David Batt began playing piano at the age of three and received advanced training from Myron Press at the Longy School of Music in Cambridge, MA. He also took classes at the Boston Conservatory in music theory and harmony. After earning his Bachelors degree from Johns Hopkins University and doing graduate work in the neurosciences at U. Cal. Berkeley, Batt moved to Southern California to pursue his artistic goals. There he played in blues, rock, and jazz bands, and also composed and performed scores for dozens of professional theatrical productions in San Diego.
In October, 2003, under the pseudonym, Yrsan Daro, he released a collection of 13 avant-garde/new age piano improvisations entitled "Dreams of Wind and Water", and followed this up in 2006 with "Beyond the Edge of Time", a fusion of world, jazz, new age, and classical elements. Both CD's have been in the top 10 on the New Age Reporter's Top 100 Radio Airplay Charts, and "Beyond the Edge of Time" was nominated for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album in the 2006 NAR Lifestyle Music Awards.
Batt's third CD, "Screenplay", was released in September 2007, and is made up of mostly high-energy jazz, with world and classical influences.
This new work, "October Night", was part of a set of improvisations performed live at the South Pasadena Eclectic Music Festival on May 5, 2012. The piano is a Steinway D, generously provided by the Friends of the South Pasadena Public Library.
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