Khaw Hock Lye

Khaw's Musical Background

Hi there, everyone! I’m Khaw Hock Lye, a retired banker in my early 60s, from sunny Pearl Of The Orient which is Penang, Malaysia, and have been playing electronic keyboards for 4 decades now. I play by ear and sight reading lead sheets. With no formal music education, I learnt to play the keys by trial and error, from books and magazines, and with some help from talented friends.

I was first introduced to the world of keyboard playing by a high school friend when he invited me to a Yamaha organ concert in 1979. I was blown away by the Japanese artist’s skills coordinating so well with both hands and feet, and was particularly captivated by the instrument which was all but a music band or orchestra rolled into one.

When I first started working in 1983, I got myself a Casiotone keyboard which was soon replaced by a basic Technics SX-E22 organ. Over the next 10 years, I attended a number of organ concerts by local and Japanese artists, and always harboured the desire to own a higher-end Yamaha Electone or Technics organ. On many of my days off work, I would frequent the music instrument stores to lovingly touch and play the likes of a Yamaha HX1 or Technics GX7. But the price was often beyond my reach. I also never brought myself to take any formal organ lessons.

In 1993, I was ecstatic to see the introduction of the Technics KN2000. It had great features and so many beautiful sounds and rhythms. And it was so much easier to play than an organ. Of course, I had no hesitation in getting one for myself. The rest is history, so to speak, having progressed through several arranger keyboards in the form of Technics KN7000, Korg i30, Roland VA7, Korg Pa50 and Yamaha PSR S910. Today, I’m so happy to have a PSR SX900.

I’ve always been fascinated by auto-rhythms and styles because they help to conveniently provide appropriate accompaniments for the songs I play. I’m so grateful to PSR Tutorial for sharing many of my favourite styles which, along with the on-board factory ones, I would usually tweak to my satisfaction. Once in a while, I would purchase a custom style because I’m helpless when it comes to creating my own from scratch. I also use the Multi Pad and Registration Memory Functions on the PSR extensively. Arranger keyboard technology keeps improving giving more realistic results for the player. I would really like to see the next generation of arranger keyboards offer more realistic and unique sounds like what VST Instruments provide, and more versatility like sampling.

I strive to recreate music to sound close to the originals, and along with its ease of use and simplicity (in terms of number of gear), the arranger keyboard, especially a Yamaha one, is the number one instrument for me.

My taste in music is diverse, ranging from big band, blues, classical, country, dance, easy listening, electronic, holiday, jazz fusion, latin, new age, pop, R&B, rock, soundtrack to swing. And especially that from the 50s to the present. I play for my own enjoyment and not in public, but I do like to share my recordings with people with similar interests. That’s why I’m so glad to be able to do just that here on PSR Tutorial. I hope you like my MP3 pieces and I welcome constructive comments to help me improve further in this passion of mine. Thank you.