Personal Status: Married, two girls and one boy

Instruments: Piano, synthesizers Equipment: Roland XP80, Roland JP 8000, Yamaha DX7, Sequential Circuits Prophet 5 and Prophet 600, and Minimoog.

Bands: Abraxas, Midnight Mass, and Witsend (Syzygy)

Musical Training: 17 years private study with the late Dante Picciotti. Jazz and classical piano, counterpoint, four-part harmony and serial writing. 30years of continuous study.

Musical Influences: ELP, YES, Genesis, Gentle Giant, King Crimson, The Who, Jethro Tull, Deep Purple, Frank Zappa.

Favorite Keyboard players: Keith Emerson, Rick Wakeman, Patrick Moraz, Sunnyland Slim, Oscar Peterson, Art Tatum, Kerry Minear, George Duke, Tony Banks.

Current Favorite Artists: Planet X, Transatlantic.

Favorite Movie: Cool Hand Luke

Favorite Book: Theory and Composition of Music by Preston Ware Orem

Last Book read: Geotscuius, Counterpoint.

Personal Philosophy: Keep an open mind.

Sam on Carl: Carl is a musical genius. I love composing and developing themes with him. Something very magical evolves when our creativities merge. He has a wonderful knack for twisting and blending melodies and harmonies. Carl always manages to thrust me to my musical frontier. At the end of the day, everything naturally falls into place. Carl is a sharp, attentive guitarist, and a very artistic and astonishing musician. He has a keen ear for engineering and unceasingly strives for perfection. He is a very giving person that supplies the oxygen for Witsend/Syzygy, and I thank him.

Sam on Paul: Paul is the most tasteful drummer I have ever played with. He takes the rhythm section out of the backing role and fully integrates his drums into the melody, timbre, and atmosphere of the composition. He makes every conception take on a life of its own. Paul is a master of utilizing polyrhythms, syncopation, and improvisation to create beautifully colorful backgrounds. He is exciting to work with because he always creates an unexpected avenue to explore both rhythmically and musically. He is a man of many talents; one being his newly discovered vocal talent that surprised us and added another dimension to our music. Paul adds freshness and inspiration to everything we create. Paul's never ending dedication supplies the heartbeat for Syzygy and I thank him.

Sam on Syzyzgy: Syzygy is the melting pot of all our musical influences. People like it because we throw in a little bit of this and bit of that and stir it well to create our favorite dish. It is the lifeline of our musical compositions.