Santa Fe resident Bob Yonker, creates solo piano music with the intent of helping the listener to heal.
Growing up in the northeast, Bob's earliest musical memory is of his mother singing and playing the piano in his childhood home. He can remember the curiosity while watching her play and was always fascinated by the sounds created by the piano and how it worked.
At the age of 4, he began piano lessons, but after a year, his teacher realized that Bob was playing by ear and not reading the notes. Bob had had his sister play the song for him and Bob would then learn it by listening and was"found out" after playing his piece for a recital in the wrong544189453125" lengthadjust="spacingAndGlyphs" textlength="264.401836395264" x="37.1425971984863" y="-499.976867675781" data-test="textbox"> key. He later did learn how to read, but has always been more comfortable playing his own style and his own compositions best.
Being told by colleges that his style of music was not what they were looking for without classical training, Bob decided to change career paths and received a degree in agricultural science from Penn State, and worked for many years helping the environment, while working second jobs in group homes for the mentally challenged, which he enjoyed immensely, as well as being the organist for multiple churches in his community.
In the '90s, while still working full-time, Bob went back to school and received a triple degree in Special Education, Elementary Education, and Early Childhood Education, which allowed him to switch career paths once again to become a special needs teacher.
Now approaching his re-passioning years, Bob has been returning to his first love - music - and has composed three albums of contemplative and meditative solo piano music. His newest recording, Peace In This Land, is comprised of songs that were composed for individuals who were seeking either physical and/or emotional healing. Many of his co-workers use his music in their classrooms to help students study, focus and concentrate
