Ivory Power: Lorenzo Paul Chetty presents The Pianoman Show

Lorenzo Paul Chetty likes to be known by another name: The Pianoman. Although his moniker is more intimately associated with one Billy Joel, Chetty’s enthusiasm for his instrument and playing in public allows him to appropriate the name for his tribute show, which debuts today, July 22 at Butterfly Lounge in Solana. Agenda talked to him about the show and why Beijing is a “piano city.”

Where are you from? How long have you been playing the piano? I am an entertainer and jazz musician from the beautiful city of Cape Town, South Africa, where the FIFA World Cup was just held. I learned classical piano for five years, from ages four to nine.

My real music education was very different. My uncle was a bass guitarist for Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder and I grew up hanging around their rehearsals – the music was going into my soul, without me knowing. My first professional gigs were actually as a DJ. I only started playing piano by ear 14 years later, about 12 years in total now.

Tell us about The Pianoman show. The show is a tribute to both the simplicity and genius of Stevie Wonder, Billy Joel, Lionel Ritchie and Elton John. However it is not a typical tribute show, but more of a concert gig in which the audience can participate. It is a party show, designed to give audiences a really good time.

I have musically rearranged many of the songs to reflect more current sounds and tempos. The show is fast paced and energetic, with a total of 76 songs performed back to back within two fifty minute sets. It includes many soulful grooves like Stevie Wonder’s “Sir Duke,” soaring anthems like Elton John’s “Can You Feel The Love Tonight,” rock n’ roll classics like Billy Joel’s “Uptown Girl,” and sugar-coated ballads like Lionel Ritchie’s “Hello.”

The general image of a “Piano Man” is of someone softly tinkling away in the background. The Pianoman Show is completely the opposite, as the grand piano gets tested to its limits. I have tried to capture the same feeling that I got from seeing these artists’ live concerts, and I call the show a “foot-stomping, hand-clapping, hip-swaying, booty shaking” damn good night out.

Are you afraid of being compared to Billy Joel, or are you inviting that comparison? Neither. In fact I continue to learn from Billy Joel and the other artists whom I make tribute to in my show. I would like maybe to be compared one day to all of them, if I can stay around as long as them and achieve similar success. Although they have been around for a long time, they are still influencing modern music. I once sat next to and met hard house DJ Paul Van Dyk on an international flight. He was listening to Stevie Wonder’s “I Wish” on his mp3 player. At first I was surprised, but then I realized that hard house is based on funk.

Does the show have any special appeal for Beijing audiences? Yes indeed. Beijing is a “piano city.” I have never seen so many piano schools in any other city, nor have I met so many people who have actually learned some piano, I was beginning to think it was a compulsory for kids to study music. The Pianoman Show portrays the piano in a different light.

I used to perform at a five-star hotel in Beijing and I kept a list of every request made on every night, so that I could get a better picture of my audience. Many of the songs in the show were in the top 20 requests, so I created this show out of that request list.

Regarding the production, I think it’s an element that is missing from the general entertainment scene here. There are the regular gigs, clubs and theatre productions, and regular visiting artists. The Pianoman Show definitely fills a void – it is not about nostalgia, but rather about great songs and polished entertainment, performed on the grandest of instruments.

What do you think of the local music scene? I think the alternative rock scene here is really cutting edge. The local bands I have seen always have something fresh and new. The classical music scene is absolutely superb. There are some great musicians playing jazz, contemporary and Latin music, but I don’t think jazz is that well understood here. I think the club and dance music market is very dated, though.

Before I came to Beijing, I had imagined a more active live music scene here. However, with great musicians around, the ingredients exist, so I hope it will catch on and grow. It’s all about the musicians taking the initiatives to create new and exciting gigs and music.

That said, I think it’s time that the excellent musicians in this city get some credit for their creative skills, not just their labor. They are paid such low fees, it is a blemish on the good name of this city. Without them, most venues that have live music would not survive.

The Pianoman show will be performed from Thursday, July 22 to Sunday, July 25 from 7.30-9.30pm.

Butterly Lounge- Solana Bar Street, 6 Chaoyang Gongyuan Lu, Chaoyang District. (5905 6399) 朝阳区朝阳公园路6号蓝色港湾国际商区