BachScholar Cory Hall

[arungargstl]

I'm looking for opinions or answers about the enigma that is Cory Hall, the self-styled BachScholar.

I have now seen many of his videos spanning many genres. My conclusions about his playing are as follows:

He has a very limited technique with visible strain and tension in the fingers
He has almost no tonal palette, and disregards many articulative, dynamic, and musical markings in the scores.
His ability to memorize many pieces is relatively impressive.
His ability to voice properly, display large structural ideas, and produce emotive moments are almost non-existent.
His theories on Bach are displayed WITHOUT any logical proof, and his performances of Bach's work show a lack of harmonic and structural awareness.
He openly bashes the Chopin Études, labeling them as overplayed and frivolous; he then proceeds to post lessons and performances of the Fantasie-Impromptu, E-flat major Nocturne, D-flat major Prelude.
He holds degrees from prestigious conservatories and graduate/doctorate programs.
He disables and deletes any comments that aren't positive: whether they are constructive or hateful seems to not matter. Any feedback that isn't positive is immediately removed.
His biography seems to be more of an autobiography where his accomplishments are lauded as prophetic and groundbreaking.


I don't like to dwell on the negatives of people's playing, but I am utterly dumbfounded as to his following, where people treat him as an authority in piano pedagogy.

Any opinions on how he maintains a following?
Is he deluded, or is there any genius to be found in his eccentricities?

[visitor]

i think he needs a haircut

[hardy_practice]

Very keen but sadly a non-entity.

[pianist1976]

His 1929 Steinway is one of the worst sounding Steinways I've never heard.

[faulty_damper]

i think he needs a haircut

So you're saying his appeal is his ponytail?  I'll admit, seeing horses play the piano is quite impressive, and I'm not easily impressed!   

[hardy_practice]

Is that a pot plant on the pedestal?

[chicoscalco]

I can't help but hate him

[chicoscalco]

Yeah, maybe this is why...
"Cory Hall (b. 1963) is a classical pianist, composer/arranger, recording artist, music editor, master music engraver, and independent scholar who operates the popular BachScholar YouTube Channel, which currently features over 500 performance and tutorial videos that receive 12,000 daily views worldwide with a total of over 17 million views. Hall is renowned for his pure tone and virtuoso technique, rapid learning abilities, and prodigious memory (with several hundred memorized piano performances) and records on his vintage 1929 Model L Steinway. Hall has many interests and has served many capacities including: concert artist (solo and accompanist), private piano teacher, college professor (humanities, music, piano), church organist, independent scholar. Hall holds music degrees from California State University, Sacramento (B.M. in piano), The Eastman School of Music (M.M. in piano), and The University of Kansas (M.M. in historical musicology, D.M.A. in piano). His major piano professors include Dr. David Burge at the Eastman School of Music and Richard Reber at the University of Kansas. In addition, Hall has participated in master classes taught by some of the world's foremost artists and pedagogues, including: Abbey Simon, Claude Frank, Daniel Pollack, John Perry, Nelita True. During his doctoral studies at the University of Kansas, Hall studied musicology under the late Professor Dr. J. Bunker Clark, a renowned music editor in his own right and scholar of American music. The present publishing company is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Clark, who for many years, even after graduating and moving on, served as Hall's professional mentor who provided much inspiration, encouragement, and advice.In addition to excelling in the traditional classical piano literature, Hall is regarded by many to be one of the world's foremost interpreters of Scott Joplin and classic ragtime music, ca. 1900-1920, which he often livens up and embellishes with his own unique arrangements. Hall has recorded most of Joplin's works on YouTube. As a composer, Hall often combines intriguing blends of diverse styles such as classical, pop, and new age and at other times uses his own unique romantic virtuoso style to create evocative character works, both sacred and secular. Hall's main research interests include tempo and alphanumeric symbolism in the music of J.S. Bach. Still in progress for twenty years is his theoretical treatise "Discovering Bach's Secret Tempo Code", which introduces a groundbreaking theory that determines the precise tempos (in beats per minute) Bach intended for all his works. In 2010 after two years of hard work on the BachScholar™ YouTube Channel, the always visionary and entrepreneur-minded Hall began to have dreams of a new and exciting kind of company. This company would truly be a dynamic and multi-faceted company of the 21st century that takes full advantage of our current online and global world — a family operated business that produces the world's finest digital sheet music and offers both Skype and Local piano lessons to students of all ages, levels, and nationalities."

