Live Stream 5/15/20

Another successful and long show tonight on Facebook! I played over three-and-a-half hours of some of the best requests people could think of. Beatles and Sam Cooke were a couple of my favorites. The comments really make me laugh while I'm playing, and honestly make the show so much more fun to do! Keep watching, keep requesting, and keep commenting!

Quarantine Keys Live Stream 5/13/20

QK had me back on for another late-night Wednesday show, where I played for about an hour-and-forty-five worth of random requests. Gangsta's Paradise, Elton John, Primus and so much more. If you haven't watched a live stream yet, you really should.

Live Stream 5/9/20

I played an hour-and-forty-five minute show tonight on Facebook. Lots of Beatles and Cure and all kinds of stuff. Tech support provided by my partner Heather up in the Dallas area. Thanks everyone for keeping these livestreams happening!

Live Stream 5/8/20

Heather was on tech support for my live stream tonight, and she helped me with all of the great requests coming in.  This was a long one because people were having so much fun and didn't want me to go. I played nearly four-hours! At one point, a fan who is a nurse asked people to stop requesting tunes because she was concerned about my bladder. I appreciated the concern, and my bladder is fine. Now.

Quarantine Keys Live Stream 5/6/20

I played about an hour-and-a-half on the QK page on this late Wednesday evening. The requests have been great! I see some regulars when I play on the QK page, but also meet some new people each time. I'm happy to do a regular late-night Wednesday show.

Star Wars Live Stream 5/4/20

This maybe my favorite thing I've ever done. In strict observance of the holiday May the Fourth, I grabbed my Darth Vader helmet and did and hour-and-a-half show in character on our All Request Piano page on Facebook. Singing as Darth Vader really messed up my voice (I actually lost it after the show), but it was worth it. I gotta give a huge shout out two the two amazing women who helped make it possible. My wife, Christine, and my work-wife, Heather, made it possible for this show to happen.
Behind the scenes info:
I had in-ear monitors and a headset mic inside the helmet (and a loop of Vader's breathing which slowly drove me insane). With the helmet on, I couldn't really see and I could barely breathe. I had a fan pointed straight up my back for air circulation inside the helmet. Heather was on the page from her home in the Dallas area, and she was keeping people engaged within the comments. Christine was in the next room in our house in San Marcos, equipped with a monitor and a microphone. The mic fed into my in-ears (but not online) so she could talk to me and let me know what songs were being requested and who was asking for them. It was a team effort! A big thanks to them and to everyone who watched this hilarious show!

Live Stream 5/2/20

I played a relatively short show tonight, just about an hour and twenty minutes. I just decided to go on at the last minute because someone reached out to see if I was going to be on, so I said yes! I played quite a few tunes while I was live on the All Request Piano Facebook page, including some tunes for my wife who was watching from the couch in the other room. Ain't technology grand?

Live Stream 5/1/20

Tonight was some of the most fun I've had while live-streaming! My partner, Heather, was manning the comments as "All Request Piano" from her home in the Dallas area while I streamed from my San Marcos home. The comments were hilarious as I ran through three-hours of tunes. The crowd took selfies and sent them to me after the show, which was oddly touching! I knew people were watching, but it was great to actually see the people who were watching. The keytar was used and dog viewers were mesmerized.

Quarantine Keys Live Stream 4/29/20

I played another late-night show on the QK page, and had fun doing so! I played for just under two hours, and was given a wide range of tunes to play by the people who were streaming me into their homes. Thanks to Quarantine Keys for having me again!

Live Stream 4/24/20

The comments during my 3+ hour live-stream tonight were hilarious! I had a bunch of people watching, and a huge family group scattered across the country all connecting in my feed, which was fantastic. My partner, Heather, was helping me with the comment stream from her home up in the Dallas area while I played and sang from my home in San Marcos. I loved the show tonight, and I hope all future shows are this much fun, too!

