AUSTIN, Texas — Yamaha Corporation of America and the Yamaha Disklavier performance reproducing piano have won the Music Teachers National Association's (MTNA) Frances Clark Keyboard Pedagogy Award for 2006. Typically awarded to educators, this marks the first time a music product has received the honor, which was presented by Frances Clark Piano Foundation Executive Director Dr. Samuel Holland at an awards ceremony during the Association's national conference in Austin, Texas on March 29, 2006.

 

According to Dr. Holland, the award recognizes "a product whose influence on how music can be created and thereby taught is truly transformative – an influence so potentially great that we are still only beginning to glimpse the possibilities. The product is the Disklavier reproducing piano and the entity is the Yamaha Corporation."

Established by a bequest to MTNA by the renowned piano pedagogue, Frances Clark, the award is bestowed annually to a person or entity that has made a significant contribution to the field of keyboard pedagogy through the creation and development of products and publications that further the profession.

 

The Yamaha Disklavier Mark IV

"This recognition highlights our commitment to keyboard education and confirms the Disklavier's status as a premier pedagogical tool, in addition to its status as a first-rate performance reproducing instrument." says Jim Presley, Marketing Manager of the Yamaha Disklavier.  "We are delighted to receive this honor."

The Disklavier is a concert-quality grand piano just like those preferred on stages around the world – but with a built-in ability to record live performances with remarkable accuracy. Users can record their own piano playing to hear again later, making the Disklavier a powerful educational tool for both instruction and practice. In addition, the Disklavier's remote learning capabilities enable teachers to instruct students in real time using Diskaviers hundreds, even thousands of miles apart.

The instrument's Video Sync capability allows users capture and replay the video image of a piano performance, with the Disklavier performing perfectly in sync. Now, parents can preserve and play back their children's first song, while teachers can capture their students' recitals to use for instructional purposes. This is the same technology that has been used to stunning effect at the International Piano-e-Competition.

"This award recognizes a talented and visionary team of people," says Mike Bates, Manager of Yamaha's Institutional and Commercial Services (ICS) Department. "These include the gifted craftsmen and engineers, executives, product specialists, educators, and more – who have all contributed in some significant way to the development of this extraordinary instrument."