Dick Hyman discusses which instruments he began playing on

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Dick Hyman discusses his early training

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Dick Hyman discusses the many different types of keyboards he has played on

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Q: “Was it your parent’s idea that ‘our son Richard’ will be a classical piano player or anything?”

A: “No, I had an uncle named Anton Rovinsky who was a concert pianist and teacher, and he was my most important teacher and I studied with him. But my parents were surprisingly permissive about jazz playing and really did not force me to do any of the 8-hour practice stints that would-be concert players have to put themselves through. And when they saw the way that my incipient career was going as early as high school and certainly, by the time I was in college, they really were very, very permissive and encouraging, and I just went in the direction that seemed they want to go. Still, of course, the study that I had has come in very useful and I sure couldn't have done it all myself.”