Rave Tesar

Keyboardist, Composer, Producer, Engineer

Growing up in a musical household, Rave began playing piano at an early age, and developed an affinity for all styles of music. He began his career working on the Jazz scene in and around New York with numerous groups and leaders. His reputation soon led to national and international tours as a side man with singer Frankie Randal, rock and roll hall-of-famers "The Shirells" and the minimalist pop group "Tirez Tirez", led by Mikel Rouse. Rave is, perhaps, best know for his long-standing collaboration with singer Annie Haslam and her progressive rock band "Renaissance". Serving as a co-writer and producer, Rave worked on several of Haslam's solo projects as well as the 2001 Renaissance "live" from Japan CD, "The Land of the Rising Sun", and the most recent Renaissance studio album, "Grandine il Vento", on which he also served as primary producer.

In addition to his work in jazz and pop music, Rave has written and recorded numerous works for film and television. He is also an educator, and is featured as such in the public television series, "Exploring the World of Music".

Currently, Rave is finishing up his third CD with the Rave Tesar Trio, following the success of the albums "You Decide" and "Defragment Now". The trio has received high critical praise, with "You Decide" having been presented as one of the favorite piano trio releases of 2008 by several jazz critics. The trio includes bassist Kermit Driscoll and Rave's brother, Bill Tesar, on drums.