Next Performing Arts | Music

Dan Tepfer

Natural Machines

A man plays the piano with colorful lights in the background.

Experience a mesmerizing performance where musical improvisation, technology, and visual art collide in real time.

In an age of unprecedented technological advancement, Dan Tepfer is redefining what a musical instrument can be. In this groundbreaking performance, Tepfer programs a Steinway Spirio—a player piano—to respond in real time to the music he improvises at the keyboard, creating a dynamic dialogue between human expression and machine intelligence. Simultaneously, a custom computer program transforms the performance into striking animated visual art. Described as “fascinating and ingenious” by Rolling Stone, Natural Machines exists at a singular intersection of mechanical precision and organic expression, becoming, as NextBop writes, “more than a solo piano album…a multimedia piece of contemporary art so well made in its process and components and expressed by such a thoughtful, talented, evocative pianist…that it becomes a complete experience.” (program approx. 90 mins., no intermission)

IMAGE CAPTION
Dan Tepfer, photo: Paolo Pavan.

About the artist

Dan Tepfer

Dan Tepfer, born in Paris to American parents and based in New York City, is “a pianist of extraordinary technique and fearless harmonic sensibility” (JazzTimes). He has performed worldwide with artists ranging from Lee Konitz to Renée Fleming and has released more than a dozen albums as a leader in solo, duo, and trio settings. The New York Times calls him a “deeply rational improviser drawn to the unknown,” and his concert works include Solar Spiral, Algorithmic Transform, and Three Poems of Virginie Sampeur (for Cécile McLorin Salvant). Tepfer gained international attention with Goldberg Variations / Variations (2011), combining Bach’s masterpiece with his own improvisations, and in 2019 released Natural Machines, a video album exploring algorithms and the rhythms of the heart, featured on NPR’s Tiny Desk. His honors include top prizes at Montreux and the American Piano Awards, and fellowships from major arts institutions. In 2025, he made his Carnegie Hall debut as a leader with Natural Machines 2.0 and The Knights orchestra.

Program Support

THIS PRESENTATION MADE POSSIBLE BY

Ohio State Office of Academic Affairs

Office of the Vice Provost of the Arts

Ohio State School of Music

PERFORMING ARTS PROGRAMS MADE POSSIBLE BY

Doris Duke Foundation

WEXNER CENTER PROGRAMS MADE POSSIBLE BY

Greater Columbus Arts Council

Ohio Arts Council, with support from the National Endowment for the Arts

CampusParc

The Columbus Foundation

The Ohio State University

Wexner Center Foundation Board

With special thanks to our members

Close

Next Performing Arts

Dan Tepfer