Green DodoZine May 2006 (website) Hans York’s music is not easily classified. It is one part pop, one part folk, with a little jazz sprinkled on top for good measure. His latest album, Inside Out (Hazzazar Records 2005), is upbeat enough to listen to while cleaning out the garage, but soulful enough to sit down to while reading a good book. Of course you might just want to read the lyrics as York’s words are as meaningful and moving as his soothing voice and scrupulously arranged music.

GDZ: When did you first start creating music?

York: I started creating music very early, my uncle is a jazz pianist and he always encouraged me to sit down at the piano and just play what comes to my mind while the whole family played card games at my grandma's house. Later I started playing guitar and wrote music from the first day on and never stopped.

GDZ: Your music is not pop although songs like Inside Out definitely have a catchy tune to them. How would you classify your own music and what were your influences?

York: I think I'm a 21st century troubadour. As you mentioned, my music is hard to classify and so I stopped doing it. The best I could come up with for a while was contemporary acoustic pop music but then I have these folk elements and all of a sudden you hear something classical. I guess I'm all over the place. I grew up with Stevie Wonder, Genesis, Weather Report, Led Zeppelin, The Beatles and Joni Mitchell, just to mention a few. All music that I love influences me, even music that I don't like leaves a mark as it prevents me from doing a certain thing.

GDZ: I see that you have several dates booked in a short period of time. Do you like performing?

York: Performing is my life. I need the interaction with the audience. I spend a lot of hours in solitude when I drive from city to city so the shows are my social hour where I connect. I'm out to build a community, especially in times like these, we need to get away from the TV and go out again to meet others.

GDZ: Can you recall for us one performance that was really memorable?

York: It's funny but the one that comes to my mind is my first house concert in the U.S. There is nothing comparable in Germany and I loved the intimacy of playing in someone's living room all acoustic for 30 people. My biggest show was in front of about 12,000 at a festival, but the house concert got me completely.

GDZ: I warn you that this is a hard question. If you could find one word to sum up the entirety of your musical creations what would it be?

York: That's not so hard - "INSPIRING"

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