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You have entered the Stuart & Sons Handcrafted Grand Pianos ‘Extended Information’ section of the site. For rich interactive ‘Audio Visual’ experience, return to Main Site. THE PLAYERS BILL RISBY A gifted child prodigy, Bill commenced piano at age 3, and was the youngest student to study piano at the NSW State Conservatorium of Music (Australia), playing 7th Grade pieces by the time he was 7 years old. At age 8, he received a four year private scholarship to study piano under Albert Landa, and after high school, completed an Associate Diploma in Jazz Studies with Merit in 1987.By the time he was 15, he had already performed in Bartok Festivals, Piano Competitions, and Gershwin's "Rhapsody In Blue" as solo pianist, going on to perform Leonard Bernstein's "Mass", as well as gigs around town with the "pop" bands of the moment. He started to frequent famed music spots in Sydney such as the Basement and the old All Nations Club to check out the music scene he would soon be a big part of. Around this time he started playing Electric Bass, which he occasionally plays at the same time as the piano, but usually not! Shortly after his studies, he founded the group "The Storytellers" which played a combination of Bill's original material and electric jazz covers (Yellowjackets, Pat Metheny) - the 4 piece group did many live gigs as well as many Gospel music festivals around Australia. Some of Bill's tunes from this group can be found on his new album, "Falling". Bill has recorded six albums to date, including a new album for the record label Instinctive Travels called "Around The World". He has also co-written and played on the newest Dale Barlow record for the same label entitled "Hopscotch". In between all of his own recordings Bill plays on other people's albums.... He has arranged, produced and played on many albums (piano and bass) from gospel, jazz, country, R&B, pop and beyond. The latest stand out recording is the track “Paper Aeroplanes” from Kasey Chambers’ new album, “Wayward Angel”. Other notable recordings are: "De-Classified" by Leon Gaer and Tom Ferris; “Accentuate The Positive” with Mark Rivett & Emma Pask: “New Shadow” by Felicity, “The Way The World Is” by Tamara Stewart, and "Deeper & Deeper" by Geoff Bullock (with the Prague Symphony Orchestra); “Little Victories” and “Wild At Heart” by Beccy Cole; Most recently "Jazz" albums "Beautifully Mad" by Tony King and Kris Ralph (Makin' Whoopee), "Face the Music" by Anthony Warlow; “Unspoken” by Adrian Cunningham, and "Bright Window" by Rachel Gaudry. Bill is responsible for many television commercials as well as recording for Australian TV dramas such as Wildside for the ABC, Young Lions on Channel 9, and live TV appearances. He has also recorded music for documentaries and film scores including “The Night They called It A Day”, “A Man’s Gotta Do...” and many others. Bill has played with international artists such as the Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra, Bobby Shew, William Gallison, Kitty Margolis, Rob McConnell (Boss Brass), the Velotti Batiste Jazz Ensemble (Italy), Andre Crouch, and Doug Cameron, among others. He has performed with many diverse Australian popular artists such as Tina Arena, Glen Shorrock, Barry Leef, Marcia Hines, Daryl Braithwaite, James Reyne, Ross Wilson, James Morrison, Gina Jeffreys, Vanessa Amorosi, Jon Stevens, Jenny Morris, Sharon O'Neill, Mark Williams, Erana Clark, Steve Clisby, Louise Perryman and Emma Pask to name but a few. He has done supports for Dionne Warwick, Thelma Houston, Julio Iglesias, and US saxophone player Steve Lacy. He has played with Radio NHK Symphony Orchestra (Tokyo), The Sydney Symphony Orchestra, and recorded with the Prague Symphony Orchestra. Recent trips to Japan with The Jeff Duff Orchestra have seen Bill share more of his talents with yet again another audience. Travelling with just the core members of The Orchestra (Jeff Duff - vocals and Jane Rosenson, harpist with Opera Australia), Bill rehearsed and conducted the newer members through his string arrangements of both originals and covers which made for some interesting linguistic gymnastics. During dinner that night Bill accidentally let a whole restaurant know (with his chopsticks placement) that his whole family had passed away... A fine cultural experience. Most recently Bill has been playing with the Elizabeth Carthew Group and this has been a very rewarding musical experience. He's also playing with Steve Clisby's HEAD BAND, and Bill and Steve went to Europe and the US for a stint of gigs in September 2004. My earliest memories of music (thanks to my Dad and Mum) were Mozart’s Symphony No.40, The Daly Wilson Big Band, Dave Brubeck (particularly the album “Jazz Goes To Junior College”) and Oscar Peterson, all before the age of 5. The one album that stands out as a life changing and life saving experience was “Songs In The Key Of Life” by Stevie Wonder. I listened to that album over and over for a year (when I was 12 years old) and it turned me around from darkness to light. Later Egberto Gismonti (“Danca das Cabecas”), Pat Metheny, Dave Grusin, Chick Corea’s Return To Forever, Weather Report (Jaco Pastorius!!!!) and Bruce Hornsby blew my mind when I was around 13-15 years old. Some hugely influential musicians that I didn’t hear till later were Michel Petrucianni, Keith Jarrett, John McLaughlin, Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Antonio Carlos Jobim, George Duke and Bill Evans. Although I put composers of lyrics in a different category to composers of music (many musicians couldn’t write a lyric to save themselves and visa versa) my life has been changed by these artists through their music and words: Joni Mitchell, Jonatha Brooke, Shawn Colvin, Jimmy Webb, Sting, Stevie Wonder, Leonard Cohen, Robyne Dunn and Tony King. I owe all these people a debt I cannot pay. MICHAEL SZUMOWSKI (TO COME) STEVE CLISBY Steve Clisby’s reputation among his colleagues is one of uncompromising artistic integrity. He has had the pleasure and privilege to be creatively associated with some of the top names on the international music scene. Born in Riverside California, he studied piano - his first love - and saxophone, from the age of 7, but it would be Steve's voice that captivated people the most… American Gypsy became one of the premiere live R&B bands on the international scene. This quality of funk, fun and R&B could not be found anywhere in Europe. American Gypsy worked and recorded for 15 years as a major force on the international music scene. Jazz and Soul is also Steve Clisby, having played and recorded with “Dennis Chambers” (USA – Mike Stern, Steely Dan, Parliament), “John Lee” (USA – Sonny Rollins, Dizzy Gillespie), and “Dale Barlow”, Jonathon Zwartz, Bill Risby, James Muller, Warren Trout, Hamish Stuart, Andrew Gander (all Australia). Steve also recently appeared at The North Sea Jazz Festival (Holland). “Progressive jazz” with the current exotic European sounds and creative sampling is also being produced in the MIRACLE 8 STUDIO. Steve's new production, “New Beach Road”, is about to be launched internationally. HYPERLINK "http://www.miracle8.com" www.miracle8.com Steve’s vocals are also featured on various TV commercials, including ads for Coca Cola and Toyota Facts - Supported Tina Turner throughout her 1996 European tour. Toured with Chaka Khan, Kool and the Gang, Crusaders, Mothers Finest, Level 42, Hot Chocolate, Santana, James Cotton Blues Band, Charles Lloyd , Frank Zappa, Taj Mahal and Tina Turner. Wrote the songs - “Whatever Whenever” (originally titled “Inside Out”) which appears on the Groove Armada CD. "Golden Ring" which appears on the Neneh Cherry album "Man". YEN WYNDDANCER Yen Wynddancer has been playing the piano since the age of 9 and began composing shortly thereafter. Yen grew up in the township of Mudgee, NSW and studied with concert pianists at the Conservatorium of Music Bathurst and then in Sydney. He won the Sonata and Concerto section of the Gulgong Eisteddfod at age 14. Yen undertook a bachelor of Creative Arts, majoring in musical composition and creative writing at Wollongong University studying under Australian composers Andrew Ford and Andrew Schultz. He achieved an A.Mus.A in 2001. He also studied piano with international concert pianist Kyunghee Chung at the International College of Music and later with Slobodan Zivkovic (Zivkovic School of Music), one of the world’s foremost leaders in piano pedagogy. Yen has worked in the music industry in promotions, marketing and sales for four years, being national salesman and telesales manager of New World Music Australia. Yen has also worked with the Buddhist Light Association of the Nan Tien Temple, recomposing a two thousand year old sutra for Australasian distribution, has performed over the years at numerous concerts regionally in Queensland, throughout the Illawarra and in most Sydney regions. In 2004 Yen launched his debut album of solo contemporary piano compositions ‘from earth to sky’. Tracks from Yen’s debut album ‘from earth to sky’ have received