Paul Orsi is a very entertaining musician. His sheet music folio Paul Orsi: the Early Years contains six delightful pieces. The simple Sunrise Rag is my favorite of the set. Notable is his Echoes from the Mississippi, a concertino for piano and small orchestra, Orsi’s master’s thesis for his music studies at UC Riverside; both the full score and solo piano reduction are included in the folio. Standing tall in the collection is Orsi’s The Zebra Stomp, a deft distillation of the Stride style.
The Zebra Stomp is a great “first Stride piece” for players who “read from the score” and want to explore the style before tackling more difficult, improvisatory pieces (e. g. Carolina Shout, etc.). I myself had great fun at last playing Stride riffs and not sounding terrible in the process! Anyone interested in purchasing Paul Orsi: the Early Years can mail $30 to 27056 Cordero Ln., Mission Viejo, CA 92691. A recording of The Zebra Stomp can heard on YouTube.
