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Biography

Paul Clarke

My name is Paul Daren Clarke. I was born in Frome, a small market town in the south-west of England. I have been living in Traunstein, Germany for the last 23 years with my wife and two children. 

I started playing piano at the age of 8 years old and continued having lessons till when I was 16. I was taught in the old classical way by a grandparent of my cousins for a fee of 50p for 30 minutes. Well, it was 1977! I also attended St.John's church choir in Frome during this time and was there till I was 11 or 12 years old. My Grandad also attended, singing bass. He was a keen pianist and as well as being church warden, he played piano for Sunday school every week.

My luck came in 1991 when I managed to get a position as a keyboard, organ and piano teacher. It was through the Technics Music Academy (TMA), a very successful music course which was very popular in various countries around the world at that time. It was also recommended by the Trinity College Of Music and for me it was a step through the door to a teaching career. After sitting a teaching exam I attended teacher training courses which helped me through the concept of teaching. It was basically aimed at teaching the piano, keyboard or organ in groups of up to 6 students at a time using the most up to date digital pianos of the time. The students would not only learn how to play songs together, they would also learn how to keep in time with each other as well as learning music theory and arranging their own backings to songs. They would also have a chance to enter a competition, which would first be performed locally, and if the student won, he or she would then enter a semi-final at another location. The final of this annual competition was always held at the Birmingham NEC in England. There were many pupils who came to our TMA studio and the most I taught a week was 92! It was great though and I really enjoyed this way of teaching.

In 1997 I met my future wife, Karin from Germany. We now live and work here in Traunstein, near the Austrian border. I still teach the piano,but privately.

Over these last 20 or so years, I have started writing my own music. My first project was a music 'storybook' of the Nativity which I arranged on an old keyboard of mine and an old Atari computer which I had brought over with me from England. I then started to write a few contemporary pieces for example, in pop and rock n roll style and recorded quite a few over a period of time. About 8 years ago, I managed to get one of my songs noticed for a TV programme, which was a rock n roll Christmas song, and we filmed the video in Inzell not far from here.

It's Christmas Time!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3I1MZnN1wKQ

Into The Light Of The Moon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkoLOlefP_k

In The Heart Of A Storm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dG9bwGOc8pI

Autumn Leaves

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1k7qlEu7ERY

Sorry

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnFZmMTAYGA