Pianist

steve gruzas potter

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About steve

Californian keyboardist vocalist in London, playing gentle, mysterious original versions of jazz, classical, folk, funk. Like no one else.
Pianist
London
Public liability insurance of £10 million

I am an American composer-pianist based in London. Originally from northern California, I came to London 17 years ago to do a PhD, which I earned in April 2011, and happily have stayed - I now divide my time between leading and performing with choral groups, creating and performing as a pianist, and collaborating with theatre-makers and artists. My piano music draws classical, jazz, folk & funk repertoire into a world of extreme gentleness, sublimating boundless energy into relaxing mysterious forms. I draw on deep study of several Western and non-Western musical traditions to bring quiet kaleidoscopic qualities and a wabi-sabi aesthetic to Mozart, Brahms, Gershwin, Joni Mitchell, Phil Ochs, Nirvana, Stevie Wonder, Parliament and others. My compositions for larger ensembles have been performed in renowned and flexible spaces, including Whitechapel Bell Foundry, Ambika P3, Village Underground, and the streets of Taranto, Italy. They have been taken up by festivals in Holland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Canada and the US, by groups including Musarc, London Sinfonietta, Nouvel Ensemble Moderne, New York City Opera, Arditti String Quartet, International Ensemble Modern Academy, ASKO Ensemble, and members of Philharmonia Orchestra. My performing life straddles several communities of artists and improvisers, and encompasses piano, keyboards, accordion, voice, objects, samplers, conducting and theatre. I play accordion with London Improvisers Orchestra, and keyboards with Velodrome (Katherine Christie Evans), as well as performing with Musarc and Clapham Sings. I played keyboards with Paul Hillier and Theatre of Voices, coached by Steve Reich, in a major festival of the composer’s work in Holland. I have premiered countless solo piano works by living composers. As an accompanist I have 25+ years of experience, having played keyboards for musical theatre productions of Company (Chico City Light Opera), Billy Elliot (Orchard House School), Pinocchio (Strangeface Theatre), Pirates of Penzance (CCLO), and many others. I have studied Javanese gamelan for several years, at Cornell University (US), Southbank Centre, and York University (UK). I also have an ongoing interest in Senegalese Sabar, and have taken classes in Dakar and London (SOAS). I teach composition at Guildhall School of Music & Drama, where I supervise doctoral students working on fascinating creative projects involving free jazz, spoken word in electronic music, nuevo tango, one-handed piano composition, and notions of nostalgia in new music. I previously taught at Cornell, Goldsmiths & King’s College London, and Auburn Correctional Facility through the Cornell Prison Education Program. In addition to higher education teaching, I teach piano privately to children of all ages. I am originally from Chico, California.

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This act has been working with Encore for over 7 years
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Musicianship
Genres:
Classical crossover, 1970s era music, Classical, Early music, Musical theatre, Baroque, Opera, Contemporary classical, Medieval music, Renaissance, Film / TV music, Experimental, Noise music, Light music, Avant garde, Originals, 1920s era music, 1950s era music, 1960s era music, 1990s era music, Jazz, Progressive rock, Indie, Alternative rock, Balkan, Cuban music, Klezmer, Jazz fusion, Punk rock, African music, 1930s era music, 1940s era music, 1980s era music, Folk rock, Traditional Irish folk, Folk, Bluegrass, Country, Rockabilly, Traditional Scottish folk, Blues, Cabaret, Funk, Hard rock, Heavy metal, Power rock, Italian music, Jewish music
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Instruments:
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Event types:
Wedding, Hotel / Restaurant event, Funeral / Memorial service, Bar / Club / Venue event, Private event, Corporate event, Charity event, Concert, Recording session, Theatre / Show, Birthday party, Christmas party, New Year's Eve, Church service, Cruise
See all event types
Other skills:
Arranger, Orchestrator, Transcription, Composer, Songwriter, Lyricist, Fluent sight-reader, Repetiteur, Perfect pitch, Instrumental teaching, Composition teaching, Community music worker, Musicologist, Theory teaching, Examiner, Accompanist
See all skills