Let's play the game "who wrote this bio??"

[goatlise]

I just stumbled into him for the first time in the form of a 25 minute video talking about how everyone plays Chopin's A-flat major Polonaise incorrectly, as it should be played throughout in the same tempo, without rubato, because "A Polonaise is a Military march", and, thought to myself: "Fair enough, let's see his performance, maybe he's got a point". It was one of the hardest listens, such a robotic and plainly bad interpretation that might as well have been one of those synesthesia channels.

[perfect_pitch]

The mans got an inflated ego of himself. Once pointed out to him that one of the etudes he was playing had accents on the wrong beat - he was playing semiquavers grouped and accented in 3's when the time signature was clearly 3/4. Waffled on and on about his greatness before stopping people from commenting on his videos.

Guys a twat. He also tried to re-sell free sheet music, but claimed they were his versions because he cropped, straightened yada yada the music.

Total fraud.

[ticklemyivories]

Just pointing out that some of the responses here are as petty and childish as anything you would find in that cesspool called reddit.
New member, and really unimpressed with this site so far.
Then again, I am a fairly neurotic fellow myself, so I guess I will feel right at home here.

[essence]

What is your opinion of Cory Hall?

Here are two performances.

i=QBZXLi5IG1ZAei3f

i=NKcbnL66TqX2pF8g

i couldn't get over his straight fingers - 5th finger in LH, 2nd finger in RH.

He seems very stiff.

I hope he isn;t trying to teach anybody......

oh no - he has a web site called WellRoundedPianist.com! Should have been called straightfingeredpianist.com.

[essence]

Just pointing out that some of the responses here are as petty and childish as anything you would find in that cesspool called reddit.
New member, and really unimpressed with this site so far.
Then again, I am a fairly neurotic fellow myself, so I guess I will feel right at home here.

If somebody is a terrible pianist and teacher and tries to make money out of the gullible, they need to be taken down. Fast.

[perfect_pitch]

Just pointing out that some of the responses here are as petty and childish as anything you would find in that cesspool called reddit.
New member, and really unimpressed with this site so far.
Then again, I am a fairly neurotic fellow myself, so I guess I will feel right at home here.

He is a fraud... all we're doing is a PSA on the dangers of trusting pompous teachers like himself. You do also realise the original thread started over 11 years ago, and was just recently necro'ed.

[lostinidlewonder]

I can't remember engaging with Cory on anything. Just because his playing might be not exceptional or youve had argument with him doesn't mean you should put him down so harshly. He obviously can play piano and everyone has some problems with their playing on some level, some more so than others. I've not seen any video about him teaching a student but realize the VAST majority of students that learn piano dont play Chopin impromptu or Liszt's La Campanella. If he played a simple Burgmuller etude poorly or something then we'd have much more to say. Sure people  can be provocative and wrong at the same time but we are human and do wrong things sometimes that doesn't mean 100% of everything is terrible then.

 I read others have said he's proclaimed he's "the finest teacher in the world," "one of the world's leading pianists" and "one of the most influential pianists in the world". Ok sure , obviously that's crazy talk, maybe just very powerful self confidence, you're going to get squashed if you really proclaim such things, but still it doesn't mean he can't play the piano or teach it. Maybe some of his students actually believe that, its fine it's all rather relative isn't it, like he likely would be the best pianist in a jungle or something lol.

[perfect_pitch]

I can't remember engaging with Cory on anything. Just because his playing might be not exceptional or youve had argument with him doesn't mean you should put him down so harshly.

