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Finding musicians was tough on short notice, but Mullins says that knowing he had a Yamaha piano ready for the event set his mind at ease.

"It was nice that Mike Bates and Lori Rogers from Yamaha assisted me in getting a Yamaha CFIIIS concert grand," he says. "Just having that piece of the puzzle was a relief. I had little time to think of anything artistic. Although everything in the music business surrounding an event is unstable, having confidence in a quality piano takes a lot of the worry out of the situation."

Meanwhile, Mullins just finished working on his new CD. Called Welcome to Planet Mullins!, the recording includes many of his biggest radio hits, as well as several new compositions written especially for the Disklavier.

"It's the kind of piano that I had always hoped someone would invent while I was little, but I had to wait until I was a grown-up before it existed," says Mullins. "Any composer can put his entire band or symphony orchestra into the instrument and perform, rehearse, or teach. I think it's the most amazing keyboard tool ever."

About the CD, says Mullins, "There is a huge diversity in the musical styles in this project." Pieces composed on the Disklavier include "Jim's Tune," "Space Adventure," "Old School Groove," "Waterfall I and II" and "E Funk."

"What I was hoping to do was to put the piano in a lot of different musical environments," he explains. He describes "Old School" as reminiscent of Ramsey Lewis and Les McCann. "Space Adventure" is a modern symphonic piece, "Waterfall I and II" are a la Debussy, and "E Funk" is like contemporary radio funk music.

For a long time Mullins has been asked to offer sheet music for his compositions. "It would take so long to print out the sheet music to this stuff, because a lot of this music sounds easy, but can be difficult to play," he says.

That's where the Disklavier again shows its versatility. "With the Disklavier you can zero in on the specific section you want to work on," explains Mullins. "With the newest version of Disklavier software, you can slow down, speed up, and completely analyze a piece of music." Mullins' CD was released earlier this fall. For more information, visit www.PlanetMullins.com.

"Keys For Hope"

mnesty International (AI), founded in London in 1961 and a 1977 Nobel Peace Prize winner, is a grassroots activist organization dedicated to freeing prisoners of conscience and protecting human rights. Last March, at Moravian College in Bethlehem PA, a very special benefit concert was among AI's 40th Anniversary Year celebrations. Yamaha artist Dr. Debra Torok performed a narrated musical tribute, "Keys for Hope," on a Yamaha CFIIIS concert grand piano provided by Yamaha Artists Services in New York City. The program featured short piano works on human and environmental rights by contemporary composers. Renowned Chinese activist and author Harry Wu gave a pre-concert lecture, "Behind the Great Wall," and spoke during the concert.

Dr. Debra Torok and Harry Wu

"The consistency of each CFIIIS I have played in the past has pleased me tremendously," says Torok, who has recorded four CDs on Yamaha CFIIIS grand pianos. "The one for this event was absolutely sensational! I told James Steeber of Yamaha Artist Services that I wanted one with a heavy action, deep sounds and colors, and he sent me a beauty.

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