Classical pianist with a difference

My albums feature classical piano repertoire as well as my own classical pastiche compositions and improvisations. I play classical music with very natural manners, clear unfolding grooves and a entertaining kind of unaffected storytelling and flow that perhaps does not fit the norms of the genre as it is presented in today’s market. My musical core is that of an improvising musician – more a storyteller than a performer – and I am influenced by jazz and pop music. My hope is that many people might enjoy or even prefer my passionate yet informal approach, whether they have much experience of classical piano music or not!

ALBUMS

What’s my music about? Why do I do it?

I love all art forms when they make me feel something deeply… something accessible that I can genuinely connect to or naturally relate to. I’m turned off by music that’s just cool or clever, like a pair of designer sunglasses. I enjoy exploring simple, pure, unsophisticated music just as much as creating dazzling firework displays. My passion is to make music that grows out of real life with all its mess, from our painful experiences, our mistakes, and of course our joyful times too. But joy only exists in relation to pain and vice versa. The deepest joy of music for me is how it brings solace and catharsis, it soothes or releases our pain. I know music can offer escape too but that interests me less. I approach music from a candid, intimate often dark place.

I’ve had emotional struggles in my life, like so many of us. My music is a reflection of that struggle: but more than a description, it’s therapy, the medicine I take to heal my wounds. When I make music, I aim to “speak” from my soul. Unlike words, which can hide or manipulate truth, music is utterly honest. And my musical story is about recovery – from feelings of emptiness, despair and worthlessness that I suffered from as a child, to seeking and finding love and connection as I continue to live my life. There’s an alchemy in how we can use music to face our darkest feelings, without fear or censoring, and transform them into something profoundly beautiful. I hate pretentiousness or grandiosity: music can be understated and modest or dazzlingly virtuoso, either way it has transcendental power – it opens up a direct route to equanimity and bliss. So for me, my music is an elixir – it is something delicious but also heart-opening – it gives me the power to understand the story of my life, to cherish that story, warts and all. My hope is that others will enjoy and benefit from my elixir, and if you do, then I’m thrilled that my music “speaks” to you.