David Tolley’s life changed forever in a way he could never imagine.
He studied the piano since he was just five years old, after his mother noticed he was talented. She arranged piano lessons for him in his hometown of Dublin, Ohio.
One night, Tolley found himself in the right place at the right time and his life was never the same.
Namely, Tolley was part of the audience of the Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show on December 19, 1985, when something unexpected occurred. Carson announced that one of the guests, classical pianist Horatio Gutierrez, was unable to perform that night because of a hand injury. He then asked if anyone from the audience knew how to play the piano.
He picked one of the female contestants named Mary Joe and he then picked Tolley.
Tolley performed Memories from the musical Cats and wowed everyone. His talent shone bright and the audience was in awe.
The following day, Tolley’s phone wouldn’t stop ringing. He was showered with offers to perform at parties, events, and he was even offered to play roles in films.
His career as a pianist blossomed all because of an unexpected opportunity he decided to grab when offered.
Today, Tolley is an associate professor of Music Composition, Recording/Production, and Music Industry at Delaware State University.
According to his website, Tolley graduated as valedictorian from Ohio’s first Performing Arts High School and then finished a double Bachelor’s in Piano Performance and in Music Composition, and a Masters of Music in Composition at The Ohio State University. He then started his Doctorate at OSU but felt a strong tug on his heart to move to the entertainment capital of the world, Los Angeles so he headed west.
Some of his work includes a project for Steven Spielberg, as well as all of the new original music for the DISNEYLAND theme parks in Paris and Tokyo.
You can take a look at the performance that affected his life forever below.
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