Sorry... can't really help with notable peeps... but youtube is pretty amazing for guys like this :] [YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70Ph7jgLUz4&feature=related[/YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBE]xgZhiYff7nM[/YOUTUBE] My hero. Jordan Rudess. This Solo is fabulous. He is the Keyboardist from Dream Theater.
[YOUTUBE]6mSJP18SMXw[/YOUTUBE] this guy -- Rick Wakeman -- Is incredible. He plays more classical stuff tho, and he is not a keyboardist so much as he is a penis. WOOPS PIANIST! lol. hope u enjoy.
Thank you for your suggestions, guys. Chopin is... Amazing. A friend suggested him to me today, and I'm blown away.
Ryuichi Sakamoto. His music ranges from bizarre pop stylings to symphonic performances, but his piano works are excellent. Some examples: [youtube]5mfyCI82lWM[/youtube] "Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence" (w/violin & cello, 1996) [youtube]NtHMob2Ol7s[/youtube] "The Last Emperor" (1987) [youtube]ySYCovp3QzY[/youtube] "Tong Poo" (a cover of one of his first pop hits from the late 70s) Lex
Herbie Hancock. Again, you can get anything from funk to breakbeat with him, but his piano work is great. [youtube]xfsnVYVd3iI[/youtube] "Canteloupe Island" [youtube]GRFm4jpb1Xw[/youtube] "Maiden Voyage" [youtube]mIp4hLGTjDU[/youtube] "Liza", with Chick Corea. No clip for the song "Good Question" off of his Sunlight album. The rest of the CD is rather dull and dreary disco-influenced soul ballads. Then came...this. It's on iTunes. Lex
Another great piece that you might enjoy is Sergei Rachmaninov's "Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 43"