Adrian Rose - Classical Guitar

I am a guitarist and composer based in Birmingham. I play classical, electric and bass guitar and I’m a regular musician on the local theatre circuit, where you might also be lucky enough to hear me play banjo!

My own music is really about ‘mixing it’, both in terms of the instruments used and in my approach to the music – sometimes written down in detail, other times improvised. My current project follows in this vein, fusing electric and acoustic string instruments with percussion. This should hopefully be going live during 2011.

As I have only recently discovered the music of The Tangent, I was excited by the possibility of being able to contribute something to the next album. Having decided to use my classical guitar for the solo, I have enjoyed the challenge of using this particular sound over the funky backing track provided. I am now intrigued by how the whole 20 minutes will sound! http://www.adrianrose.co.uk/

Stéphane Peter - MorphWiz

I was born in France but I am now living in Los Angeles, California. I am a hobbyist musician and can play guitar, bass, and keys. I am not currently part of a band but I have been writing and playing music for fun since my childhood. I am also fond of progressive rock music and the Tangent is one of my favorite European bands in that genre. After hearing about the contest, it seemed like the kind of challenge that would be right up my alley! I tried to think of something that would set me apart from other competitors and decided to use an iPad app to submit my entry - even though I am probably better versed in other more traditional instruments. I hope I am able to make a small contribution to the music of a band I would love to see live one day! :) http://www.myspace.com/stephanepeter

Andrew Roussak - Grand Piano and Kurzweil synthesizer

Born in Russia in the industrial city of Ufa, Andrew began to learn to play piano at the age of 7. After having graduated from the Ufa State College of Arts as a pianist, Andrew was employeed as a studio musician and as a chief musical editor at the local broadcast station. Side by side with the classical music , his major influences of that period were the recordings of Keith Emerson and Rick Wakeman. Main classical preferences - J.S.Bach, F. Chopin, G. Gershwin. Since that time till today, the massive keyboard sound together with the virtuoso piano fingerwork feature his recordings made for the various bands and projects.

Since 2001, Andrew Roussak lives in Germany as a freelance artist, playing live gigs with the bands and solo piano concerts, writing orchestra scores, doing studio jobs and giving the piano and keyboard lessons.

In 2006, Andrew won the German Pop & Rock Award as the best keyboard player and the best instrumental soloist.

In 2010, Andrew's first solo piano album BLUE INTERMEZZO was published by MUSEA Rec. France. / classiques du futur label.

www.andrew-roussak.com

Chris Payne - Electric Guitar

Hey Andy, it's funny, theirs a guy who looks like you who lives by my house and everytime me and my brother pass him, we always say, hey look it's Andy Tillison, hoping one day that it acutally is you, so we could feed you tea and cake and discuss music and the order of the universe.

And thanks, everytime I do silly little videos I always seem to wear that t-shirt, it must be some weird omen or something, it doesnt seem to bring me luck, but it does pose a more comfortable setting whenever people ask me what nationality am I, and one of the options is already been mentioned, sort of like a very visual game of hangman.

And yea I uploaded the video myself on You Tube, but I'm guessing you's are gonna upload it yourself, which should be pretty cool.

And yea what info do you need, because I'm only 18, and bio seems to strong a word for me haha.

Oh and good luck with the album, can't wait to hear it when its released, even if I don't appear on it, but I may shed a tear when listening to that solo section and reminisce what may have been...even so, should be another great release

Marc Papeghin - French Horns

I'm a french horn player, arranger, composer from France. I've been playing the horn since I was 8 y/o....and am now 26 ! I've always loved playing unconventional things, multitrack recording and thinking out-of-the-box when arranging.
And being a huge progessive rock/metal fan I very quickly felt the need to try and play those crazy, tasty, shreddy solos on the horn ;) And so I've been doing lots of "french horn tributes"..there's one to Dream Theater, one to Neal Morse, the maestro John Williams and many others..

Now I've loved The Tangent ever since The Music That Died Alone was released...the "Not As Good As The Book" novel was one of the best read I've had..
so here I am, naturally recording some horn for this awesome competition ! :) http://www.marcpapeghin.com/

Kerry Chicoine - Electric Guitar

Thank you for allowing me the pleasure of playing guitar over your solo section for “The Wiki Man” from the upcoming “COMM” album; attached is an MP3 of my music/solo mix for your consideration. I will be sending a “guitar only” (including opening clicks for syncing) .WAV in another email momentarily. 

