Rachel Currea, pianist and composer, began composing consistently when she was 19 years old as a way to relax from the rigors of classical music training and the demands of college and work. Shortly after she composed her first few pieces, she suffered a serious auto accident with head trauma. For the next ten years Rachel found it nearly impossible to compose, but continued to perform and teach piano. Her breakthrough in composing again came with learning the art of meditation. Her CD of piano solos, “Inner Sound” is a tribute to this creative and personal breakthrough. Rachel started performing as a church pianist at age 11, and has since performed in classical recitals as a soloist and chamber musician in the US, the Middle East, and Europe. The first public performance of Rachel’s compositions was heard in recital in Amman, Jordan in 1993, where the US Ambassador wrote, “Both we and our Jordanian friends were charmed by your lovely performance. I especially appreciated your own composition, ‘Two Short Pieces’...” During her time in Jordan, Rachel served as a faculty member at the National Music Conservatory, teaching music theory and developing a Music Therapy program for physically disabled children. Rachel was honored with the 1994 Leon Ettinger Award for Outstanding Contributions in the Field of Music for her work in Jordan. A native of Florida, Rachel currently resides in Miami. She received both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Piano from the University of Miami, where her most influential teachers were Dr. Rosalina Sackstein, Frank Cooper, and Fred DeSena. Rachel is an active member of the Miami Music Teachers Association and maintains a private piano studio. Her debut CD, Innersound Piano Solos, is currently being played on such stations as Pandora.com, The Que 92.2, Whisperings Solo Piano Radio, Sky.fm and is available on iTunes. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.