LEWIS AQUILINA BEGAN HIS MUSICAL JOURNEY playing his first instrument, keyboard, at the age of 12, and - after being greatly inspired by video game music - proceeded to practice daily. Lewis couldn't read sheet-music but, with a strong passion in the desire to play, had awarded himself the patience to learn by ear.
"I really enjoy music! I feel that it's my inspiration for living."
A piano piece that Lewis has always been fond of is 'To Zanarkand' from the Final Fantasy X video game. This was one of the first pieces of music that he'd taught himself to play by ear, and when his music teacher heard, was impressed enough to suggest Lewis play it at his school's yearly evening show for his final year at Torpoint Community College. This was the first time Lewis had ever performed music onstage, and was to an audience of approx 200.
"Playing this piece of music, the composition that kick-started my interest in keyboard - that piano sound-and-feel I'd garnered so much passion for - in front of a live audience, was a truly great achievement for me, and a very satisfying experience."
From around the age of 15, Lewis started playing guitar-driven music on his keyboard, and made space away from the video game style that he'd previously adopted, after being inspired by bands in the punk rock and alternative rock genres. Lewis also began to write song lyrics and attempted singing to accompany his new-found musical vision. Of the vast amount of recordings that he made using the mic on his MP3 player, Lewis selected ten of his favourite "guitar" keyboard pieces and arranged them into demo album 'Believe'. His passion for guitar music eventually led to him getting a real electric guitar a few years later and an acoustic the following year. Nowadays, Lewis is teaching himself to play the guitar; exploring chords and scales; composing and writing lyrics, and recording experimental song ideas.
"Eventually I'll get myself a proper microphone and mixer, so I can more-adequately arrange and produce my song demos; to present them before being professionally recorded."
Following on from education, Lewis plans to be frontman of a successful band; specifically, a 90s + modern alternative rock band, influenced by the likes of The Smashing Pumpkins, driven by the passion and soul of Soundgarden, also taking onboard 21st century Muse sensibilities. Lewis's ultimate goal is to perform live and release albums, either in a band or as a solo artist; having already accumulated a vast amount of song ideas in his personal repertoire (as seen on SoundCloud and YouTube), both lyrically and musically, Lewis's creativity sees no bounds.
