Eric McCarl

A lifelong musician, solo pianist Eric McCarl established a secure living for himself and his family before embarking on an ambitious venture as an independent artist in the early 2000s. Born October 8, 1958, in Bellefonte, PA, McCarl began playing violin at the age of seven and soon mastered many other instruments such as piano, guitar, and trumpet in successive years. In the late '70s he studied computer science at Penn State and, after graduating in 1981 with a Bachelor's degree, moved California, where he worked as a field sales engineer for Texas Instruments. During these years of professional progress, McCarl never forsook his passion for music, and he eventually left his lucrative career in California behind so that he could attend the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston. He then returned to California, where he spent most of his time performing music in one way or another. In order to finance his musical ventures, McCarl re-entered the computer industry, working as a systems engineer for Cisco Systems during the late '90s. During this era of economic prosperity, he wisely invested and eventually divested as a financially stable man. He used his wealth to support his wife and children and also to construct his own recording studio, Eric's Olive Tree Studio. There he recorded Seeking the Light Within, the first of a proposed trilogy of albums highlighting his work as a solo pianist with spiritual overtones. ~ Jason Birchmeier