YORK pianist and composer Joe Alexander Shepherd will launch his debut EP,Time, on Saturday at the intimate Unitarian Chapel, St Saviourgate, York, after signing a worldwide record deal with Nettwerk.
Joe studied at Bootham School, where he learnt to play the piano from a young age, before moving on to Paul McCartney's Academy of Music in Liverpool as a teenager.
He composes and performs intricate, minimalist contemporary classical music with subtle touches of atmospheric melancholy, in the vein of Ludovico Einaudi, Michael Nyman, Dustin O’Halloron and beyond. Writing since the age of 15, piano has always been in the heart of his songs, adding his own twist with textural synths to bring the simplistic melodies to life.
The artwork for Joe Alexander Shepherd's Time EP by Philipa Day
He recorded his five-track Time EP at his York home over a two-year period, compromising the title track, One Day, Opus 266, Amore and Love Me Like You Did Before. "I'm really excited to finally get my first debut EP out there," says 26-year-old Joe. "I really hope everyone enjoys listening as much as I did creating.
"I'm now performing several exciting shows in London, including at the Shoreditch Treehouse on November 23 for an exclusive showcase evening with fellow composer/pianist Andrew Johnson, and I recently played at The Corn Exchange in Leeds with a few other local artists to help promote the Piano Trail internationally.
"I really hope everyone enjoys listening as much as I did creating," says Joe Alexander Shepherd as he launches his debut EP
"I'm now working towards my second EP and there'll be an album to follow in the near future, released through the Nettwerk label in Vancouver, whose roster includes the likes of Passenger, Fun, Stereophonics, to name a few."
Looking both backwards and forwards, Joe says: "I was lucky to compose the soundtrack for UEFA's World War One Truce video, starring footballers Wayne Rooney, Gareth Bale and Sir Bobby Charlton, and I've also written pieces for the Rugby Football Union, BBC One, BBC Two and Land Rover. My dream is to perform at the Royal Albert Hall in London, playing my own original material to fans across the globe."
He will be supported at Saturday's 7.15pm launch by singer/songwriter Laura Kindelan; tickets are available at £10.02 at eventbrite.co.uk.
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