The dynamism and exhilaration that defines solo jazz piano began with the great stride piano masters of the 20s and 30s. These innovators, such as Thomas 'Fats' Waller, James P. Johnson and Willie "The Lion" Smith, pioneered a style and shaped an era that was, and continues to be, the most comprehensive and joyful jazz piano style in history . . . the style known as Stride Piano. As a teenager, Grant Simpson heard a recording of "Fats" Waller and was immediately captivated and inspired. He enrolled in traditional music lessons and amidst a conventional study of the classics, began "picking out" sections of the Fats Waller and James P Johnson recordings by ear. Grant's initial excitement and enthusiasm for the stride style has developed and flourished throughout his professional career and remains the focus of his creativity and performance. From the great standards of eras-gone-by to his unique execution Stride Piano Classics, one thing is for certain . . . an evening spent with Grant Simpson at the piano ensures that your audience will experience the art of stride and the excitement of tradition. During the past 25 years, Grant has performed in hundreds of diverse venues throughout the world including Korea, throughout the Caribbean, United States and Canada. He has appeared as a featured artist at many concerts and festivals including The Vancouver Dixieland Festival, Hermann's Jazz Club, on the MS Oosterdam, Montreal's Queen Elizabeth Hotel and many more. He has been a featured artist on CBC's famed Jazz Program "Hot Air" and has recently released a new Solo CD called "Stride and True" Grant performs as a soloist, in various duos and trios or with his own traditional jazz band "New Orleans North" For more information on any of these configurations, please visit our website at: http://grantsimpson.net