Stain On The Sunset

Listen Here…

Artist Information

From his early days as a chorister Richard has shown great commitment to a varied musical career that has encompassed organ study, stints on the club circuit, a brief encounter with synth rock, composing library music and more recently playing guitar in a five-piece jazz ensemble. Alongside this he manages a small family-run building company which has been constructing new homes in selected locations around the Nottingham area for many years. The company specialises in the construction of traditionally built homes on smaller infill sites, sourcing its materials from local independent suppliers and with carefully crafted designs that accommodate the demands of modern day living.

The current musical journey for Richard Hinsley began in 2012, after a period of relative inactivity as a composer and chancing on a YouTube video showing an American pianist called David Nevue playing his own material at a house concert.

Richard began to wonder whether he could perhaps do something like that but had never considered performing as a solo artist and Richard didn’t have any suitable original material. David Nevue actually heads a 24-hour radio station in the US dedicated to solo piano called “Whisperings – Solo Piano Radio”,  (www.solopianoradio.com ) and periodically opens submission windows where artists can audition material for possible inclusion on the station playlist.

Shortly after that he composed a piece called “Wedding Day” which, although not realising it at the time would turn out to be one of the tracks on his debut solo piano album. In 2013 he was commissioned to compose a short piano piece as a soundtrack to a DVD being produced for the Radiotherapy Department at the local hospital. Richard then found a local recording studio where he recorded two tracks for consideration and enjoyed the experience of some valuable studio time.

At the same time, he had contacted David Nevue and enquired about the possibility of submitting material for consideration, but instead of the usual three tracks he required a complete album to audition. So, following a spike in creative activity, Richard did eventually have enough material for a complete album and decided to return to the studio the following year to record his audition CD.

In the summer of 2014 his debut album “A Dance At Twilight” was born and following the sessions and at the suggestion of the recording engineer Mick Wilson it was released on various digital platforms and Richard uploaded selected tracks onto various social media music sites. The release was made available for sale on digital stores such as Amazon and iTunes, along with steaming on Spotify. In November 2014, following successful audition of the CD, Richard Hinsley was then admitted as an artist on the roster of Whisperings Solo Piano Radio – currently consisting of around 300 artists worldwide, and three of the album tracks are in rotation on the station playlist.

Richard finally decided to take the plunge as a performer with a landmark performance at the Djanogly Recital Hall Nottingham in December 2015. This was a charity concert in aid of the ME Association, with all the music performed on the night being original and having the bonus of media promotion on BBC Radio Nottingham. Further solo lunchtime concert appearances have since taken place at venues like Southwell Minster and St George the Martyr Church in London with more planned for the future.

www.richardhinsleysolopiano.com

Project Information

In the summer of 2016 Richard recorded his second album “Stain On The Sunset”, which this time is to be commercially released on the MMC/Music & Media label.

The ten compositions on “Stain On The Sunset” clearly demonstrate Richard’s real passion, which is the solo piano, and this shines through with every performance of his self-composed pieces that are varied but have an unmistakable thread.

Each piece is inspired by a place, time, season or mood – and the listener is assisted by the beautifully evocative photographs relevant to each track that are featured in the booklet, together with informative notes by the composer.

Tracks can be sampled via www.richardhinsleysolopiano.com