Elton John to stream Disneyland gig with remote pianos

Elton John will join Yamaha in celebrating its 125th anniversary by participating in an historical concert for its dealers on Friday, January 25th 2013 at Disneyland's Hyperion Theater in Anaheim, California.

Elton's performance on the Yamaha Disklavier reproducing piano onstage with a 70-piece orchestra will be streamed live over the Internet and simultaneously to remote Disklaviers in many countries around the world. His actual piano keystrokes are then faithfully recreated, note for note, in real time on each of the remote instruments, while the entire orchestra is seen and heard on adjacent monitors, in perfect sync with the remote piano performances. The locations of the remote performance venues will be announced shortly.

"Elton John is one of the most successful and influential music makers of our time, and Yamaha is thrilled to bring him to a global audience in this history making manner," said Chris Gero, vice president of Yamaha Entertainment Group of America, which is producing the event. "This exciting event will also demonstrate how Yamaha DisklavierTV is forever changing the way in which a live piano concert can be enjoyed in real time around the world."

Speaking of the newly-announced concert, Elton said: "I'm constantly astonished by the inventive skills and versatility of the Yamaha team. Not only have they built all my touring pianos for the past 20 years, as well as the wonderful Million Dollar Piano that resides at Caesars Palace, but they've also now perfected the RemoteLive technology, which means that effectively, I can perform the concert live in Anaheim on January 25, live across the Internet and also live in venues worldwide–all at the same time! I am both proud and grateful to be a Yamaha artist and to enjoy the fruits of Yamaha's amazing expertise."

Legendary bass player Nathan East will serve as music director for the anniversary concert event, while acclaimed composer James Newton Howard will conduct the 70-piece orchestra.