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latest LP is 2015 ’ s Analog Love , which brought him huge success thanks in large part to the platinum-selling breakout single “ Sound of Your Heart .”
THE GEAR
• Yamaha Silent Series Baby Grand ( Main )
• Yamaha AvantGrand N3 or N1Hybrid Piano w / Adjustable Artists Bench ( Secondary )
• Yamaha P-115 Digital Piano
CM : What is the newest piece of gear that you ’ ve added to your live set-up ? SH : I have a Yamaha Digital P-115 stage piano , and the reason I have this particular one is that I ’ m currently on a radio promo tour in America . When I go to certain small rooms like offices or studios , I need a piano that works for all those occasions and
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this particular model is only 22 lbs ., and it ’ s a full 88-key weighted keyboard , so it meets all the criteria . It ’ s nice to just set up in a hotel room and boom , I have my piano and I can play and record and just practice , do whatever I need to do . It ’ s a pretty versatile piece .
CM : What was that first big music moment in your life that opened your world to music ? SH : It ’ s interesting . I can think about my personal music moment as a musician or just my first taste of live music , but my early , early memories are of my grandfather playing guitar at campfires . That became a thing . We ’ d go camping every weekend and I remember I always used to ask him to play another song and to please play again . I was just really excited about music and my mom had an
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old digital organ , a small thing . I don ’ t even know if it was 20 keys , but it was something her dad got her . I remember playing and pretending I was a piano player back in the day .
CM : You played various styles of music and a number of different instruments growing up , including the trombone in a disco cover band . What did you learn from playing such a variety of instruments and styles ? SH : I ’ m thankful that my early introduction to piano was through the Royal Conservatory , learning classical music and theory . I think that really allowed me to have the foundation and learn the language , so to speak . But , when I got to my early teens , I was more into other sorts of music and it was easier for me to learn a song listening to it than sitting down and
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reading . I just gravitated towards pop music and I had a piano teacher that taught me blues scales and I learned about improvising and that became my new thing . I just loved sitting at a piano and making up songs . I had another teacher that taught me jazz and I got into a jazz combo in high school , which was a lot of fun because you ’ re learning different chord progressions and there ’ s a large improvisational element to it as well . I ’ m also just a huge fan of pop music and I love improvising . So now I just kind of put all of those styles together and they influence my playing today .
CM : On Analog Love , there seems to be a desire to mix new electronic sounds with old instruments or mix “ old sounds ” with new instruments . Is that something
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CANADIAN MUSICIAN • 53 |