Paul Cardall (born April 24, 1973) is an American pianist known for his original compositions and arrangements of various hymns. His music is frequently categorized as Classical, Christian and New Age. Cardall has had several recordings debut No. 1 on top Billboard charts. He was born with essentially half a functioning heart, which required immediate surgery when Cardall was less than a day old. In addition to his recording career, Cardall founded Stone Angel Music in 1999, which produced a catalogue of recordings by other similar artists. The catalogue was acquired by Anthem Entertainment Group in 2018. Personal life After two more heart surgeries at ages 13 and 14, Cardall became a pianist. Cardall was recruited by Salt Lake Community College (SLCC). He served as the Fine Arts President and Public Relations Vice-President at SLCC while enjoying a full-ride leadership scholarship there. During the summer season he worked as a youth counselor for the Especially for Youth camps at Brigham Young University. While attending college, Cardall played piano for tips at a Nordstrom department store and local restaurants. He recorded his first album, Sign of Affection, in 1994. Richard Paul Evans, author of the best-seller The Christmas Box, heard the album and asked Cardall to create a musical adaptation of his story. Cardall was able to travel to national book signings with Evans during the release of the CD and the book, he was able to sell tens of thousands of copies of his album and developed a supportive fan base. While Cardall continued to compose music part-time, he worked at Richard Paul Evans's book distribution company as the music executive. He worked with Disney, BMG, and others, and became interested in making piano performance his career. Cardall's early compositions are influenced by Mozart, pianists David Lanz, George Winston, and Yanni. Cardall knew that one day he would likely need a heart transplant. He lived with congenital heart disease for over thirty years. He was born with only a single functioning ventricle or half-heart. In August 2008, with his heart failure, Cardall was listed for a heart transplant. After waiting 385 days, he received a donated heart via transplant on September 9, 2009. Cardall is married to Kristina Molek, a former Wall Street analyst who is a first generation Slovenian American. Career In early 1999, Cardall founded Stone Angel Music, an independent record label intended to produce, market, and distribute