My recording of original compositions contains piano solos; chamber music written for theater productions, including Spontaneous Me: A Night with Walt Whitman (1995 premiere); The Provincelands written in a dune shack on the backshore of Cape Cod; Water composed for artist Paul Resika’s Creation series (Berta Walker Gallery 2005), and two compositions recorded in Nepal and Uzbekistan based on Buddhist and Koranic chants that include field recordings of Tibetan horse bells in the Annapurna Sanctuary. It is a 75-minute journey of the music of our world.
Composing Myself
Look to the Stars
Look to the Stars celebrates the stars, the moon, oceans, rivers, love and the human spirit. The recording includes music by a constellation of composers: classical treasures, art songs, pop melodies, Broadway songs, film themes, two world premiere recordings of songs by Lucy Simon, and one of my compositions.
I appreciate the production expertise of MP Kuo and Michael Holland, the heaven-bound voices of Felix Hess, Trish LaRose, Alison Mahoney and Nathan Morgan, the percussion textures of Jeffrey Roberts, the beautiful cover photograph by Eileen Counihan, and the dozens of supporters of our Kickstarter campaign for this recording.
The recording features “Sidoli’s rich, beautiful tenor… and Thomas’ lush piano to create a soothing soundtrack for your day…. [T]he recording quality is absolutely perfect, enhancing the experience of such joyful music all the more.” – Rebecca M. Alvin, Provincetown Magazine
4 Hands, 2 Guys, 1 Piano!
Piano duo music by Irving Berlin, Eubie Blake, George Gershwin, Louis Moreau Gottschalk, Scott Joplin, John Philip Sousa and original music by John Thomas.
“Thomas and Bisaccia dig deeply into rhythms and sounds that excite and yet soothe the senses…. Their compilation… is subtitled ‘American Music,’ emphasizing the New Orleans-based ragtime that flavors, like spicy gumbo, our national musical culture…. Thomas also composed a few ‘rags,’ which, as recorded and also performed live, cast their own spell.” – Susan Rand Brown, Provincetown Banner
“[P]opular music from the late 19th to early 20th century in America… gives the CD a certain nostalgic feeling. It conjures up silent movies showing in nickelodeons, women in long, late-Victorian dresses, and gin-joints with ragtime piano players.” – Rebecca M. Alvin, Provincetown Magazine