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It is said
that he plays "New Age" music that people HATE to LOVE!...a quote from
Playboy Magazine.
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David Lanz,
Seattle native, and one of the originators of New Age/New Instrumental
music, was on the scene and on the charts before Yanni and John Tesh. Even
before his gold record "Cristofori's Dream" became the world's first #1
Billboard New Age/Adult Alternative album (#1 for 27 consecutive weeks),
David was heard around the world on the classic bubble gum hit "Seasons in
the Sun" by Terry Jacks.
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On a recent "America's Funniest Home Videos" broadcast, one of the videos shown was of a piano recital where a toddler was sneaking cookies. The music being played was "Cristofori's Dream". The video won the $10,000 prize!
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At least two
of our Presidents, and their First Ladies, have had Lanz's music featured
on Air Force One....and George Bush Sr. has used his music for massage.
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His
year 2000 album "East of the Moon," on Decca Records, was nominated for
a Grammy and produced by the legendary Hugh Padgham (Sting, Phil
Collins, Eric Clapton, Melissa Etheridge.) Hugh, who has also
worked with the Police, XTC, The Bee Gees, and Paul McCartney,
cited this album as his first instrumental outing.
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David,
who comically refers to his music as "Heavy Mellow" and "Zen Pop," is no
stranger to Rock and Roll. He is currently producing and playing drums
on Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention ex-band member (and Seattle
native) Jeff Simmons second solo album. (Zappa produced Jeff's first.)
David also backed up Pat Boone on the drums for a local Seattle benefit
concert.
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People
often ask how David manages to play some of his songs. The span of his
fingers reaches a 10th, for example from C to E above the octave C.
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One of
David's first musical ventures was with a band called the
Towne
Cryers. Click the link, check out the picture and see if you can
find David!
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Soap
Opera Weekly recently reported that Jason Cook (Shawn, Days Of Our
Lives) credits Lanz with inspiring him to return to the piano. "I even
went to one of his recitals and met him. He's a totally cool guy."
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The
world renowned US Naval Band, who performs hundreds of concerts yearly
for dignitaries and world leaders, play several of David's specially
arranged compositions from his "Skyline Firedance" album. Lanz claims to
be the reincarnated, "New Age" John Philip Sousa :) :)
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David
says: "When I am on tour, I am constantly introduced to children, by
their parents, who were born to the sounds of my music in their hospital
rooms. Several of these parents have even sheepishly admitted that their
children were also conceived to my music!"
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Even
though the Yanni meister's CDs out sell David's, the Lanz guy way out
sells Yanni in the sheet music department. Thousands of piano students
and teachers study David's music, which is very melodic and well
structured. When he is on tour he often does free piano clinics for his
throngs of devoted piano students. David smiles coyly as he comments on
the thousands of children he is torturing daily who are trying to learn
to play his music :)
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Lanz is a
celebrity spokes person for the American Music Therapy Association.
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His
music has found its way into hospitals, hospices, and clinics around the
country. Doctors and nurses have reported its calming effects on children
and adult patients with cancer, AIDS, and other life threatening
illnesses. One Midwestern surgeon claims he won't ever operate unless
there are Lanz tunes in the O.R. David has considered sending that
doctor a bill for services rendered :)
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When
the Pittsburgh daily newspaper went on strike, The Associated Press
reported that a local TV station began broadcasting the obituaries with
depressing organ music playing in the background. The station was
flooded with complaints about their unfortunate choice of music. When
Lanz's song "Cristofori's Dream" was substituted and played instead, the
station was again flooded with calls from people "dying" to find out
whose music that was!
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Lanz's
song, "Behind the Waterfall", has been reported to have been the first
"New Age" hit single.
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After
having a conversation on the subject of sacred geometry with author,
Gary Hardin, of the New York Times best selling book, The Messengers,
David intuitively constructed a new musical scale of sorts and composed
a 17 minute healing meditation piece. This was heard by Boise piano
teacher Shirley Taylor and her students, who dubbed it the "angel
scale" and soon after began composing their own composition based on
Lanz's "scale."
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An
e-mail from a Boston piano teacher revealed that a direct descendant of
Bartolomeo Cristofori (the inventor of the piano) was given a copy of
David's album, "Cristofori's Dream" (dedicated to the inventor) and the
Cristofori family reportedly loved it! The elder Cristofori has
been in the news during the year 2000 because the world was celebrating
the 300th anniversary of his invention ... the piano.
