Michael Pinnella
Encyclopedia
Michael Pinnella is a keyboard player, most notably for the band Symphony X
. He has also released a solo album, a mixture of classical and progressive
-styled music titled Enter By the Twelfth Gate on the InsideOut Music
label in 2004. Michael is one of two Symphony X members to appear on all eight of the band's albums (the other being Michael Romeo
).
and was encouraged since childhood to follow music. When he was 4 years old, he started taking piano
lessons. He was heavily influenced by classic composers like Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, and Bach
.
When he was about 11 years old, he started to practice more seriously. Later in his youth, he was impressed by Yngwie Malmsteen and asked his parents to buy him a keyboard
. When he got into college, he studied piano performance, theory and composition, and other musical courses. Other influences came from progressive/metal bands from the 1970s (Emerson, Lake & Palmer
, Deep Purple
) and from the 1980s (Black Sabbath
, DIO
, Ozzy Osbourne
).
When Pinnella finished college, he started teaching piano in a music store. One of the fellow teachers at the store was friends with Michael Romeo
from Symphony X
. In 1994, he was hired by the band as a keyboardist.
He is currently working at the Guitar Center
in East Brunswick, NJ when not touring or recording. He is a Christian
and also plays piano
in his church.
Pinnella was also seen using a Roland
JP8000 analog modelling synth during the European leg of the 2007 tour.
Symphony X
Symphony X is an American progressive metal band from Middletown, New Jersey.Founded in 1994 by guitarist Michael Romeo, their albums The Divine Wings of Tragedy and V: The New Mythology Suite have given the band considerable attention within the progressive metal community...
. He has also released a solo album, a mixture of classical and progressive
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
-styled music titled Enter By the Twelfth Gate on the InsideOut Music
InsideOut Music
Inside Out Music is a German independent record label based in Kleve, in the North Rhine-Westphalia region, and dedicated to the publication of progressive rock, progressive metal and related styles music albums.-History:...
label in 2004. Michael is one of two Symphony X members to appear on all eight of the band's albums (the other being Michael Romeo
Michael Romeo
Since 2005, Romeo has taken advantage of a new custom model, Caparison Dellinger II - Michael Romeo Custom, which he used to record the Symphony X album Paradise Lost...
).
Biography
Pinnella was born in Point Pleasant Beach, New JerseyPoint Pleasant Beach, New Jersey
Point Pleasant Beach is a Borough in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 4,665....
and was encouraged since childhood to follow music. When he was 4 years old, he started taking piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
lessons. He was heavily influenced by classic composers like Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, and Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
.
When he was about 11 years old, he started to practice more seriously. Later in his youth, he was impressed by Yngwie Malmsteen and asked his parents to buy him a keyboard
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
. When he got into college, he studied piano performance, theory and composition, and other musical courses. Other influences came from progressive/metal bands from the 1970s (Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Emerson, Lake & Palmer, also known as ELP, are an English progressive rock supergroup. They found success in the 1970s and sold over forty million albums and headlined large stadium concerts. The band consists of Keith Emerson , Greg Lake and Carl Palmer...
, Deep Purple
Deep Purple
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members believe that their music cannot be categorised as belonging to any one genre...
) and from the 1980s (Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...
, DIO
Dio (band)
Dio was an American heavy metal band from Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Formed in 1982 and led by vocalist Ronnie James Dio, after he left Black Sabbath with intentions to form a new band with fellow former Black Sabbath member, drummer Vinny Appice. Naming the band Dio made sense from a commercial...
, Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
).
When Pinnella finished college, he started teaching piano in a music store. One of the fellow teachers at the store was friends with Michael Romeo
Michael Romeo
Since 2005, Romeo has taken advantage of a new custom model, Caparison Dellinger II - Michael Romeo Custom, which he used to record the Symphony X album Paradise Lost...
from Symphony X
Symphony X
Symphony X is an American progressive metal band from Middletown, New Jersey.Founded in 1994 by guitarist Michael Romeo, their albums The Divine Wings of Tragedy and V: The New Mythology Suite have given the band considerable attention within the progressive metal community...
. In 1994, he was hired by the band as a keyboardist.
He is currently working at the Guitar Center
Guitar Center
Guitar Center is the largest chain of musical instrument retailers in the world with 223 locations throughout the United States. Its headquarters is in Westlake Village, California....
in East Brunswick, NJ when not touring or recording. He is a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
and also plays piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
in his church.
Equipment
Pinnella uses the following equipment:- Yamaha MotifYamaha MotifThe Yamaha Motif is a series of music workstations, first released by Yamaha Corporation in August 2001. Other workstations in the same class are the Korg Triton, Roland Fantom-G and Alesis Fusion.-Motif Classic:...
ES7 - RolandRoland Corporationis a Japanese manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, electronic equipment and software. It was founded by Ikutaro Kakehashi in Osaka on April 18, 1972, with ¥33 million in capital. In 2005 Roland's headquarters relocated to Hamamatsu in Shizuoka Prefecture. Today it has factories in Japan,...
JV2080 and Roland A33 - Korg TrinityKorg TrinityKorg Trinity is a commercially successful synthesizer music workstation released by Korg in 1996. It was also the first workstation to offer modular expansion for not only sounds, but also studio-grade feature such as SCSI, ADAT, various sound engine processors, audio recording capability, and more...
and O1/W - AkaiAkaiAkai is a consumer electronics brand, founded by Saburo Akai as , a Japanese manufacturer in 1929. It is now headquartered in Singapore as a subsidiary of Grande Holdings, a Hong Kong-based conglomerate, which also owns the formerly Japanese brands Nakamichi and Sansui. The Akai brand is now used...
S3000
Pinnella was also seen using a Roland
Roland
Roland was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. Historically, Roland was military governor of the Breton March, with responsibility for defending the frontier of Francia against the Bretons...
JP8000 analog modelling synth during the European leg of the 2007 tour.
Discography
| Year | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Enter By the Twelfth Gate | Studio |