Brick Piano Player Reaches Big Joe Jersey Talent Show Finals

BRICK, NJ — Nicholas Blum loves to watch videos of Liberace and Victor Borga and see how the two renowned pianists command a room.

It's something the Brick Township resident wants to emulate, too.

"I love to be the center of attention," said Blum, a 2016 graduate of Brick Memorial High School. And he's hoping the limelight will continue to love him back at 7 p.m. Sept. 4 during the finals of the Big Joe Jersey Talent Show. The contest, sponsored by NJ 101.5 FM, will be at Jenkinson's Pavilion in Point Pleasant Beach.

Blum has been playing piano since his father, George, introduced him to it at the age of 4. His father, who has a degree in classical performance from the Mason Gross School of Arts at Rutgers, has been his primary instructor through the years, Blum said, but he also has studied with Billy Lawlor, a jazz musician from Sea Girt, since he was 16.

Nicholas George Xavier Blum — the name he uses as a performer — is a freshman at The University of the Arts in Philadelphia, where he is studing piano performance. His ultimate goal is to be like Liberace.

"He takes a piece of music and makes it his," Blum said of Liberace. "He is my idol. ... I want to be like him, entertaining" like Liberace.

He said he spends about 20 hours a week playing the piano on top of schoolwork.

Blum said his music highlights the flamboyant nature of Liberace.

"I take a piece of music and put my twists on it," he said.

The finals are Sunday, Sept. 4 at 7 p.m. Check him out on NGXB Music on You Tube, Twitter and Facebook.

Check out Blum's performance from an earlier round of the talent show:

Photo courtesy of Nicholas Blum