One could always do their own research and come to their own conclusions... but I suspect you'll come to the same agreement that I (and others) have.

Even some of his basic pieces are rather bland and dry, lacking any flavour or real nuance.

[lostinidlewonder]

One could always do their own research and come to their own conclusions... but I suspect you'll come to the same agreement that I (and others) have.

Even some of his basic pieces are rather bland and dry, lacking any flavour or real nuance.

Yeah as I said in the previous post i read some comments about him but didn't bother scouring the YouTube comments as apparently they were deleted. I did say his comments are a little crazy but still doesn't mean he knows zero.

[lelle]

I can't remember engaging with Cory on anything. Just because his playing might be not exceptional or youve had argument with him doesn't mean you should put him down so harshly. He obviously can play piano and everyone has some problems with their playing on some level, some more so than others. I've not seen any video about him teaching a student but realize the VAST majority of students that learn piano dont play Chopin impromptu or Liszt's La Campanella. If he played a simple Burgmuller etude poorly or something then we'd have much more to say. Sure people  can be provocative and wrong at the same time but we are human and do wrong things sometimes that doesn't mean 100% of everything is terrible then.

 I read others have said he's proclaimed he's "the finest teacher in the world," "one of the world's leading pianists" and "one of the most influential pianists in the world". Ok sure , obviously that's crazy talk, maybe just very powerful self confidence, you're going to get squashed if you really proclaim such things, but still it doesn't mean he can't play the piano or teach it. Maybe some of his students actually believe that, its fine it's all rather relative isn't it, like he likely would be the best pianist in a jungle or something lol.

I feel rather concerned for both him and his students when I see how stiff his fingers look in some videos, such as the Fantaisie-Impromptu posted earlier. I don't like smack talking people but at the same time I suffered some poor teaching early on that set me back for years and years so it feels wrong to let certain things slide.

Your review?

[lostinidlewonder]

I feel rather concerned for both him and his students when I see how stiff his fingers look in some videos, such as the Fantaisie-Impromptu posted earlier. I don't like smack talking people but at the same time I suffered some poor teaching early on that set me back for years and years so it feels wrong to let certain things slide.

Your review?

My review is that most students he's teaching won't play at that level. I'm also playing devils advocate until theres an actual debate for his position. Is there any videos of his lessons with a student? I think critiquing those videos are likely better than critiquing ones playing when it comes to education, if he makes students play exactly like him or not. Why waste our energy putting others down? He likely has students who enjoy lessons with him, and good for them, if we detest this or that it's inconsequential unless you're willing to saves those poor students from him.

He plays better than the vast majority of pianists out there but then again the average pianist is probably around grade 3 ABRSM, he doesnt stand up against the better ones of course. Who cares if his technique makes us vomit, or his attitude towards those who critique him is caustic, or he proclaims he's better than Liszt lol. Have him argue points of teaching or playing here and then it's a free for all, he's not saying anything here or trying to debate us so who gives a rats.

 I don't see anyone actually saying he's amazing here or questioning if something he's saying is legitimate, in that case we have something to talk about, but there nothing so why make something?

[bachapprentice]

I follow Cory and I think he plays just fine. He floats over those keys and plays fluently. He's a teacher and has over 150k subscribers on youtube.

[perfect_pitch]

I follow Cory and I think he plays just fine.

No... he doesn't. There is a lot wrong with his technique - so if he's the one you aim to emulate... you're in for a world of trouble. His fingers are stiff, cumbersome and don't look the slightest bit relaxed.

He isn't floating over those keys... at all.

[lostinidlewonder]

High finger technique is an old solution to old keyboard mechanisms. On modern pianos, it's mostly considered inefficient and outdated. The intentional high finger approach is unnecessary and it may negatively affect students by increasing tension by promoting ineffective motor patterns. His right hand 3rd finger looks ridiculously paralysed when it's poking up like that.

