Steve Holt (Canadian musician)
Steve Holt (born 1954) is a Canadian jazz pianist.
Early life and education
[edit]Born in Montreal, Quebec, in 1954, Holt exhibited musical ability in early childhood, playing piano at the age of four.[1] By the time he was a teenager, Holt was a regular on the Montreal club scene.[1]
Holt remained self-taught until he entered McGill University.[2] There, he was taught by pianist Armas Maiste, whose bebop playing influenced him.[2] Holt also became a student of Kenny Barron, traveling regularly to New York City for private lessons with the pianist.[1] Holt graduated from McGill in 1981 with that university's first Bachelor of Music major in Jazz Performance,[3] and taught jazz improvisation there.[1]
Later life and career
[edit]In 1983, Holt's debut album, The Lion's Eyes, was released.[1] It was nominated for a Juno Award.[2] He has worked with jazz musicians Larry Coryell, James Moody, [4] Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson, [5] and Archie Shepp.[1] Holt moved to Toronto in 1987 and worked as an equity analyst.[2] For a time, he also continued playing clubs at night.[2] Further albums were released in the 1990s: Christmas Light (1991); Just Duet (1992); and Catwalk (1994).[1]
In 1999, Holt returned to concentrating on music full-time.[1] Three years later, his fifth album, The Dream, was released.[1] He then moved into music production, and stopped performing jazz live[2] until 2014. Following a move to the countryside, his interest in jazz performance returned.[2] In 2017, he opened a health food store in Warkworth, Ontario,[6] that operated as a jazz venue (The Jazz Cafe) once a week.[7]
After a 20 year absence from the recording field, Holt released a new album in April 2025. The album, IMPACT, featured several new compositions and a new band, The Steve Holt Jazz Impact Quintet.[8] The album received widespread international acclaim.[9] [10][11]
Discography
[edit]- 1983: The Lion's Eyes (Plug)
- 1991: Christmas Light (Inner Music)
- 1992: Just Duet (Sackville) with Kieran Overs
- 1993: Catwalk (Sackville)
- 2001: The Dream (Trilogy)
- 2025: Impact (Inner Music)
Singles
- 2002: We Need You (Trilogy)
- 2002: Just to Be With You (Trilogy)
- 2003: Soon (Trilogy)
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h i Wilson, MacKenzie. "Steve Holt". AllMusic. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f g Hum, Peter (April 18, 2016). "'I Feel Like I'm Fully Invested Again in Jazz': The Steve Holt Interview". Ottawa Citizen.
- ^ StudentScholarships.org
- ^ "Canadian Jazz Archive".
- ^ "Canadian Jazz Archive".
- ^ "Owner of "The Natural" is Jazzing up his shop in Warkworth | Trent Hills Now". Retrieved 2019-10-04.
- ^ Williams, Caroline (Fall 2018). "Keeping Music Live at The Natural". Grapevine Magazine. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
- ^ "Steve Holt Returns with 'IMPACT' on April 25th via Inner Music". v13.net. 2024-04-03.
- ^ "Paris Move".
- ^ "Jazz Journal UK". 8 June 2025.
- ^ "Midwest Book Review".
External links
[edit]
- 1954 births
- Living people
- Canadian jazz pianists
- Musicians from Montreal
- Post-bop pianists
- Jewish Canadian musicians
- Canadian male jazz composers
- Canadian jazz composers
- McGill University School of Music alumni
- Canadian pop pianists
- Canadian male singers
- Canadian financial analysts
- Anglophone Quebec people
- 21st-century Canadian pianists
- 21st-century Canadian male musicians
- Sackville Records artists
- Canadian male singer-songwriters
- 20th-century Canadian singer-songwriters
- Canadian male jazz pianists
- 21st-century Canadian singer-songwriters