**Welcome to my stream, thanks for stopping by!** I'm Austin, I'm 27 and I've been streaming on-and-off since April 2016. I used to focus on games, but recently I switched to streaming piano. I still stream games occasionally, but I now focus this channel on my biggest passion. My piano streams aren't performances - rather, it's an opportunity to share my journey and improvement as I keep learning to play music I love. I didn't discover my interest in music until I was an adult, and since then I've been enthralled with teaching myself and slowly learning my favorite pieces. I like to have a relaxed, mature, yet fun environment whether I'm playing piano or games. My genetic disorder sometimes keeps me homebound and my desire is to meet new people and friends through streaming, while having a social outlet and an ability to share myself and my passions in a way that is more physically accessible. I love to chat and meet new people so feel free to introduce yourself and engage with me and my community - I read and respond to anyone! (Apologies if I ever miss some messages, where I'm living now has unstable internet and my chat sometimes disconnects and drops a few things!) What my piano stream is NOT: >- prepared performances of music by an experienced musician >- talented sight-reading requests or playing by ear What my piano stream IS: >- (very) slowly trying to learn my favorite music >- playing with mistakes, and stopping & starting >- focus on enjoyment rather than skill or talent >- mostly classical, but sometimes soundtrack music >- often just messing around and improvising impulsively

[*Here's my list of pieces I currently play, am in the process of learning, have played in the past, or want to learn most!*](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1KD8nWi2XfuKStkOUlXXmq8c2ND4qDcljILu0oLgbk-4/edit?usp=sharing) A few of my favorite composers are Rachmaninov, Alkan, Chopin, Liszt, Scriabin, Medtner, and Debussy.

+ [*INSTAGRAM - austinheinz92*](https://www.instagram.com/austinheinz92/) + [*TWITTER - HeinzPlays*](https://twitter.com/HeinzPlays)

[*https://pastebin.com/uK8P5neg*](https://pastebin.com/uK8P5neg) This is a page of info about my history with gaming, my favorites and tastes, and what I used to stream (and still will sometimes)!

I have a genetic connective-tissue disorder called Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, or EDS. It's relatively rare but very undersupported and one of my goals is to raise awareness for it. I have classical-type EDS, which is the broadest, and affects my whole body. Collagen is poorly made, and the well-known consequences are things like loose joints that dislocate, physical pain, and stretchy skin. However these only scratch the surface, and most people with EDS have a completely unique set of physical challenges from how it shapes their body. For me, the worst chronic symptoms are fatigue, poor sleep, depression, and anxiety. But the biggest issues are the more acute neurological symptoms, which can be extremely unpredictable, unusual, and scary, usually involving dysautonomia (nerves not properly regulating autonomic functions). I can suddenly end up in the ER because vital functions stop working correctly. These chronic and acute symptoms are what combine to keep me partially disabled and often homebound. It's hard to learn about Ehlers-Danlos just by reading about it, because everyone who suffers from it suffers very differently. There's overlap, but not that much. Regardless, I still want to spread awareness about it, and if you learn anything about the disorder from me, I consider it a success. Thank you for reading!

**Do you play requests? Will you play something if I ask?** >I'm sorry, but I really can't, although you are welcome to ask. I'm bad at sight-reading, and I don't know any popular requests. If you give me a request, I will usually try to sight read it for fun and practice, but it's going to be slow and bad and not what you're looking for! There are lots of amazing musicians on Twitch who specifically do requests, so you may have more luck if you look around! > >However, if you have a request from my songlist, or you want to hear a certain composer, or just want to know if I know how to play a certain piece, feel free to ask and I will do my best to deliver! **How long have you been playing piano?** >I've been teaching myself since i was 18 (currently 27) **Why don't you usually show your face on streams?** >I'm extremely self-conscious about being on camera and I've never been able to get over it. Sometimes I do show my face on camera, but it's much easier for me to stream without it. **What's your piano?** >It's a Yamaha P105, and I'm in the process of finding an upright piano that I really like so I can stream with a real instrument again. **Why is your technique so loose and inefficient?** >Partly because of being self-taught, but my connective-tissue disorder means I have very loose joints in my fingers and wrists. It takes an unreasonable amount of effort to keep them more rigid, so I just try to play in a way that is natural and comfortable with my loose joints. A lot of technical challenges are harder because my fingers joints wont stay straight, but I'm looking into specially-made ring splints to help with that.

[*Click here to send me a tip.*](https://twitch.streamlabs.com/heinz92) You definitely shouldn't give me money. That's crazy. This section only exists because people asked me to make it. Seriously, save it or buy yourself something nice! Thank you to those who have contributed, you are wonderful and generous people.

We now have some chat commands and emotes! Type **!commands** for a list of chat commands. When subscribing to the channel, you can have access to the heinz92Champ (PogChamp) emote! With the Tier 2 and Tier 3 subs, you can also use the heinz92Gasm (Kreygasm) and heinz92haha (LUL) emotes as well!

Meeting Valentina Lisitsa after a recital where she played a very personal selection of 17 Scriabin pieces (mostly Preludes) followed by all 24 Chopin Etudes. It was fantastic.