Quarantine Keys Live Stream 4/22/20

I made a few new fans as I streamed from Quarantine Keys page tonight. Heather was up in Dallas watching, and showing her support. Soon, we'll be able to stream at the same time from the same place! I'm looking forward to that day.

Quarantine! 4/22/20

Day 34 since our last public performance, but we’re staying busy online. Heather and I have been enjoying all the requests for individual recordings of songs. If you didn’t know, we’re taking single song requests on Facebook. I record my part at my home in San Marcos  and send it to Heather up in the Dallas area, then she sends me her part and I edit the two together and post it on the person’s page who asked for the song. Check out how to request on Facebook. Tonight and Friday, I'll be live-streaming, and Heather will live-stream Thursday. Staying safe and being a musician in weird times is forcing me to come up with interesting ways to put music in the world! 

Outdoor Live Stream 4/20/20

I got a wild hair and decided to do a remote live stream from a nearby nature preserve today. My phone wasn't doing the best job of finding a signal, but it went well. I had people stop a trail behind me to listen every once in a while. One lady asked if she could take my picture, and I said yes. After I was done and loaded out, I checked Facebook to find that she posted the picture with the very kind message, "Right when I thought I lost all faith in humanity, I came across this guy along my daily hike and the timing couldn’t be more perfect." Underneath her post were lots of complimentary comments which reminded me of why I shouldn't worry about things too much. I went out there worried about playing in a public space, worried about if anyone would watch on Facebook, worried about if my gear would function properly, worried about my future as a performer, then one random encounter snapped me back to the real reason I do what I do; joy.

Live Stream 4/19/20

I played a three-hour set on Facebook tonight! Everyone has really been digging the shows, so I'm considering keeping them going even after lockdown has been lifted. I want to thank everyone for being so supportive during this whole thing. I hope I'm bringing joy into everyone's homes!

Live Stream 4/17/20

Boy, the hits just kept coming tonight on my Facebook live stream. I played about an hour-and-a-half to a bunch of friends and fans, and they asked for Billy Joel and Elton John, but also some random tunes just to round out the night. It was a fun Friday night show!

Quarantine Keys Live Stream 4/15/20

I decided to reach out to a different Facebook page to try and grow my audience, so I headed over to Quarantine Keys where the let me stream on their page for the first time tonight. I made some new fans and played a bunch of great requests. I've said it before, but it's really fun on a personal level to be able to interact with fans in real time. Looks like I'll be doing a regular show on Quarantine Keys on Wednesday nights.

Live Stream 4/14/20

I played a two-hour live stream tonight for my Facebook friends. I'm so happy and overwhelmed by the support my online people have shown me in this strange chapter of our lives. I go into the other room of my house, and suddenly performing for a worldwide audience. It's kinda magical.

Live Stream 4/11/20

I really enjoy live streaming. If I'm being honest, I'm enjoying it more than I thought I would. It gives me a chance to interact with people in a conversational way which I can't do while on a stage. It's definitely its own thing! Tonight, I played about 3-and-a-half hours before I knew it!

Live Stream 4/10/20

I did a short, hour-long live stream today. I'm still trying to figure out what works best for online audiences. I'm feeling better about my set-up. Heather is up in the Dallas area during lockdown, so I sent some gear with her so we could continue to record and stream together even while apart. We're trying to keep things rolling! Thanks to everyone who watched and requested songs!

Quarantine! 4/8/20

In the 18 days since Heather and I have been in quarantine along with the rest of the world, we’ve been trying to stay productive and bring some joy into people’s lives. During the first week, she was staying with my wife and I in San Marcos, and so we had a chance to record a bunch of tunes together to publish on Facebook and YouTube. After she headed to her home in the Dallas area, we began working together remotely, each recording parts of songs to piece together. Currently, we’ve uploaded over 60 songs! We’ve also been independently live-streaming regularly on Facebook, but one of us is doing tech support for the other during the broadcast. Check in with “All Request Piano” on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube to stay up-to-date!