Collaborating with guitar legend Steve Howe, and Yes

I've loved the music of Yes since I was a teenager, when a fellow student pressed a vinyl copy of Close To The Edge into my hands and said "listen to this". It blew my mind. Not at first – it took quite a few listens, but then I was hooked. Since then, of course, I've established my own musical career and found success in the world of children's animation and orchestral works.

Steve Howe and Paul K Joyce recording Time at British Grove Studios, London, 23rd Sept 2010

I was drawn to larger-scale works full of drama and dissonance. Imagine my surprise then, when Steve Howe, guitarist with Yes, wrote to me and asked to meet up! He wanted a collaborator for an orchestral solo project he was developing. This was 2006. They say 'never meet your heroes', but Steve has proved to be an exception to this adage. It has been the most fruitful and rewarding friendship and musical collaboration. It led to my involvement in the 2010 album, Time, and the creation of orchestral accompaniments for tracks on three Yes albums.