George Skaroulis Biography
At age five, George began playing the piano sitting on the piano bench next to his mother, a classically trained pianist, watching and listening. One day, he started playing along with her by ear, and he was hooked. Eventually George performed at talent shows in his elementary schools, and on weekends, his father took him to the piano store at the local mall. Crowds would gather around to watch, perhaps this was an early indication performing was destined to be in George’s future.
At age ten, his parents encouraged him to take piano lessons, yet after a few weeks George found them too limiting and way too structured. He never learned to read music, preferring to play by ear and from the heart. As a teenager, George followed the footsteps of his Greek grandfather and had a rewarding career in the restaurant industry. He studied culinary arts, and eventually spent over 20 years in the restaurant business. Privately, he continued to play piano and eventually compose and create his own songs. After moving to Atlanta, he had an opportunity to record his debut album Homeland in 1996. It was then that George’s independent record label Evzone Music was born. His soothing style and flowing melodies struck a chord with massage therapists, Yoga instructors, spas and the healing arts.
After releasing 4 albums, George decided to put his restaurant career on the back burner, and took a leap of faith to pursue his passion for music full time. Since then George has recorded 16 albums including Homeland, Numinous, Season Traditions, Athena, Generations, Second Nature, Return to Homeland, Snow, Forever Young, Adagio: the music of Chris Spheeris, Sanctuary, Reunion , Imagine, and Songs for Sophie. In addition, George has released two sheet music books of his original compositions.
Even animals have a positive response to George’s music. When the training and behavior coordinator of the Atlanta Humane Society began using George’s soothing piano music to relax anxious dogs in their kennels overnight, the calming results were remarkable. George organized several successful fundraisers to benefit the group and was soon named the Humane Society’s official musician in Atlanta.Recently, George's CD soundtrack, “The Divinity of Dogs - Music to Calm Dogs and the People Who Love Them” hit the #3 spot on Amazon's Hot New Age Release chart.
George’s music has also been featured in several nationally aired PBS documentaries, and can be heard on: Music Choice, Sirius Satellite Radio, Martha Stewart Living Radio and NPR. George's Christmas album Season Traditions won Best Holiday Album of 2011 by solopiano.com. He generously has performed benefit concerts for nonprofits including Haiti Disaster Relief, Tsunami Relief, Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention, as well as the Humane Society, the American Cancer Society and AIDS research.
In mid-2014, George's song "Fragile" was named one of the top 50 new age solo piano compositions by ReviewsNewAge.com
An entirely new collection of music, Sanctuary 2, the sequel to his best selling CD, was released on June 2, 2015. His album Sanctuary, released in 2006, became a centerpiece for massage therapists, healers, and all wishing to escape to a personal calm, peaceful inner sanctum. As our lives seem to spin at such a hectic pace, it seemed an appropriate time to release a sister album to the original. It is often said, "Love makes the world go 'round." We can easily forget to step back, take a deep breath, relax, and appreciate what we love in our lives. Now, more than ever before, we must learn to slow down, reflect and recharge, taking the time to find our own peaceful sanctuary.
SHIN, released in 2018, is music to feed the soul. George shares original compositions along with his versions of some of his favorite songs inspired by film and others inspired by artists including Bonnie Raitt, George Perris, Billy Joel, Sam Smith, Roberta Flack, and Lara Fabian.
New, Now, Next:
George's new album Wondrous Winterland, a collection of newly recorded holiday classics was released in December 2021. Highlights include White Christmas, My Favorite Things, and Oh Come O come Emmanuel.
He is currently working on an upcoming album in 2022 titled Dreams of Greece. Stay tuned!
All of George’s music can be found at GeorgeSkaroulis.com as well as on iTunes, Google Play, Amazon Music, and Spotify.
As always, thank you for supporting independent music.