Ezzie Stone

World Classical Music Awards 2023 S2 Grand Prize Winner

https://www.worldclassicalmusic.com/

Ezzie Stone is a Boston-based composer, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. He began playing drums and piano at the age of 3 and quickly developed a love of performing and writing songs after being influenced by Neil Young. Stone began songwriting in ernest at the age of 14 under the same guiding hand as all great composers do, a romantic muse. Stone currently works as a freelance drummer, focusing on musical theatre, and draws heavy influence from the shows he plays into his compositions. Additionally, he takes inspiration from film scores, concert music, and 70s rock. This piece, "Song of the Storm" , was originally written for the Lydian String Quartet as part of their Fall 2022 New Music concert. The roots of the piece date back about 10 years to an idea I had when I was bored in freshman math. I developed it over the years and assembled the various parts with the help of David Rakowski. The piece tells the story of great storm like the one from the story of Noah or from the Epic of Gilgamesh. My primary influences behind this piece were "The Prophet's Song" by Queen (Brian May), "Theme from Schinler's List" by John Williams, and the Sarabande from Handel's Keyboard Suite No. 4 (HWV 437). Other influences include Ennio Morricone, Bernard Herman, and Andrew Lloyd Webber. Ezzie would like tthank his parents Sarah and Jordan, as well as his siblings Sasha and Noah, and friends Liv Mancuso and JJ Hollander for their continued support. Stone would also like to thank his composition teacher David Rakowski for his guidance and encouragement throughout the writing and orchestrating process.More information about Ezzie Stone can be found on his website at https://ezralaurencestone.wixsite.com/drums