Artist description Do you miss real instuments, keys, horns, strings? Tired of music that doesn't touch the soul? Well, now there's a cure to your pain...Singer/songwriter John Virag's debut CD, "Dream Reality", is an intelligent and stylistically diverse work boasting lush arrangements, jazzy melodies, and masterful lyrics. It's songs, sung with intimacy, emotion, and haunting imagery, cover a range of topics from brotherhood and love to driving ambition, along with the ensuing struggles that accompany it's pursuit. John's knack of appealing to a wide audience, allowing people of all ages to identify with some aspect of his music, is felt almost immediately. A versatile collection of songs, packed with a powerful delivery, Dream Reality exhibits an array of styles spanning rock, pop, jazz, and world music.

Music Style Rock/Pop

Musical Influences Billy Joel, Sting, Peter Gabriel, Miles Davis, Pink Floyd, Don Henley, Tears For Fears, Steely Dan, and the list goes on...

Similar Artists Sting, Billy Joel, Don Henley, Steely Dan, Dave Matthews, John Mayer

Artist History John Virag has been what some might call a musical prodigy for most of his life. He attended his first show at the age of four, a Jazz Festival featuring Bix Beiderbeck. "It was one of those things you never forget as a kid," says John. "While the band was on stage I took my kazoo, jumped on a rock and started playing along with them. Pretty soon there was a crowd around me, and a local news crew filmed it. That night I saw myself on the six o'clock news. I guess ever since then I was bitten by the music thing."Needless to say, he wasted little time. At the age of six he began taking trumpet lessons. His love of an improvisational style of performing stems from this early training. At age seven he began learning the violin. By studying the famed Suzuki method, he developed a keen appreciation of music and a sharp ear. As he grew older, John began to concentrate on keyboards and bass, two instruments he frequently plays now. John's passion for music has often reached the extreme. As a young boy, John would sneak up to his aunt's room and ransack her closets, searching for old 45's of the Beatles, Elvis, and the Stones. One by one, he would slip the records onto the turntable and listen intently. It was at this point that he discovered yet another instrument, his voice. He was notorious for bouncing around the room while performing his pseudo-concert, and belting out the words to "I Saw Her Standing There" and "I Can't Get No Satisfaction" in a boyish tenor. Since his childhood days, John has consistently been involved in a variety of music, including rock, jazz, and show-tunes. He has studied under and performed with some of the most well-respected names in music, including Jim McNeely, George Butler, and Wynton Marsalis, with whom he took part in the Umbria Jazz Festival in Perugia, Italy. John can be seen frequenting the NYC scene with his band, so be on the lookout!

Group Members John Virag (Vocals, keys, trumpet) - B.D. Lenz (Guitar) - Gil Nagel (Keys) - Mark Rufino (Bass) - Toby Scarbrough (Drums)

Instruments Vox, piano, organs & synths, guitars, bass, drums, trumpet, strings, horns, percussion

Albums Dream Reality

Press Reviews http://www.mi2n.com/press.php3?press_nb=24962 http://www.godsofmusic.com?rID=2122 http://www.swrecords.net/sw_9.htm http://nyc.makemusic.org/sections.php?op=viewarticle&artid=100015

Location New York, New York - USA

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