Since organisers of the Sydney International Piano Competition founded Piano+, chief executive Marcus Barker has been getting more phone calls than usual.
"People have just out of the blue randomly called or emailed to say 'I've heard about Piano+, how do I get involved?'" he told AAP.
The prestigious competition, known worldwide as The Sydney, has been running since 1977, with the 2023 prize going to Jeonghwan Kim.
Organisers were already staging performances in places such as Karratha, Alice Springs and Grafton, but the competition's name meant it was perceived as an elite organisation focused on Sydney.
Since setting up as Piano+ in July, the public response has validated the move, said Barker, who aims to dramatically expand the organisation's reach.
"You've got to start somewhere small before you take over the world, right?" he said.
Piano+ will run education programs, amateur competitions for adults, performances throughout the country, and an annual online showcase for amateur players.
One of those is the Out West Piano Fest, which will be held in the NSW city of Bathurst in October.
Last year's inaugural event sold out and the 2023 program features pianists Andrey Gugnin, Tamara Anna Cislowska, Sonya Lifschitz and Clemens Leske.
There are also upcoming talks to create a piano festival in regional Victoria.
Another project is the launch of an international concert series to be held at Sydney's City Recital Hall and the Melbourne Recital Centre next year.
Recitals will also be held in Brisbane, with other cities to follow.
An intensive piano school for children and adults, also planned for next year, will be held in regional areas, and an award for the composition of new Australian piano music is also in the works.
Barker said Piano+ won't just be focused on classical music. There will also be masterclasses for jazz and contemporary music, and collaborations with singers, violinists, dancers and multimedia artists.
With the decline of music education in schools, Barker wants piano students to realise that careers in performing arts, especially piano, can happen in Australia.
He also wants to expand audiences and ensure Australians engage with music just as much as countries such as Germany.
"I don't think the arts actually has the value in Australia that it would have somewhere else in the world," Barker said.
That's something Piano+ aims to change, and presto.
The Out West Piano Fest will be held from October 27-29.