radio play nationally on ABC’s ‘Classic Drive’ with Julia Lester and regionally in NSW and QLD on various radio networks, community and mainstream. Yen is a dynamic, inspiring performer and is an avid supporter of the ingenuity and beauty of the Australian built and designed Stuart piano. His second album ‘dreaming from the earth’, composed & recorded on a Stuart & Sons grand piano, is due for release in October 2007. SEAN HENNESSY-BROSE Sean Hennessy-Brose was born in London in 1978 and began studying piano at the age of four. At fifteen he was awarded a scholarship to the Elder Conservatorium of Music in Adelaide where he studied, for three and a half years, with Lucinda Collins. He continued his studies at the Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University with Natasha Vlassenko in the “Intensive Major” performance course and completed his Bachelor of Music degree in 1999. By age twenty-one Sean had been a finalist in the David Paul Landa Memorial Scholarship, The Australian National Piano Award, the Retosa Youth Music Scholarship, and the Geelong Advertiser Music Scholarship. He had also given solo performances on many of Australia's most exclusive concert platforms including Angel Place Recital Hall in Sydney, Elder Hall in Adelaide, the Ian Hanger Recital Hall in Brisbane, Costa Hall in Geelong and Melba Hall at the University of Melbourne. In 2001 Sean Hennessy-Brose was awarded a full scholarship to The Australian National Academy of Music where he studied with Yonty Solomon, Boris Berman who is head of piano at Yale University, and Frank Wibaut as well as with distinguished Australians, Stephen McIntyre and Timothy Young. In 2002 he appeared as soloist in the Beethoven Emperor Concerto in performances with the Nizhny Novgarod Philharmony from Russia, under the baton of Alexander Skulsky, in performances in Brussels as part of the Musici Artis International Festival. Sean was recently invited to become a member of the International Golden Key Society for his academic and artistic achievements, and has been nominated for an International Who’s Who award. His performances have been broadcast on ABC FM and 3MBS FM. He regularly performs with outstanding musicians from Australia and abroad. Future plans for this year include performing solo recitals of works by Bach, Beethoven, Brahms and Brubeck, and continuing his ongoing chamber music collaborations with distinguished musicians. Sean tutors piano students in his residence in Brunswick, at author John Marsdon’s “Candlebark” School, and is on Melbourne University Faculty of Music accompanist list. MARK GASSER Mark Gasser was born in Sheffield in 1972. He studied at the Birmingham Conservatoire with John Humphreys (where he graduated with the highest marks in the institutes history) and the Royal Academy of Music with Frank Wibaut, where he graduated once again with Distinction. He was recently made an honorary life member of the Conservatoire. A critically acclaimed pianist he has an especially wide repertoire from Bach and Purcell to contemporary music including over 50 concerti. He has performed / broadcast on four continents in many of the world leading concert venues. He played alongside Peter Donohoe, Dmitri Alexeev, Boris Berezovsky and Nikolai Demidenko at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in a 60th Anniversary Gala tribute to John Ogden. He performed Ronald Stevenson's epic Passacaglia on DSCH, which, with duration of around 80 minutes, is the longest piece of continuous music written for any instrument in history. He played the Passacaglia along with works by Easterbrook and Bingham at the Wigmore Hall (Broadcast BBC), South Melbourne Town Hall (broadcast ABC) and Carnegie Hall (New York) where it received standing ovations. The latter was a benefit concert for those affected by September 11th shortly after the tragedy as a special event of the UK-in-NY Festival. As a chamber musician he has toured with the virtuoso cellist Mats Lidstrom. Recent performances include concerts / broadcasts as diverse as Messiaen's Vingt Regards sur l'Enfant-Jésus and Bach's Goldberg Variations.  He is currently recording 6 solo CD's over the next few months. With a wide press following he has been described by Paul Driver (Sunday Times) as having "a staggering technical command", Chris Morley (Birmingham Post) describes him as "Scintillating and poetic...totally at one with his instrument". Richard Dain also recently wrote of him "I have no doubt that we are hearing one of the great pianists of the next century".