Robert Milne


Musical Performance

Robert Milne never took piano lessons. He has a music degree in French horn performance and played with two major east coast symphonies. Piano? He's self-taught and he plays everything by ear. Named a musical ambassador by the U.S. State Department, he traveled overseas for many years. He was interviewed and filmed by the Library of Congress in 2004 and was declared a “national treasure.” The films are in the Library today as part of the national record.

Robert is the subject of an ongoing neurology brain study, now in its 9th year, by the Penn State University Neurology Department, of what they describe as “unusual musical abilities.” It was discovered that he routinely listens to up to four different symphonic pieces in his head at the same time (even his wife didn’t know he did this). These tests were featured on the NPR Radiolab program “Four-Track Mind,” which is still running on podcast. He performs about 250 concerts a year across the nation and world. While driving through Montana in 2009, he composed a complete grand opera in his head — the music, lyrics and orchestration — based on “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”

Student Testimonials

  • "He is absolutely fantastic."
  • "He has an engaging rapport with the audience."
  • "He is the best."
 
 Last Modified 2/12/15