NYC Keyboard Lessons

Teaching Philosophy

BIO

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Pianist, producer, and composer Steve Catanzaro spent his college years practicing the knucklebusters of the classical repertoire by day and gigging in the clubs of the LA jazz and soul scene by night. He studied for his Doctorate in Piano Performance under Robert Hamilton (a student of Horowitz, and featured in the book "The 50 Best Piano Teachers in the USA"). He received his Masters in Piano Performance under Dr Lucinda Carver (Dean of Classical Performance at USC).

On the jazz and soul side, as the leader of "Modern Groove Assembly" he has played with and produced music for Grammy winner Macy Gray, Carnegie Hall headliner Sy Smth, jazz legend Oscar Brashear (Horace Silver, Count Basie), nu-jazz artists Jeremy Ellis (The Roots), Bugz in the Attic, Nicolay (The Foreign Exchange), Quetzal Guerrero, Alison David, and more. He has recorded music for 20th Century Fox, Ministry of Sound, Kajmere, Stilnovo, Irma, and many other labels. Modern Groove Assembly has had live music residencies in some of the most iconic venues in NYC, LA, and the Las Vegas Strip.

As an educator, he has a wide experience working with students of all ages and levels, especially elementary age students. He is the founder of iPianoLab, the largest provider of Elementary Music Piano Enrichment programs in the USA, with locations in NYC, Austin, Las Vegas, Dallas/Fort Worth, and more. 

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TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

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Unlike most professional pianists, Steve picked up the instrument not as a young child but in his late teens. "One of the advantages I have as a teacher is, unlike a lot of pianists who've been playing since before they can remember, I DO remember what learning was like. I remember which things worked and helped me to improve, and what things were really just a waste of time."

Steve believes that learning the rudiments of the instrument should not be separated from making MUSIC, the kind of music the student likes to listen to, right from the very first lessons. "The problem with many teachers is they resort to the standard method books, and make the student graduate through a series of 'learning songs' which sound horrible. This really dampens enthusiasm, for kids OR adults, and leads to high drop-outs. With my approach, the student can learn the kinds of tunes THEY like, and they can work on this type of music WHILE they're also getting a solid foundation in note reading, chords, scales, rhythm and counting, etc." 

For NYC Residents, Steve is available for private lessons at his studio on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, or in your home.