Thank you, J.K. for connecting with me on Facebook.

How early in your career did you get a manager or agent?

I always managed myself until 1981 when I had my first manager.

I have been with my second manager since 2000 and our relationship has grown to a wonderful friendship.  Look for a manager who is passionate about your talent and shares your vision for your career.

Best of luck to you in your career.  I look forward to your first release!

Let’s connect on Facebook!  I am happy to answer any and all of your questions.  http://www.facebook.com/GiovanniMarradi

How and when did you get the confidence to perform live?  Where was your first performance?

I was lucky because my father was a conductor and he exposed me performing live.  The first time I ever played in front of people I was 14 years old and I was part of a band.  We performed in a school party.

My first paid gig was at the age of 16.  My five-piece band was hired to play in a hotel for New Year’s Eve.  When they paid us it was as if we had conquered the world!  I felt so great.  Making $200 for the night was a lot of money for any teenager at that time.

At the age of 17 I played the piano at this beautiful 5 Star Hotel.  It felt very natural to me playing and interact with people they made me feel good and proud to be there.

Then what happens in this business is the fans themselves make you comfortable.  I remember someone told me very early on not to be nervous because the audience would not have left their homes and paid money if they had not accepted you already.  It is not as if I was going out to audition, they were coming to the event so they were already receptive to me.  They are already sold.  They want to see you.  If you allow them, the audience will give you the confidence to perform.

You just have to play from your heart, not from your head.

My nephews (ages 6 and 9) were recently visiting from Orlando wanted me to play all of the time.  They were so impressed by the speed and the rhythm of the keys. Just watching me play gave them both some much inspiration to want to try and within a couple of days they were playing, not because they completely mastered all of the keys, but because they did it from using their own ear to put the notes together.

What are YOUR earliest memories of learning music?

Music_Angel23  on Twitter recently asked me this question…

How would you motivate a troubled young musician to get back in the business?

You must really want it.  There is no magic pill to get you motivated.  You need to want it so badly that it comes naturally to go back to it.

So my advice is to gradually go back to music.  Slowly and surely add it to your routine.  Set incremental goals for yourself.  Perhaps you start off with a half hour of playing your instrument, or writing out a few melodies.  Then build up from there.  Don’t put pressure on yourself to sit down and put in the 2 hours again every day.  That will feel like a chore, instead of an enjoyable way to bring your talent back into your life make it fun…..

I love answering your questions.  Let’s connect on Twitter at @GiovanniMarradi or on my Facebook Fan Page – http://www.facebook.com/GiovanniMarradi

I am often asked if all composing is the same.

There are many different divisions of composing.

Some composers find it easier to create while reading a script for a movie or watching different scenes.  Other composers create from lyrics they read and other composers create music anytime they play an instrument or hear a specific sound.

As for television shows, there is something that many people don’t realize – a sense of great urgency.  Consider shows such as Hawaii 5-0, Mission Impossible, or The Pink Panther to name a few.  These composers had only 30 seconds available for the opening theme to grab you with their music.

The Mission Impossible theme was so strong that it actually hypnotized the viewer within 10 seconds of the tune. That song was a big part of the success of the show.

There are also many types of breeds of composers.  Just because I am a composer does not necessarily mean that I feel comfortable composing music for a Broadway show, for instance.  In the same way a Broadway composer may not be as comfortable composing for a television show.  It takes a special type of breed for each style of medium.

I realized years ago that being a composer made somewhat of a philosopher. A question that I am asked frequently is why I don’t play more Jazz music.  There is something that we need to realize. Just because someone is a composer, performer or a singer it does not necessarily mean that they can or feel comfortable playing any style of music presented to them.

Just as there are many different types of doctors in the medicine field and the only thing that they have in common is their title “Doctor”.  I don’t think that a brain surgeon could perform a heart surgery just because he is a doctor.

What television theme song do you remember from your childhood?  What Broadway show song is your favorite?  Share your memories in the comments section below.

People often ask me how they can play the way I do.

