Neil Shah - Pianist/Vocalist/Composer

Combining raw talent and a passion for great melodies with technical prowess and creative ingenuity, Neil Shah makes extraordinary music.

He performs and records with a diverse array of jazz and pop acts ranging from critically-acclaimed MOPDTK to chart-topper Kanye West. Neil recently completed producing an EP for singer-songwriter Simon Spire, due out in winter 2010. His piano work is featured on the Atlantic Records single All Comes Back to You, by popular British recording-artist Estelle.

Neil has received acclaim as pianist with the Standards Trio and with baritone saxophonist Charles Evans. Released on jazz label Hot Cup, their latest album, Live at Saint Stephens, features the duo performing dense poly-tonal compositions intertwined with heavily improvised sections.

As a songwriter and solo artist, Neil has released several of his songs as singles, available at performances and on iTunes and Amazon MP3. These recordings combine his artistry as a singer, pianist and songwriter, while highlighting his arranging and production skills working with New York City's music talent. A full-length album is scheduled for release in summer/fall 2010.

Based out of a custom-designed Pro Tools studio, Neil composes and records music for television and film. He works with several of New York's top music houses including Limebeat, for clients including American Express, Colgate and the Food Network. Neil's piano work can be heard on Emmy Award-winning composer Randy Lee's score to the feature-film The Good Student, starring Tim Daly, Hayden Panetierre and Executive Produced by Kevin Spacey. Recently Neil completed arranging and co-producing a series of reggae tracks for the feature-film Cayman Went, released in theaters in NYC and LA. Five original folk-americana songs from his 2005 album The Last Leaves were featured on the national television series Road Trip Nation on PBS.

Raised in a musical family, Neil had an early start, and began formal piano lessons at age 4. By 12, he was performing the original version of Scott Joplin’s Maple Leaf Rag blind-folded as entertainment at local events. After fronting several almost-famous rock bands, Neil went on to earn a Bachelor of Music in piano performance from the Philadelphia College of Performing Arts and a Master of Music in jazz studies from the University of North Texas. He has performed in concert with internationally-renowned legends and jazz artists including Grover Washington Jr., Eddie Gomez, Bob Brookmeyer, Mingus Band, and Chris Potter.