World-acclaimed contemporary Pianist/Accordionist

With Dave Thomas' unique, sensual touch on his instruments and a hypnotic, filmic energy to his solo musical performances, the 26-yr old gifted multi-instrumentalist performs captivatingly on the piano and accordion. Dave's passionate energy, combined with an inspired contemporary style has attracted over 10 million views on video sharing site YouTube - sparking a worldwide surge of enthusiasm for his music.

Dave will be performing passionately on Piano and Accordion live in solo concerts for the first time ever. The show titled 'Another Place' will consist of a mixture of exclusive original music, some of his better-known original compositions and also a selection of soundtracks from the French film 'Amélie', covers of which made him an internet sensation overnight.

In drawing influences from the modern film composers Yann Tiersen (Amélie, Good Bye Lenin), Gustavo Santaolalla (The Motorcycle Diaries, Babel), and the piano legend Frédéric Chopin with an appreciation for much of today's modern music in various popular genres, Dave creates an exciting sensual fusion, using traditional instruments emotively in new and exciting ways.

With a family history deeply rooted in Scotland (his Grandmother, Mary, was born in Leith), he is delighted to be able to bring a full show to this year's Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Dave Thomas currently holds the following YouTube Awards: 32nd most viewed musician of all times and 32nd most subscribed musician, competing with artists like Alesha Dixon or Shane Ward.

"I've received so much incredible support from people online... it's just been unreal", he says, of his YouTube fame. "It's nice, because people have told me they can relate their own experiences to the way in which I play." Of the festival he says, "Of course, I'm very excited, I think the Edinburgh Fringe is the perfect opportunity for me to prove myself to a live audience. It's my first long run and I'm sure the experience will be an exciting journey for me, and what I want is for the audience to come along with me - that's what I will be trying to achieve."

Executive Producer, Susana Inarejos, says of the show: "Our aim is to take the audience to Another Place, at least for one hour". About Dave Thomas she says, "Dave is a raw diamond waiting to be found, his passion and musical taste is second to none and I'm sure he holds a glittering career ahead of him. Dave will bring with him the much needed star quality to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and it is an honour to have made this show possible."

4th, 5th, 6th August, 7.20pm - Bongo Club, venue 143

10th - 15th August, 10.45pm - Greenside, venue 231

17th - 22nd August, 8.25pm - Greenside, venue 231

24th - 29th August, 8.25pm - Greenside, venue 231

Tickets for sale - £9 adults - £8 concessions

A pianist since the early age of 6, Dave swapped the piano for guitar throughout his early teenage years, with his band at this time landing a support slot for Muse on their first UK tour. He would not return to the piano until the age of 18, after a cult French film resonated unexpectedly with him, wildly altering his preconceptions of traditional instruments. Fascinated with the discovery, Dave researched the mechanics of his newfound love - and as fate would have it, it was his note-perfect covers to the score of Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain - learnt by ear - that so quickly gained him a vast audience online. Within a year, he had at least a million views on two of his video covers.

Following his degree studies in Music Design at Bournemouth University, Dave began to compose original music with his natural expressive touch. In 2009, Dave covers of the French film Amélie, have reached over 10 million views on YouTube.

Of course, all of this online popularity would inevitably lead to opportunity. Earlier this year, Dave was invited to New York Fashion Week to perform several tracks he composed exclusively for the LORICK New York Fall '09 collection (whose designs are most famously seen on TV's Gossip Girl).

Dave on the Web:

Dave Thomas Blog

MySpace

Follow Dave on Twitter

Video Press Release

YouTube Channel