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PAUL Lloyd Warner believes that great music has a positive influence on humankind. The creation of his music is ruled by this philosophy, and is apparent to anyone who listens to his work.
The principle that music can be healing is the creative genius at work in the music of this composer. With a musical style characterized by sophisticated pedal work and subtle use of overtones, Paul is a pioneer of new piano techniques. His music has furthered the development of multiple overtones, bringing to the piano a dynamic complexity. A technique he developed, called the "moiré effect", employs an intricacy and speed of performance, revealing slower secondary melodies, giving the illusion of two pianists, or multiple recording tracks.
Though his roots in music are with the early 20th century French composers, Debussy and Ravel, what distinguishes Paul’s  unique style is the mixture of Impressionism with Chinese and Japanese musical traditions. While residing in Hawaii for 16 years from 1968 to 1983, Paul was immersed in listening and studying these two great musical traditions. As a result of blending Western and Eastern styles, Paul Lloyd Warner’s music is poetic, natural, affirmative, exuberant, uplifting, reflective, and spiritual.
In many ways, Paul created his own musical genre, The New Classical Music known as “Progressive Classical Music” which combines elements of pure classical music, with the spiritual and healing qualities of new age music, incorporating Asian and native influences. Form and structure, generally not found in new age music, are essential components to this new music which is both inspirational and visionary.
Piano . . . Keyboards
Sales of Paul's early solo piano albums in 1979 and beyond,  established him as a widely sold new age artist. Until 1989 Paul played the piano exclusively, then in 1990 Paul began to play the third generation digital sampling keyboards. This allowed him to create, via the use of multiple keyboards, symphonic digital music utilizing an enormous palette of musical color and texture. The adaptation of his piano to electronic keyboards has brought the artist's work to a new level of competency and broadened the appeal of his music to the public.
Though many artists now utilize the sampling keyboard technology, Paul has taken a unique approach to electronic music. While it is typical for an play each section of an orchestra on his or her keyboards, then mix them together to make the final product, the music. Multiple tracking is ubiquitous in the musical world, especially in film music and pop. LIVE Performance, playing several keyboards in the same session is what excites and challenges Paul Lloyd Warner. Due to the technological advancements electronic sampling keyboards, it is feasible to perform complex orchestral music all at one time in the same recording session, without having to multitrack or sequence the music from separate recordings mixed together in an editing session. This multiple keyboard performance technique forces the artist to play all of the music at the same time.
Thus, the artist must utilize four recording disciples simultaneously. Firstly, he or she must play a composition, improvise, or a combination of both. Then, the artist must play, or perform, all the parts at one time. Strings, horns, woodwinds, percussion and solo instruments, if any, must all be played seamlessly together. is particularly demanding. PLW's music is surprisingly rich and complex, sustaining an illusion of many instruments being played together. This means that the sampling keyboard artist needs to first adapt his or her piano technique to electronic keyboards and accurately play solo instruments such as violin, harp, flute and oboe with precision and accuracy. In fact, the playing has to be so good that most listeners cannot tell the difference between the real instrument and the electronic replication.
It took Paul several years until he was satisfied that he could play the harp on keyboards and sound like he was playing a real harp. Of course, most professional harpists will know the difference, and he has even fooled some of them into believing he was playing a real harp. It may take years for a keyboard artist to master a particular instrument on the keyboard, but this isa mandatory requirement. I t means that playing “legato” (soft, smooth transition from note to note in order to carry a singing tune) is fundamental to the illusion of playing real instruments on keyboards. It takes months and years of practice to play a flute so well, that even the flautists breathing becomes a conscious component in playing that flute through one’s fingers, on a keyboard. Moreover, playing an orchestral string section one two keyboards, along with a solo violin on another, then with a flute on a fourth keyboard, all utilizing pedals to “mix” and blend all the sounds in a LIVE performance, takes tremendous control and discipline to pull it off.
Thirdly, the artist must be the conductor. This means, playing a composition, or improvising, the artist is performing multiple instruments simultaneously on several keyboards, going from one to another, playing different keyboards with left and right hands, holding down multiple pedals, all for the purpose of playing complex music first and second, he or she now must keep it all together as a conductor, making sure the tempo is maintained, while giving emphasis to certain sections, notes and phrases. The multi keyboard artist has to keep it all together and interpret the music WHILE he or she is performing all of the parts simultaneously. This is a formidable task, especially when the artist he also improvising the music as he, or she, goes along.
Add the experience of doing all this in nature, playing this music in the wilderness on a sophisticated digital recording powered by truck batteries inverting DC to AC power, then you consider the fourth disciple that is essential to a good recording - the recording engineer.
To review, the artist must play a composition, or improvise one while performing multiple instruments on several keyboards at one time, while interpreting the music as a conductor AND wearing the hat of a recording engineer, making sure the digital recording is a faithful reproduction of that performance. Finally, all this is being played far in the wilderness, at scenic locations that take a long time to get to and set up.
