Tim's intensely personal style as a composer, synthesist and pianist evolved from years of experimentation in his home studio, and a love of composition. Along with his self-taught, idiosyncratic approach to the piano, Story saw the great potential of the new breed of electronic music instruments that were appearing in the early 70's. This affinity for synthesizers, as well as electric guitars, tape loops and kitchen utensils, is evident in his early recordings. The careful juxtaposition of acoustic instruments with electronic textures, and an inventive approach to composition are common threads running through most of Story's work.

Tim Story's work has garnered an international reputation for its haunting elegance and meticulous compositional detail. When writing and recording, he often spends months carefully working and refining the shape of each composition until he achieves the desired emotional and intellectual effect. His seemingly effortless pieces distill harmonic and melodic ideas that are often quite complex.

"I like to work with a finite palette of sounds and keep paring things down to a pure, though often ambiguous, expression. Simplicity without simplemindedness. Like the deceptively unadorned, ironic pieces of Erik Satie, or the lovely yet challenging piano music of Debussy. Their work appears so effortless and perfect that the pieces seem as if they've existed forever - they've created this unique, timeless world..." Story also cites a diverse range of musical touchstones including Bartok, Arvo Part, Miles Davis, Coltrane, Steve Reich, Dwight Ashley, Can, Cluster and Robert Wyatt.

" ...A goal of mine is to get listeners to put something of themselves into the music. To encourage a real interaction, even if the feelings one discovers there are sometimes uncomfortable. As Charles Ives said, 'Beauty in music is too often confused with something that lets the ears lie back in an easy chair.' I like to think of good music as a kind of sculpture, where you can never experience the whole from any one point. You must move through it, live with it for a while, before it yields its secrets." As Philadelphia's City Paper described it, "Story’s unsentimental blend of still-life piano and eerie synthetics conjures without explaining. His instrumental music comes at the listener subtly yet subversively...."

In addition to nine solo albums and dozens of compilation appearances, Story's work has appeared on numerous television and film soundtracks, including the original score for the popular NPR documentary “In Search of Angels” (1994), and “Caravan” (2005) , a feature-length documentary from the production company of acclaimed Spanish film director Pedro Almodovar.  Story's music has been nominated for a Grammy award (for 1988's "Legend of Sleepy Hollow", a children's recording with Glenn Close), and a NAIRD "Best Album" award (for "Beguiled"). Notable collaborations include three acclaimed cd's with Hans-Joachim Roedelius (including "Lunz", chosen by the editors at Amazon.com as one of the year's "Top 5"), and three with Dwight Ashley. Also a noted producer, recent producton credits include the legendary duo Cluster's acclaimed 2009 album "Qua".  Tim's music has consistently landed on critics' annual "Best Of" lists, and his 3 most recent solo releases were called "one of the finest trilogies in contemporary instrumental music" (Wind and Wire, USA)

Tim Story was born in 1957 in Philadelphia, and currently lives in the small river town of Maumee, in northwest Ohio.