“Composing music is like solving a puzzle,” says Sam Stryke (aka Sam Struyk). “It’s an intellectual challenge – obeying the rules and then breaking them in a creative and strategic way.” Relying on a combination of heart and intellect, the accomplished pianist taps into a reservoir of formal musical training and resurfaces with modern instrumentals infused with engaging melodies and rich orchestrations.

Atlantic Records released Stryke’s first solo album, the warm and melodic In the Wind, to critical acclaim in 1991. Five years later, he contributed compositions and performed on jazz trumpeter Rex Richardson’s Pandora’s Pocket. Stryke’s second solo album, 2002’s Emerging, cultivates his organic blend of acoustic and vintage electric instruments, as well as strings and horns.

Christmas, released in November 2006, is Stryke’s third major release. “The songs fit together to create a cozy and sentimental mood from beginning to end,” he says. “I’d like listeners to experience a nostalgic and peaceful antidote to the sometimes frenetic pace of the holiday season.” Chicago singer-songwriter Alice Peacock is featured in a special vocal performance of “The Holly and the Ivy,” with new lyrics by Stryke accompanied by the traditional melody.

A versatile artist, Stryke is also a talented commercial, film and television composer. “Composing for commercials is easier than creating my own music,” he says. “In ads, the picture dictates much of the writing and the direction is clear. When I'm composing for myself, there are many more options, which requires more soul searching.” Stryke finds that the two worlds provide a creative balance - the fast and furious pace of advertising complements the introspective and thoughtful process of making albums.

Working at one of the top music houses in Chicago, Stryke has written and co-written music for hundreds of high-profile and award-winning TV and radio commercials for such clients as Bud Light, Nintendo, McDonald’s, Capital One, State Farm and many more.

He has also composed music for independent films and TV including The Oprah Winfrey Show, the Oprah and Friends XM Satellite radio show, and Oprah Winfrey’s “Leadership Academy” prime time TV special devoted to her school in South Africa.

A native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Stryke moved to Chicago, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in music from Northwestern University in 1993. He has studied with jazz pianist Michael Kocour, noted composer and arranger Cliff Colnot, and New York-based jazz pianist Jim McNeely through a National Endowment for the Arts grant in 1994.

Stryke resides on the north side of Chicago with his wife, Heather, and his two children, Xander and Sophie.