Silvard
Silvard, originally from the Netherlands, started playing the piano at age ten with the encouragement of his parents. At 18, he left his home country for the USA to pursue studies in marine biology, a major not offered as such in his home country. What spurred this interest was his passion for seashells (mollusks) which began when he picked up his first seashell at age 6. During his undergraduate studies in Myrtle Beach, SC, and his graduate studies and research at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, Silvard kept a busy performance schedule. In 1988, Silvard moved to Boston and was contracted by one of the Nation's leading convention hotels, the Boston Marriott Hotel at Copley Place, where he performed for 17 years.
In 1994, Silvard recorded his first piano album, Heartfelt, which features covers as well as original compositions. In 1996, he released his second album, Picture of Time, containing original, orchestrated piano compositions. His third album, Transcendent Voyage, a collection of piano solo compositions, hit stores in 1998. Silvard's fourth album, Postcard from Cape Cod, features piano solos he composed impromptu in the recording studio. Silvard refers to this process as "Freeflow." This album reached #6 on the international New Age and Instrumental Radio charts in the year 2000.
In the Summer of 2000, Silvard began selling his CDs during live performances on the popular television network, QVC. He produced three double albums, With Love and Keys to the Heart, both featuring his favorite love songs, and Spirit Within, a Christmas CD. During these one-hour, live concerts, Silvard's CDs were offered for sale and viewers call in with questions and testimonials. The live broadcasts resulted in sales of over 80,000 of Silvard's CDs and cassettes. The three double CDs are now re-released as single CDs.
Silvard's 2003 release "Touched by the Sea" contains 14 Freeflow compositions, of which the track "At Peace" is dedicated in memory of David Bloom. Silvard has donated a portion of the proceeds from this CD to the David Bloom Children's Trust Fund. The album reached #1 on the international New Age and Instrumental Radio charts in August, 2003, and #17 for the year 2003.
"Life is Grand..." (2006), a collection of Silvard's original compositions, reached #5 on the radio charts. Also in 2006, Silvard released a Broadway album. Besides Broadway favorites, it features movie themes. “From Broadway to the Movies” seemed the perfect title.
The music of Silvard is broadcast on radio and television in the USA as well as in countries such as Canada, France, Italy, Australia, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Panama, and many more. A growing number of healthcare practitioners, therapists, workshop coordinators, special education teachers, and physicians are using his music for its "soothing" and "therapeutic" quality. Furthermore, licensing agreements with other record labels and video and film production companies attest to the wide appeal of Silvard's music, now distributed in Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, and Korea.
Silvard keeps an active performance schedule throughout the USA, Canada, Europe and Asia. The highlight of every performance is when Silvard plays an impromptu Freeflow composition dedicated to the audience. Freeflow compositions are one-time spontaneously composed pieces, that Silvard can never play the same way again (See Freeflow).
Silvard and his soulmate, Barbara, and their two cats, reside part of the time in New Seabury on Cape Cod and part of the time in Panama. Whenever they can, however, they travel all over the world in search of mollusks, adventure, and musical inspiration. For the past five years, Silvard has been leading tours for the Harvard Museum of Natural History Museum to far-flung places such as New Zealand, Australia, Indonesia, Honduras, The Galapagos, New Guinea, and Brunei. Silvard has a passion for travel. His motto: there is no place like… far away from home!
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