About Us
William Joseph K Publications is an independent Michigan publishing house established in memory of Lisa Ball's autistic brother "Billy-Joe" Kiel, whose life ended abruptly in 2002.
Dedicated to helping the creative voice get self-published, we are responsible for the publication of over a dozen authors and six books since 2007. Our product line includes children's books, academic compendiums, anthologies, and a novella with our latest acclaimed release 'Booze House.'
Authors in their own right, founders Lisa and Matthew Ball have over twelve years of formal education with degrees and certifications in History, Music, Law, Business, Computer Science, Public Relations, Video Production, and more.
Matthew Ball Biography
Described as "the Gen-X arrival to this uniquely American art-form" by The Ann Arbor News, Matthew Ball is a graduate of Oakland University and The University of Detroit School of Law. He holds a Bachelor of Arts with Honors in both Music and History, as well as a Juris Doctorate in Law. He trained classically at University with the internationally renowned classical pianist Flavio Varani, a graduate of The Paris Conservatory and Manhattan School of Music.
Matthew's first public performances include a back to back appearance with the Pontiac-Oakland Symphony in '92 and '93 as winner of their annual young artist competition, followed by a distinguished '94 appearance as OU's representative artist in a concert tour hosted by The Steinway Society, as well as a chamber performance abroad at The International Chamber Music Academy in Germany. He is a winner of the 'outstanding student in piano performance 'Matilda' award,' a Stanley Hollingsworth Scholarship recipient, and an alumnus of the Interlochen summer piano programs.
Licensed as an attorney of Michigan in '98 Matthew practiced law only a short time when in the fall of '01 he attended a Motor City Boogie Woogie Festival that would re-shape his life. Awestruck by the performances he saw that evening and discouraged with law, Matthew left his career as an attorney to become a blues and boogie-woogie performing artist. To get there, Matthew would seek out the help of Detroit's ambassador of boogie-woogie, Bob Seeley. A living link to the genre's pioneer artists, Seeley initially refused to teach Matthew. But after a year of prodding and with the recommendation of a long-time Seeley colleague-in-boogie named Michael Przybylski, Seeley eventually accepted Matthew as a pupil.
By '05 a watershed occurred when Matthew was welcomed to perform at the 11th annual Cincinnati Blues Festival, where he headlined alongside some of the same performers he had first been inspired by. Since then, Matthew has maintained an active performing career as 'The Boogie Woogie Kid,' with notable appearances throughout the mid-west and Michigan including The Sky Hempy Keyboard Performance Series, The Jazz'n on Jefferson Festival, The Woodward Dream Cruise, Border Books & Music Showcase, and The Milliken Auditorium of Northwestern University. He has performed two televised concerts for Oak Park Public Television and Clawson TV, has been featured on WDRQ Detroit Underground as well as WFYI The Blues House Party, and has presented educational clinics to many of the area's leading piano pedagogy institutions including, The Oakland Piano Teachers Forum, The Metropolitan Detroit Musician's League, and The Adult Learning Center of Oakland Community College.
Matthew's published works to date include two self-produced CD's titled 'Classic Boogie-Woogie' (2005) and 'Boogie Woogie Kid' (2008), as well as two books on the subject called 'The Art of Boogie-Woogie' (2007), and 'Blues Preludes.' (2008) The first book is a scored compendium of 41 boogie-woogie base-lines, and the latter a collection of seven blues inspired piano vignettes designed for the early learner.
Also, Matthew has maintained a private studio for piano instruction since '94. Some of his proudest accomplishments have been through the role he has played in helping at least two of his students receive university music scholarships to study music formally at a university of their choice. Most recently, he was pleased to learn of a former pupil being named as a 2010 winner of The Pontiac-Oakland Symphony Young Artist Competition.
Finally, and in addition to his music endeavors, Matthew is a published poet and children's book author. His published works include selections in 'Episodes of the Norm' (2008) which contains his poem 'Boogie-Woogie Man' written as a dedication to Bob Seeley on the occasion of his 80th birthday, 'Minnie & Melvira,' (2009) a children's story about discovering true friendship that features his father Larry as illustrator, and lastly a collaboration with his brother Joshua called 'The Worm & The Caterpillar,' (2009), which contains a message about transformation through self-belief.
You can find all of Matthew's published materials on the web @ Amazon, CDbaby, & Itunes.
Lisa Ball Biography
Author under the pen name Maria Mendoza, Lisa Ball is the principal officer of William Joseph K. Publications, an independent publishing house dedicated to helping the creative voice get published. Responsible for the publication of over a dozen authors and six books since 2007, she lives in Michigan with her husband Matthew and enjoys reading books, getting crafty, promoting local artists, and graphic design.
A graduate of Michigan schools and universities, Lisa continues to expand the willliamjkpub.com catalog with a second anthology book called 'voices of Michigan,' two more children's books, and a sequel to her acclaimed 'Booze House' novella, all expected for release in 2013.
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