Michelle DeAngelis, 25, is a pianist, singer and promising songwriter whose material ranges from soulful ballads to uptempo pop. Her main goal is to create catchy, memorable songs.

"I want to make sure that my melodies are singable," she said. "I want people to go away remembering the overall choruses of the songs."

The New York singer-songwriter will perform solo at Maxwell's in...

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Michelle DeAngelis, 25, is a pianist, singer and promising songwriter whose material ranges from soulful ballads to uptempo pop. Her main goal is to create catchy, memorable songs.

"I want to make sure that my melodies are singable," she said. "I want people to go away remembering the overall choruses of the songs."

The New York singer-songwriter will perform solo at Maxwell's in Hoboken on Tuesday.

"In the past, I did a lot of songs that pertain to my own life, she said. "But I do political things sometimes when something is really bugging me, or I feel like I have something to say, or I'm just angry."

Her song "Another World,"from her 2004, self-titled, debut EP, addresses her concerns about her generation's focus on its own personal affairs as opposed to showing concern for world events.

The New Rochelle, N.Y., native started piano at age 5 and began writing songs at age 8. She accompanied choirs in third grade before studying classical and jazz piano at Hols-Barthelson Music School in Scarsdale, N.Y.

"When I was young, I loved the Muppets. I used to listen to 'The Music Man.' I'd go to sleep listening to it. It was mostly Broadway. When I was 5, my mom got me a tape of George Michael. I remember listening to Michael Jackson. I listened to opera because my mom sang opera," she said.

During the summer, DeAngelis and her family visited her grandmother in Atlantic City. She spent a big part of the trip listening to Carly Simon. When she turned 11, her parents took her to see "Phantom of the Opera" on Broadway.

"During high school, I listened to Madonna and Janet Jackson. I liked Fiona Apple and Aimee Mann. I was still very interested in classical music, and Chopin became my favorite classical composer. I just knew I wanted to make a career out of making music,"she said.

She also became interested in Elton John and jazz musicians such as Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis and Ella Fitzgerald. Her interest turned to singing, too.

From 1998 to 2002, she studied studio composition at the Conservatory of Music at the State University of New York at Purchase. She maintained her interest in classical and jazz piano and began playing solo at local coffeehouses in Purchase, N.Y. After graduation, she taught piano privately and became musical director for local productions of "West Side Story" and "The Spitfire Grill."

DeAngelis met her husband through mutual friends. The two played music together, and eventually a courtship developed that led to their marriage in 2004. With his background in music production, Paul Fialkovic became the ideal candidate to produce her EP.

She started booking solo and band shows at CBGB Gallery, The Bitter End, Kenny's Castaways, The Sidewalk Café, Tribeca Blues and other venues in New York City.

She continues to teach piano privately and do shows for high schools. She plays for choirs and works as an organist in addition to writing new songs and pursuing her music career.

"I think I've grown as a writer, and my husband has definitely grown as a producer,"she said. "I just want to show the different sides of my writing, not only the singer-songwriter style, but also the pop music."