I recorded this last Friday night before heading out on a 5-day camping trip, so I haven’t had time to film a video for it yet but I will be doing so later this week; hopefully by the end of this week I will be sending you the video (it will be a cell-phone video, sorry!), a picture and some background information.

 Thanks again – I had a blast improvising a guitar solo over this passage!!!

Kerry Chicoine

www.marshollow.com

Steve Mauk -Keyboards

Steve Mauk (keyboards/vocals) grew up in a musical household listening to Broadway musicals and classical symphonies. Steve started classical piano lessons at age six and studied with his Grandmother (a published songwriter and professional violinist and pianist).

As a teenager -- having heard albums like Emerson, Lake and Palmer’s “Tarkus” and Genesis’ “Selling England by the Pound” -- Steve became a rabid fan of progressive rock, seeking out every band he could find from Magma to Van de Graaf Generator. His favorites were ELP and Genesis, with Brain Salad Surgery and The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway having the strongest, most lasting musical impact.
Steve formed his first band in high school and worked in numerous prog-rock and Top 40 bands from the late ‘70s throughout the early ‘90s. While studying composition and electronic music at UCLA, he played the LA club circuit with new wave bands Aquatint and 99 Temptations, along with pop/rock band Lily White. He also scored numerous short films and composed music for various cable television programs, and at one point worked with Sugarloaf songwriter J.C. Phillips (who wrote the classic ‘70s FM radio staple “Green Eyed Lady”).
Steve assembled his first synthesizer from a PAIA kit and began to acquire thrift store Farfisias and Wurlitzers back in the days when such instruments could still be commonly found; he continues his life-long fascination with exploring new equipment -- and sound design -- and remains a self-professed gear geek.

Having taken time away from the music business to focus on his family, Steve returned to his prog-rock roots in the mid-2000s, forming a songwriting collaboration with drummer/vocalist Jerry Beller and bassist/vocalist Kerry Chicoine which would eventually lead to the formation of Mars Hollow. www.marshollow.com

Piyatut Hemstapat - Keyboards!

My name is Piyatut Hemstapat. My Nickname is Bill.
I'm Thailand keyboardist of the Progressive rock duo band called "Lucid Dream Syndrome" (www.facebook.com/LDSduo)

I started to play piano at age 8 . At age 12 I started to play flute in the school band and still keep studying piano
at the same time. At age 15 I decide to go to College of Music Mahidol University the best known music conservatory in Thailand. I've passed the test and College accept me as a student. Actually I'm majoring on classical flute but I've heard my friend listen to Dream Theater at age 16 and it makes me interested in progressive rock and start to play keyboard,synthesizer.

In October 2010 I've approached by Space4keys to work with them as a patch demo guy.
So, that's why I form Lucid Dream Syndrome and compose a piece for demo their keyboard patch.
(see more here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8Fi9dbFB_4 )

I want to enter this competition because I want to have an experience to play with such a great prog band like "The Tangent" and get many of knowledge from high respect musician like you guys.

Thanks for watching my entry

Best Regard,
Bill, Piyatut Hemstapat

Federico Fantacone - Piano

52 years old FF has a large experience in prog-tronics since from the mid seventies. After havin played keyboards in various indie prog bands near Milan, he founded the ORCHESTRE CELESTI project in 2005. He  uses the creative moniker of OC  for his endeavours in the field of music, as a composer of instrumental prog. The idea was to blend the stylistic expressions of typical Italian prog artists with the English 70's variety, and to add innovation to this mixture by spicing it all up with contemporary electronic soundscapes. All compositions are instrumental, but sampled voices are used on occasion.
Fantacone have issued two albums under the Orchestre Celesti moniker so far: Compi La Tua Magia in 2007 and Black and Red in 2009.
On a side note, the artist name - Celestial Orchestra - is a reference to an old Chinese art now alomost forgotten, in which doves were trained to follow specific flight patterns. Once the trajectories were all set, small flutes were attached to the legs of the birds, who then produced music according to the patterns they'd been trained to fly. http://www.myspace.com/orchestrecelesti