It’s daunting, exhilarating, technical and a creative output of first magnitude. One cannot make an obvious mistake, or else the recording is ruined. However, when Paul does make a mistake and hit a wrong note, he is faced with an instantaneous choice of starting all over again, or taking advantage of the “wrong” not to start a new idea and lead the performance into fresh and unknown territory. Here is when improvisation becomes very challenging. Can the wrong note eventually lead to even greater music than was originally intended? When this happens, especially overlooking a magnificent mountain or waterfall, a gorgeous scenic spot that took a lot of work to get there, and set up, then we have some of a most innovative way of making music appear in the world for the first time.
It is now possible for a musical performing artist to set up a suite of keyboards and electronic equipment on stage and play large scale music to an audience. It may not be an exact replication of an orchestral performance in a concert hall with soloists and conductor, but it will be music, nevertheless, made electronically by a single artist utilizing a technological array of keyboards, synthesizers, computers, sound and recording gear, along with mastery of keyboard technique inside the soul and heart of an inspired artist.
The New Classical Music is born in the last decade of the 20th century and discovers itself in the early 21st. Listening to classical music for a long time, broadens the mind and exposes listeners to a vast library of great music. It may take some education to fully appreciate classical music, but the end result is absolutely exquisite and wonderful music.
The New Classical Music is founded upon classical music to be sure, and it is not exclusive to it. In other words, native traditions may come into play, as well as Asian and world music blend in with a deeper purpose. Music must be blessed with melodious and harmonious components. The average person might have difficulty following abstract, 12 tone 20th century music. There is only so much cacophony one can tolerate. Music just has to be beautiful to the listener, or inspiring, or mind boggling, whatever the genre; it has to take the listener on a journey of some kind, begin, develop and go somewhere. If music doesn’t do that at a basic level, then it’s not fulfilling the high most purpose - to engage the listener, move the heart, force tears to come at time, and make the spirit soar.
The New Classical Music integrates the soul into mind and heart. With the meditative influence from the East, the spiritual ad healing qualities of music rooted in nature becomes present and a counterpoint of the music. Thus, a gateway opens to the cosmos and the composer-performer of the future is here, right now.
Forward thining, aware of the cosmos surrounding our world, a 21st century artist contemplates the Universe. Time and space become a factor to consider when making the New Classical Music yet even more important is awareness of the human race as it comes together through global communications. Therefore, the new classical music is imbued with the soul of humanity interpreted through the light of spiritual awareness. It is healing, beneficial, uplifting and nurturing.
The new classical music is grounded in beauty and the music of the heart. It is internalized, deeply felt and from the heart. It is founded in truth, in nature, in beauty and love.
Paul Lloyd Warner Brief Biography
 A productive composer, Paul has an infinite range of mood, imagery, feeling and sensitivity, with a tremendous palette of musical instruments at his electronic disposal. His music ranges from the most barely audible tones of a harp all the way to full symphonic scores and solo music for piano. Paul plays LIVE for the Whales on a 70 foot sloop off the coast of Maui in 1976. His music is essentially non-rhythmic. He is known by his fans to be an inspired composers of beautiful music for health and spiritual renewal.
Born in Los Angeles, California, 1938, Paul began his musical training at age seven. By his mid-teens Paul was studying advanced piano composition and technique with the noted Esther Lipton. After completing his studies in literature at UCLA, he continued his musical education in Florence, Italy. It was while in Europe that Paul began to develop an original, yet classical style of composition and performance for the piano. Influenced strongly by well-known composers such as Debussy, Ravel, and Fauré, the music of PLW is modern, yet classically based, and wonderful to listen to.
Returning to the United States in 1963, Paul settled in New York City where he spent the following five years exploring the neophyte electronic music movement then taking hold in the city, while working as a freelance photographer. In 1968, Paul moved his newfound knowledge to the more relaxed environment of Maui, Hawaii. While in Hawaii, he continued developing a style of composition and performance, true to the guiding principles of the classics, yet infused with modern interpretation, personal reflections, and inspired by the beauty of nature. This can be heard in his first album, Waterfall Music, released in the late 1970's in the Hawaiian Islands.
While in Hawaii, Paul became the first musician to play music for Humpback whales  in the open ocean on a 70 foot sailboat. With the use of a white grand piano fastened mid-ship and sophisticated underwater speakers, he played his music to nearby whales who swam underneath the boat for several hours, turning cartwheels, like acrobats underwater. Their joyful responses, caught on film by marine divers, were an inspiration and milestone to the artist and to thousands who watched the documentary on public television channels.
Upon his return to the mainland in 1983, Paul made his residence in California. From his coastal location he traveled throughout the United States in his motor coach specially outfitted with a digital recording studio. He returned to Honolulu briefly to play music for the  Dolphins at Sea Life Park, a Dolphinarium on the coast of Oahu. The music was piped underwater and the following photograph shows the response the dolphins made by literally dancing out of the water. As a musician in touch with nature, he derives the inspiration for his works from the beauty of his surroundings. He records on location at such beauty spots as the Grand Canyon, the Olympic Rain forest, Yosemite, the deserts of the Southwest, and America's rugged western coastline.
Presently Paul resides in the San Diego area and is actively cataloguing his entire life's output of music, more than 30 albums released and more to be released in the future. He is a highly prolific composer and is currently preparing for the next phase of his music by multi-tracking large scale orchestral forces into a new holographic musical system that promises to bring his music to new dimensions of beauty in the emerging 21st Century music.
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