steve's Song list

New classical/jazz improvisation:
1. Sleep-edged Mozart, after K. 332
2. Cloudy Gershwin, after A Foggy Day
3. Intermutism, after Brahms Intermezzo Op. 119/1
4. Little Quarantine, Dec 2021
Classical: Piano
1. Olivier Messiaen - Prelude No. 7: Plainte calme
2. Erik Satie - Gymnopedies Nos. 1-3
3. Satie - Gnossienne No. 1
4. Satie - Prélude de la Parte Héroïque du Ciel
5. John Cage - Dream
6. Cage - In a Landscape
7. Michael Nyman – ‘The Piano’ (music from the film)
8. Claude Debussy - Clair de Lune
9. Debussy - La fille au cheveux de lin
10. Debussy - Rêverie
11. Frédéric Chopin - Preludes (Nos. 13, 15)
12. Chopin - Nocturne, Op. 9, Nos. 1, 2
13. Chopin - Nocturne, Op. 15, No. 3
14. Chopin - Nocturne, Op. 32, No. 1
15. Chopin - Nocturne, Op. 37, No. 1
16. Chopin - Mazurka, Op. 6, No. 2
17. Chopin - Mazurka, Op. 24, No. 2
18. Johannes Brahms - Waltz, Op. 39, Nos. 3, 15
19. Brahms - Intermezzo, Op. 76, No. 7
20. Brahms - Romanze, Op. 118, No. 5
21. Brahms - Intermezzo, Op. 118, No. 2
22. Ludwig Beethoven - Eleven Bagatelles, Op. 119 (Nos. 1-4)
23. Beethoven - Sonata No. 1, Adagio
24. Beethoven - Sonata No. 2, Largo appassionato
25. Beethoven - Sonata No. 8 (Pathétique), Adagio cantabile
26. Beethoven - Sonata No. 14 (Moonlight), Adagio sostenuto
27. Maurice Ravel - Pavane de la Belle au bois dormant
28. Ravel - Petit Poucet
29. Mozart - Sonata K. 330, Andante cantabile
30. Mozart - Sonata K. 332, Adagio
31. Mozart - Sonata K. 333, Andante cantabile
32. Mozart - 'Voi che sapete' from Le Nozze di Figaro (piano)
33. Nyman - music from The Piano
34. Edvard Grieg - Erotik
Rock/Pop/Soul/Indie: Piano (some with vocals or quiet mumbling)
1. No More Songs - Phil Ochs
2. Hope There's Someone - Antony and the Johnsons
3. Joni Mitchell - Both Sides Now (arr. S. Gruzas Potter)
4. A Man of Constant Sorrow - Dick Burnett/ American folk
5. Suzanne - Leonard Cohen
6. Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye - L. Cohen
7. So Long, Marianne - L. Cohen
8. Who By Fire - L. Cohen
9. If It Be Your Will - L. Cohen
10. Dance Me To the End of Love - L. Cohen
11. Hallelujah - L. Cohen
12. The Body breaks - Devendra Banhart
13. Under the Bridge - Red Hot Chili Peppers
14. Californication - Red Hot Chili Peppers
15. Killer Queen - Queen
16. Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy - Queen
17. We Are the Champions - Queen
18. Alice - Tom Waits
19. Oh Me - Meat Puppets
20. Lithium - Nirvana
21. The Beatles - Norwegian Wood
22. The Beatles - Eleanor Rigby
23. Stevie Wonder - Higher Ground
24. Parliament - P-Funk
25. Joni Mitchell - Blue
Jazz/Musicals/Latin: Piano
1. Love Walked In - George Gershwin (arr. Lee Evans)
2. Prelude No. 2 - Gershwin
3. A Foggy Day - Gershwin (arr. Evans)
4. Embraceable You - George Gershwin (arr. Evans)
5. Love is Here to Stay - George Gershwin
6. Try a Little Tenderness - Harry Woods, Jimmy Campbell, Reg. Connelly
7. Don't Blame Me - Jimmy McHugh (arr. George Shearing)
8. I'm in the Mood for Love - Jimmy McHugh
9. All the Things You Are - Jerome Kern
10. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes - Kern (arr. Evans)
11. The Way You Look Tonight - Kern
12. September Song - Kurt Weill
13. Day Dream - Duke Ellington
14. I Got It Bad and That Ain't Good - Ellington
15. In a Sentimental Mood - Ellington
16. Sous le Ciel de Paris - Hubert Giraud (Edith Piaf)
17. The Things We Did Last Summer - Jule Styne
18. Sunrise, Sunset - Jerry Bock
19. Family Madrigal - Lin Manuel Miranda
20. Surface Pressure - Lin Manuel Miranda
21. We Don't Talk About Bruno - Lin Manuel Miranda
22. Chan Chan - Francisco Repilado
Customer questions

