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Welcome
to the website of Michael
Elyard Pianist
/ Organist Bachelor and Master of Music Degrees : WVU – 1980/1983 Pianist: US Air Force Bands 1985-2002 Church Organist/Pianist/Music Director Private Piano Teacher |
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1963 |
USAF Band – Croatia - 2001 |
Bethel UMC – 2007 Mascoutah, Illinois |
Bavaria, Germany - 2000 |
Sarajevo - 2001 |
Riding Smoke Hole Road – WV 2010 |
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Welcome to my website. I am a pianist, organist, and composer/arranger with a lifelong love of traveling and exploring. After graduating from high school in 1976, I attended West Virginia University and taught piano for two years before enlisting in the US Air Force Band program in 1985. I also married my sweetheart, Beth, that year at our first assignment in Hampton Roads, Virginia. We just celebrated our 28th Anniversary, and the fact we now been married over half of our lives. Spencer joined us in 1990, shortly after our move to Alaska. Returning to Nebraska in 1996, we enjoyed the Midwest until being re-assigned to the US Air Force Band of Europe in Germany from 2000-2003. Afterward, we returned to Illinois, where I retired from the USAF in 2005. I taught piano and served as Music Director/Organist/Pianist at two churches until 2008, when we moved back to West Virginia where Spencer just graduated from WVU (double major – Aerospace & Mechanical Engineering). I am currently the Organist at Wesley United Methodist Church in Morgantown, WV, practicing hard to bring my piano and organ skills back to where they were when I was a full-time pianist .
On the Music Page, you will find information about my music, including lesson information for current and perspective students. There is also information on the Christmas Cantata - "Is He?" – written in 2010 and first performed at Central United Methodist Church in Fairmont, WV. I have also recently started adding informal recordings of some gospel and jazz/pop favorites made right at home. Hope you enjoy them. The Family Page includes a link to our “Great Adventure of 2007”, a road trip from Illinois to Alaska – 28 days and 9,500 miles round trip. Spencer was born in Alaska in 1990 and we always wanted to return before he graduates from WVU and heads off into the world. It was the trip of a lifetime! I have broken the trip down into a day-by-day travelogue with plenty of photos. Allow plenty of time! The Motorcycle Page is not only for fellow riders, but anyone interested in exploring parts of America you may not otherwise see. I try to venture off the beaten path and explore new areas. There is a great America out there just beyond the nearest Interstate off-ramp. Go explore!! Break the national fast-food chain habit and try some of the great family diners around the state. Check out our Travel/Europe Page for lots of photos and history. While I was assigned to the USAF Band of Europe in Ramstein, Germany (2000-2003), our family was fortunate to travel to many locations throughout Europe, including places that had been behind the "Iron Curtain" just a few years before. Come explore Germany, France, Italy, Czech Republic, Turkey, Croatia, Slovakia, Bosnia, and more. The Hiking/WV Page is new! Starting in April 2012, I plan to do more hiking and post “Hike Reports” on the more memorable ones. Check back as more are added. The Miscellaneous Page is for everything else – links to favorite sites, etc. Thanks for stopping by to visit. Mike Drop me a line: Click here to email |
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