My Story

 

     I began my studies of the piano at the age of six.  My first teacher was a very strict Hungarian woman who had studied with the great 20th Century composer, Bela Bartok.  Surprisingly, she did not encourage improvising or composing, so I would pore through volumes of "fake books" and pop tunes on my own and began developing a style that incorporated many genres of music.
     In college, I majored in classical piano, studying works by Chopin, Bach, Schumann, Beethoven, working diligently on classical piano technique, while also delving into avant garde and electronic music.  At this time, I also developed a strong interest in Ragtime, Stride, Boogie Woogie, and the music of Scott Joplin, Joseph Lamb, Fats Waller and Hoagy Carmichael.  My love of the music of the Beatles, Cat Stevens, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Emerson, Lake and Palmer and Joni Mitchell led me into my studies of the guitar and writing folk rock songs, as well. After graduating, I discovered the piano improvisations of Keith Jarrett. These pieces became a very large influence in my musical development. Consequently, improvisation became another major characteristic of my music.
     My first gigs were playing ragtime piano at Johnny's Old-timer in Buffalo, N.Y. for tips and lunch, and playing piano for a local dinner theatre troupe performing "Bye, Bye, Birdie."  Soon, I moved to Colorado, where I began accompanying for ballet and modern dance classes at a number of local dance studios. I also worked for the Department of Theatre and Dance and the International Film Series at the University of Colorado where I improvised live scores for vintage silent films, accompanied for ballet and modern dance classes, and served as a musical director for theatrical productions.
As I gained experience as an improviser, I decided to take the genre into the concert hall. I began performing solo piano concerts consisting of totally improvised pieces.  I eventually worked some of the themes developed in concert into more structured pieces and recorded my first two piano albums, 
"Portrait" and "Another Face" by improvising around these themes.  My later concerts reflected the arrangements I had recorded in the studio.  On my album "Blue Sky," I decided to go a different route and completely notated each piece and recorded them note for note. "Quiet Moments," is a collection of softer pieces selected from these three albums as well as some pieces originally written for ballet. My latest album, “Once a Child,” is a collection of ten new pieces touching on themes about love, loss, questions, reflection, introspection, nostalgia and walking in faith.
In addition to these contemporary albums for solo piano, I also worked on other projects including commissioned works for Boulder Ballet, collaborations on several albums for children's dance with my wife Christy, and completing a collection of
24 Preludes for the Piano in Major and Minor Modes in the traditions of J.S. Bach and Frederic Chopin.
After many years of living in Colorado, I have returned to the East Coast - where the air is less thin, I am in the same time zone in which I was born and raised, and I can take long walks on the ocean.