What if my timings change after I've booked you?

Not to worry. I am always responsive to your needs and can almost always be flexible regarding timing. If timings change slightly in the run up to the event please just let me know.

Can you provide an iPod/DJ service before and between your sets?

Yes.

How much time do you need to set up?

I usually set up about 1 to 1.5 hours before the performance time in order to do a sound check and get settled into the space.

If I have a piano at my venue, are you happy to perform on that?

Yes.

Can I pick the songs you play from the set list?

Yes. I am happy to discuss the set list with you, and incorporate any of your requests into the flow of songs.

Are you able to bring your own piano or keyboard?

Yes. I can bring my Yamaha P-45 digital piano.

Can you learn song requests before the event?

Yes, this is possible. Please let me know if you have any requests and I will do my best to accommodate. There is a fee of £30 for this service to take into account practice and rehearsal times.

Which venues have you performed at in the past?

Ambika P3, Battersea Arts Centre, The Charterhouse, iKlectik, Omnibus Theatre (Clapham), Chisenhale Dance Space, Hackney Attic, Handel House Museum, 5th Base Gallery, Betsey Trotwood Clerkenwell, LSO St. Luke's, People Show Studios, Royal Festival Hall, St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Tottenham Chances, The Victoria Dalston, Mascara Bar Stoke Newington

Which artists have you been most influenced by?

Cecil Taylor, Tom Waits, Kendrick Lamar, György Ligeti, Cathy Berberian, John Cage, Pauline Oliveros, Leonard Cohen, Patti Smith, Laurie Anderson, Youssou NDour, Anoushka Shankar, Coumba Gawlo Seck

What is the most high profile gig you've performed?

In December 2018 I performed my original composition for choir, Indonesian bonang pot gongs, ukeleles, cowbells, & signs with words, with Musarc Choir Collective, at the London Contemporary Music Festival, at Ambika P3.

steve's Prices

Note: prices may vary based on travel distance. For an exact quote, click “Check availability”.

Standard Prices
Performance durationPrice
Short performance (up to 15 min)£90
Up to 1 hour£180
Up to 2 hours£280
Up to 3 hours£380
Packages
Wedding ceremony
This includes music before the service begins, music during the signing of the register, and music as guests leave.
£187.50
Drinks reception
Two performances of up to 45 mins each during your drinks reception
£375
Wedding ceremony + Drinks reception + Dinner
- Music before the service begins, music during the signing of the register, and music as guests leave. - 2 x 45 min performances at the drinks reception. - 2 x 45 min performances as dinner is being served.
£687.50

Add-ons

3 New Songs Learned
+£187.50
steve
Full starFull starFull starFull starHalf star
4.5 out of 5
2 verified reviews

steve's Reviews

From customers:

SC
Seán C
5 years ago, for a Theatre / Show in 200 Jennens Rd
Full starFull starFull starFull starEmpty star
4 out of 5

I thought it was a very brave piece, and I think it adds something to the discourse of race and cultural appropriation etc. You said many thought provoking things in the work, and It was great to be able to put it on in Birmingham.

CC
Cara C
5 years ago, for a Theatre / Show in 238-246 King St
Full starFull starFull starFull starFull star
5 out of 5

Steve played keyboard for Orchard House School's production of 'Billy Elliot' in July 2018. He was at all times completely professional and well prepared, with excellent keyboard and ensemble skills. He slotted in to the production week of a primary school show with ease, and was able to adapt easily to last minute changes, and follow the (sometimes slightly erratic) children on stage. I would work with him again in a heartbeat.