[bachapprentice]

No... he doesn't. There is a lot wrong with his technique - so if he's the one you aim to emulate... you're in for a world of trouble. His fingers are stiff, cumbersome and don't look the slightest bit relaxed.

He isn't floating over those keys... at all.

Regardless of his technique, his playing is clean and precise. Furthermore he has a doctorate in music, a lot of followers and his wife is also a music teacher.

[perfect_pitch]

Regardless of his technique, his playing is clean and precise. Furthermore he has a doctorate in music, a lot of followers and his wife is also a music teacher.

If by "clean and precise"... you mean bland and uninspiring... SURE.

There are far better people to follow if you want to hear beautiful playing... especially if you like Bach.

I got to see her play in person in a small University auditorium and give a masterclass... wonderful woman she is.

[bachapprentice]

If by "clean and precise"... you mean bland and uninspiring... SURE.

There are far better people to follow if you want to hear beautiful playing... especially if you like Bach.

I got to see her play in person in a small University auditorium and give a masterclass... wonderful woman she is.

When it comes to serious Bach playing I really only listen to Glenn Gould but It's always nice to hear other Bach interpretations. I will give it a listen thank you.

[bachapprentice]

If by "clean and precise"... you mean bland and uninspiring... SURE.

There are far better people to follow if you want to hear beautiful playing... especially if you like Bach.

I got to see her play in person in a small University auditorium and give a masterclass... wonderful woman she is.

She plays beautifully.

[lostinidlewonder]

When it comes to serious Bach playing I really only listen to Glenn Gould.

Gould is unorthodox rather than serious. Hewitt is considered serious when it comes to Bach certainly not to be regarded just an "other interpretation" but more a benchmark.

[perfect_pitch]

She plays beautifully.

Glad you like her playing. Hopefully you're realise there are better people to follow and admire than Cory Hall.

The guy really is an egocentric twat with an inflated sense of greatness.

[bachapprentice]

Gould is unorthodox rather than serious. Hewitt is considered serious when it comes to Bach certainly not to be regarded just an "other interpretation" but more a benchmark.

When it comes to Bach no one plays it better than Glenn Gould.

[lostinidlewonder]

When it comes to Bach no one plays it better than Glenn Gould.

For you, sure thats a valid position.

[psipsi8]

When it comes to Bach no one plays it better than Glenn Gould.

In general I agree that on the whole, Glenn Gould's performances are the benchmark. Sometimes he plays too fast though. Hewitt's performances are marvellous although she too takes certain liberties with tempo - dare I say rubato sometimes? - , dynamics, pedalling sometimes, which are not always to my taste. As an example, Bach's prelude and fugue in f minor WTC book 2 (BWV 881). I know which interpretation I prefer.

[lostinidlewonder]

Hewitt's performances are marvellous although she too takes certain liberties with tempo - dare I say rubato sometimes?

Regarding her tempo I'd completely disagree with that. I've had the pleasure to discuss with her her interpretation and she is 100% a traditionalists through and through.

[bachapprentice]

What do you think about his take on Bach and scales? He also mentions tempos but Bach doesn't have tempo markings on his music.

[lostinidlewonder]

Saying 4 octave scales is a waste of time is short sighted. You dont need to have those in pieces for them to be useful. Also yes, his exact tempo numbers attributing it to Bach is misinformation no matter how confident he says it, there was no such thing as you pointed out as a metronome marking as such because it wasnt invented. Tempo markings were to define general character. The metric tempo markings that might have existed in his time where actually pendulum lengths but not used everywhere.

[perfect_pitch]

What do you think about his take on Bach and scales? He also mentions tempos but Bach doesn't have tempo markings on his music.

His 3rd finger in the RH looks rigid and almost looks like he suffers from a major injury. It sticks out quite considerably and doesn't look relaxed.

Also, I'm pretty sure the ability to play scales are very useful considering a lot of his 2-part inventions have scalic passages - No. 1, 2 and 8 come to mind.