Paul has been playing the piano almost as long as he has been painting, spending much of his free time composing music and practicing on the piano. His compositions would probably fall into the blues and jazz genres, with his own classical, Latin and folk elements thrown into the mix. A born entertainer, Paul plays both his own work along with a large and varied and ever expanding repertoire of music in all styles.
When asked about some of his major musical influences, Paul came up with an interesting and varied list!
My grandmother Ethel, Classical composers Frederick Chopin, Franz Liszt, Serge Rachmaninoff, Gustav Mahler, Serge Prokofiev, and to a lesser extent Shostakovich, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Dvorak and Debussy.
The early inventors of piano jazz and blues such as Scott Joplin, Willy (the Lion) Smith, Earl Hines, Albert Ammons, Fats Waller, Art Tatum, Pete Johnson and of course George Gershwin.
More modern piano geniuses like Oscar Peterson, Dave Brubeck and Chick Corea.
Leonard Bernstein with his music from West-side Story and his fantastic lectures.
The wonderful music from ‘Evita’ by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Poncho Sanchez, George Benson, Judy Roberts, and great Jazz Rock Bands like Weather Report, The Crusaders, Level 42 and the Average White Band.
Wonderful singer songwriters such as Janis Ian, Joni Mitchell, Kate Bush, Tori Amos and Groups such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Climax Blues Band, and Renaissance.
All of the above have had a profound effect on my musical and personal life, and I feel sure that the list could go on...