Back to the original post. I am both a trained pianist, and a very dedicated arranger player. I consider playing an arranger just as much of an art form as playing the piano. There is a technique involved with arranger playing that many trained pianists don't get. I have a very good friend who is a very good jazz pianist. He can't play an arranger to save his life. He has had me come over several times to show him how to do it and he still can't wrap himself around it. I guess another way to look at it is accordion players. I couldn't play Come to Jesus on an accordion if my life depended on it. My wife is a very accomplished accordionist but I can't play one for shit. Each instrument demands a level of performance and just because you can play one doesn't mean you can play all of them.

Joe