Pianist’s inaugural amateur piano competition, which took place earlier this year, revealed the huge depth of piano playing talent among followers. Of course, there could only be two winners, one each in the two categories Classical and Modern, but everyone who took part can count themselves a winner in terms of preparing their pieces to a high standard.
So, as if we needed reminding, the competition revealed just what accomplished and ambitious followers Pianist is privileged to have but something else, too. Reviewing the list of highly placed and commended finishers, one thing stood out: many enjoy successful careers in IT, medicine and the sciences. True, some are also lawyers, financiers and business people but, at least among the competition’s highly placed participants, they were fewer in number. Why so? What is it about IT, medicine and the sciences that attracts people to the piano and not only that, but also to play it well?
It’s a question that many have sought an answer to for years. An ability at mathematics, a concept closely related to these careers, is the attribute most often referred to in this context. No formal research appears to have been done into the relationship between music and maths but there are plenty of theories and much anecdotal evidence to suggest a link exists.
Among the former, the
