The Piano Guys

The Piano Guys have become an online phenomenon thanks to their repertoire that features classical pieces, popular radio hits and original compositions mashed together into mashups. Pianist Jon Schmidt, cellist Steven Sharp Nelson and videographer Paul Anderson make up this music duo which has quickly become known as a collective known as the Dorky Dads from Utah.

Jon Schmidt

Paul Anderson, a piano salesman in Saint George, Utah needed a way to market his business. He decided that creating entertaining music videos would draw audiences and boost sales; therefore he recruited Schmidt as pianist, Nelson as cellist, and van der Beek as audio engineer to form The Piano Guys.

Their remixes of popular songs have captured the hearts and minds of millions, while performing at some of the world’s most renowned sites such as China’s Great Wall, Christ the Redeemer statue in Brazil, and Chichen Itza.

Though they have faced challenges, the group remains strong through support from fans around the globe. Their email inboxes are filled with grateful parents thanking them for inspiring their children. Furthermore, piano and cellist fans contribute financially through download sales and merchandise sales; these rewards far outweigh any financial losses that may occur.

Steven Sharp Nelson

Steven Sharp Nelson is one of the pioneers of cello percussion. Incorporating traditional playing methods with percussive techniques, his cello is featured on three solo albums from The Piano Guys and other classical new-age groups.

Jon Schmidt first began The Piano Guys while searching for ways to promote his piano store in St George, Utah. YouTube proved an effective platform to reach potential customers.

He recognized he needed help with music and video production, so he reached out to Steven Sharp Nelson – an accomplished cellist – as well as Paul Anderson – a pianist and studio engineer – for assistance.

Together they huddled in the front room of Van Der Beek’s home to discuss their meteoric rise on YouTube, amid animated teasing and laughter – but also an overwhelming sense of camaraderie between all four men involved. Together they share one goal – spreading joy around the globe via music videos.

Paul Anderson

Paul Anderson, founder of The Piano Guys and self-professed piano enthusiast, began taking traditional lessons as a kid but gave them up because it wasn’t cool as an adolescent. Since then he has taught himself on the instrument, believing if all he ever did in life was play piano he would still be content. Paul currently serves as producer, videographer and songwriter as well as being involved with The Piano Guys.

Anderson first used YouTube as a means of marketing his piano store, The Piano Gallery in St. George, Utah. His goal was to show off Yamaha pianos in exceptional locations; videos showing people playing them proved particularly effective in doing this.

Six years later, Anderson and her band have achieved global fame thanks to the stunning audio/visual masterpieces they create, which have attracted hundreds of millions of YouTube views. She and members Jon Schmidt (pianist), Cellist Steven Sharp Nelson and music Producer/Videographer Al van der Beek joined us for an in-depth conversation about their meteoric rise to success.

Al van der Beek

Piano Guys are an international musical group composed of pianist Jon Schmidt, cellist Steven Sharp Nelson and producer Al van der Beek. Their unique musical performances blend classical pieces with pop tunes and film scores in exotic settings around the globe; YouTube videos of their performances have amassed over 7 million subscribers while all eight major-label studio albums they released have achieved top charts status for classical and new age genres.

Schmidt and Sharp Nelson met at a piano store in St. George, Utah where Paul Anderson invited them to create creative music videos for his YouTube channel and social media pages. To complete their team, Schmidt and Sharp Nelson brought in neighbor Van der Beek who is both a songwriter and producer.

The group felt God’s hand at work from the start, as doors began opening as soon as they joined forces. Overcoming challenges associated with growing their brand in an extremely competitive market by prioritizing product and customer development and trusting that marketing would take care of itself eventually, they managed to push through to success in an extremely challenging market environment.