chadburn’s performance venues have included Carnegie Hall in New York City, Symphony Hall in Boston and The Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. Additionally, his choral compositions have been recorded and performed in the Concert Hall of The Kennedy Center.

After moving to the Washington, DC, area, Chadburn recorded hundreds of improvisational piano pieces which led to his first album, solo piano. The Washington Area Music Association nominated the album for “Best New Age Recording” in the WAMA Awards, and Chadburn was nominated for “Best New Age Instrumentalist.” His second recording, Reflections, included other musicians on viola, French horn, flute and English horn, plus on one track the singing of Tom Nichols, Chadburn’s husband, longtime musical partner and producer. Chadburn's Nocturnes, again with additional instrumentation, earned a WAMA nomination for "Best Classical Recording" while Chadburn was nominated as "Best Classical Instrumentalist."

Chadburn has been featured (alongside other pianists such as Suzanne Ciani, Spencer Brewer and Robin Spielberg) on several compilation recordings produced for charitable causes, including The Heart Aid Project which benefited the victims of the 9/11 tragedy and their families. Among Chadburn’s other special projects was a single, “Promise of Hope,” he wrote and recorded for a philanthropic program run by Choice Hotels International and benefiting The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington and Metropolitan Baltimore. With Nocturnes Chadburn continued to donate to worthwhile causes. Proceeds from “Peter’s Theme” on that album are donated to The Peter Fox Project which in turn benefits the Sitar Arts Center in Washington, an after-school youth organization for the arts. In addition, the tune “Anne’s Lullaby” benefits The National Family Resiliency Center “to preserve a sense of family and foster healthy relationships.” In both 2014 and 2015, Chadburn and his husband, Tom Nichols, performed benefit concerts to raise funds for the Florence Area Humane Society (a “no kill” shelter) in Oregon.

Chadburn is a classically-trained pianist who found he enjoyed improvisational creations as much as playing traditional repertoire. Now he uses improvisation to compose most of his material on piano (and occasionally on electronic keyboards). For the albums, Nocturnes and Reflections (which also feature additional instruments), Chadburn created the arrangements and scored the parts played by the other musicians. For the album, Keys of Light, Chadburn included one piano improvisation on James Pankow's "Colour My World," while composing and orchestrating the remainder of the album, performing it entirely himself using a Yamaha 7' grand piano, a Kurzweil PC3K8 synthesizer, and East West Symphonic Orchestra (sound library).

Keys of Light is Dan Chadburn’s fifth album. Keys of Light, solo piano, Reflections, Nocturnes and Whispers the Falling Snow are available at his website (DanChadburn.com) and as CDs and digital downloads at a variety of online sales sites including CDbaby, Amazon, iTunes, eMusic and many others. Nocturnes reached #8 on the Top 100 Zone Music Reporter chart (measuring radio airplay worldwide) and stayed on the chart for nine months. Whispers the Falling Snow debuted at #7, staying on the ZMR Top 100 chart for multiple months. Whispers the Falling Snow was nominated as ZMR's Top Solo Piano album of 2014. Additionally, Reviews New Age selected it as one of the Top 10 holiday recordings worldwide for 2014. Both Nocturnes and Whispers the Falling Snow were nominated as best recordings ("Piano with Instrumentation" and "Solo Piano" categories, respectively) for the One World Music Awards in June, 2015.

Over the years Chadburn has been inspired by the music of John Williams, Aaron Copland, Leonard Bernstein, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Claude Debussy, Frederic Chopin, Sergei Prokofiev, Itzhak Perlman, Vladimir Ashkenazy, John Barry, George Winston, Mary Ann Redmond, and Tom Nichols.