Artists:Bernard Weinstock

Combining the sophistication of classical music with the emotional power and broad reach of pop has been a lifelong pursuit for Bernard Weinstock.

As a child, he was drawn equally to the Tschaikovsky and Beethoven albums in his parents' record collection as to the lyrical Israeli popular music of the 1970s. A transformative experience was listening to Rick Wakeman's "Journey to the Center of the Earth" at age 11; hearing the Moog for the first time was stunning and opened his mind to the complexities possible within the progressive rock genre. While exploring the masterworks of Brahms, Bach and Rachmaninoff as a piano student, he was also absorbing the experimental sounds of Emerson, Lake and Palmer and Yes, and the rhythmic drive of Led Zeppelin and Meatloaf. Among pianists, Keith Jarrett became a role model for his ability to "speak music spontaneously" through his wide-ranging improvisations.

Weinstock has complememted these early influences with a diverse array of professional experiences. After studying piano performance at Julliard and the Manhattan School of Music, he honed his improvisational skills as a modern dance accompanist. For more than a decade he worked with such dance luminaries as Norman Walker, Carmen de Lavallade and Gemze deLappe in companies including Alvin Ailey, the Eglevsky Ballet, and the Adelphi and Hofstra niversity dance programs. The intense creativity of the experience confirmed that composition, rather than classical performance, was his true calling, and he began pursuing other avenues of musical expression. He has since scored music for Court TV, an independent film, and a documentary for the Taiwanesse government.

"Evening - Piano Solos", Weinstock's debut album, showcases both his compositional brilliance and virtuosity at the keyboard. "Evening" was met with considerable critical and popular success, including a live performance on CBS television in New York. In 2005, music from "Evening" was used by the CBS "Early Show" during its coverage of Pope John Paul II's final illness. Weinstock is now recording his second album. Other current projects include the score for an upcoming PBS documentary, chamber-style compositions for piano and wind instruments, and experiments with the pipe organ. He also appears in New York-area live performances..