The piano becomes an extension of me. The music is inside of me just like a finished canvas is inside of a painter.  If the painter thought about every brush stroke and technique it would paralyze him and restrict his creativity.  His brush is an extension of him. Take for instance gifted writers, golfers, tennis players, or dancers.  If they had to slow themselves down and analyze each sentence, golf or tennis swing or dance step they would lose their flow and hinder their abilities.

The key to being a really great artist of any kind is to let it flow out of you.  Try not to over analyze it and just express yourself through your talent. By tapping into what comes naturally to you, your skills will improve. The music is what you are and not what you do.  Your love for the music will enhance your ability to be your best.

How have you improved upon your own talent?  Did you put more time into your craft and let it progress from there?  I would love to hear what has worked for you.  Hey, you are never too old to learn new tricks, right?

As you have read in my previous posts, I am a big soccer enthusiast.  I have been watching the World Cup and I am so proud of how the USA did.  Unfortunately Italy did not make it as far as I would have liked.  I have found it challenging to enjoy as much soccer as I can while still trying to keep up with Wimbledon tennis at the same time.  What beautiful sports!

What I really love about watching soccer and tennis is that it allows me to rest my mind from music. This is really important to me because being a composer I can have so much music in my head.  Just like everyone else who lives and breathes their talent, it is wonderful when you can find an escape in which you can relax your mind and shut it off for a little while.  Watching sports relaxes me and allows me to recharge.

What do YOU do to relax and recharge?  I am fascinated by what helps other people and perhaps I will find a new way to relax from your suggestions.  Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Just as an art teacher cannot tell a protégé to paint yellow on the left side of the canvas instead of blue, so a music teacher cannot tell a student how to create music.

My philosophy about music is Be Yourself.  Be your own creative self.

I don’t believe that composing is something that you can learn like you learn other subjects.  Composing is something that you are born with.  It is more of a feeling of a “knowing how.”  I think we are all born composers.  Animals in nature such as birds have the most beautiful music.  The birds in the Amazon have wonderful melodies that we don’t hear anywhere else in the world.

If a young musician would ask me to help him learn to compose I would sit him down at the piano and ask him what he feels and then tell him to play that emotion on the keys.  The moment he plays three to four notes, that is called composing.

Out of nowhere a couple of months ago my son, Matthew, sat down he is writing some of the most incredible melodies I have ever heard.  I am not saying this because he is my son.  I quickly grabbed a music sheet and started to write everything he was creating because it was unbelievable. It was beautiful the way he was playing it, expressing it and painting his music.   Composing is something you are, not really something you learn.

If I told him to change a variation or play it another way it would no longer be his anymore.

What other questions do you have about composing, writing music or getting inspired?  Write your question in the comment section below and I will answer it as quickly as possible.

I am happy to announce a New Special offer on the music sheets page on this site.  I have been overwhelmed by fans all over the World wanting music sheet of their favorite songs & I wanted to make sure that the Music was written simple enough for anyone to follow and play.

I will be releasing 12 New music sheet songs every month.

Please log to the Music Sheet page and see the Special offer that we have especially for our online customers.

I am very excited about this new CD that I just completed entitled Because I Love You.  I have been working on it for over a year.  It is a very ambitious project and it is a little bit away from my normal style of music.  I am looking forward to hearing the fan’s reactions to it.

New Castle Records will be announcing the release date of Because I Love You in the next couple of weeks.  Stay tuned!

I am also heading back to Las Vegas to launch my new CD release.  I will be performing two shows on Saturday and Sunday, September 25^th and 26^th at the Sun Coast Hotel and I hope to see you there after the show.

This Fall I will also be releasing a second CD entitled  Softly which is a compilation of my most requested solo piano original songs. The release date of this album will also be announced in the next few weeks.

So now I am going to turn the tables a little bit.  I enjoy receiving questions from you but this time I have a question for you.

What is your favorite song that I have written? This is not a question to feed my ego.  I like to find out what certain melodies have touched people.  I like to hear the stories of what emotions or memories a particular song brings up for you.  Does it remind you of a particular event of a special someone?

Please share YOUR answer in the comments section below.  Hearing your stories inspires me to create more music for you.