Steven C

FREE - Take One! It’s Concert time!

stevenc — Thu, 15 May 2008 15:32:26 +0000

As part of the latest Steven C publicity push, it was agreed that I should play a concert to coincide with all the press. “Sounds like a great idea”, I said. Then a few pleasant and “not so good” memories of past live performances ran through my head.
The truth is, I don’t play public concerts often. Most of the time you will find me comfortably behind the piano in my monkey suit at a private club. It’s really safe, it’s background music and everybody is happy. But, “oh boy”, I’m now on t.v. and radio and giving out flyers in front of my house, hey it’s Showtime!

A lot of critical decisions like where, when, who, what and where will the puppy go are things that need answers. Perhaps I should learn from the past. Hmm, almost sold out the Guthrie theater in 1998. Great, but that was with the support of a real record label, American Gramaphone. How about we go back to the Fitzgerald theater like I did in 2001 with the Saint Paul Chamber strings. No so good… lost a lot of money for a Sunday afternoon! “How about the Mall of America,” someone thought…..Not the right vibe for my music, and the tween demographic is a bit off. How about renting a small hall like Sundin at Hamline or the new Stepping Stone Theater. Great ideas, but wait……! Is anyone really ready to buy a ticket to hear my latest piano music? Probably so, but I have a better idea.

Because I was not sure, I took Dorothy’s advise and thought “there’s no place like home.” Ah… lets make this easy; I have a great piano, a big house, free parking, a great view and let’s remember everyone is busy… let’s give the people multiple choices of when they want to “C” me.

“Just add people”

Now with the shows selling very well, I need to figure out just how many people I can comfortably seat and ooops! I need to borrow more folding chairs. Next question, what am I going to play apart from my original songs, or should I just play my stuff? You have to come over to find out. I have recuited my 9-year old daughter, Nadya, to work the CD retail table. To cute for words !

Tell a friend and I hope to see you here!

Guy in a Tux?

stevenc — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 16:14:55 +0000

Â A booking agent called, said his client is looking for something special on New Years Eve. “We need a …. You know… a guy in a tux at the piano.” Yet another gig for Steven C. For over 20 years I have been “lucky” to be one of those “guys in a tux,” performing at country clubs, dinner parties, weddings and a few strange events such as divorce party.

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Mother nature was good to me!

stevenc — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 05:10:42 +0000

Â I’m a city guy. I like to visit the country, but at heart, I am a city guy. One day while reading the Sunday paper I grabbed the help wanted section and joked, “there’s never any music jobs in the paper”….. I was wrong. The ad headline said, “music producer wanted for growing Wisconsin based publisher”. Well, I was curious. So I sent my resume’ and after talking with the creative director, I found myself driving to Minocqua, Wisconsin to “C” this operation myself.

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The Gift of Melody

stevenc — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 03:49:30 +0000

Â Â Â Â Where does it come from?

I Like to think I write good melodies.Â Where do they originate?Â How do they transend from beginning to ending?Â Or do the best melodies come to the composer in final form?Â Are melodies some magical sequence of notes or are they more mathematical in nature?Â Why do people differ in their creation of great melodies?Â As you can tell, I have more questions than answers on this topic. (more…)

Recording with the London Symphony at Abbey Road!

stevenc — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 05:17:29 +0000

Greetings from Steven C. and welcome to my blog site. I chose my time in England as my debut topic because in all of my years as a recording artist, putting together a project with the London Symphony was my most amazing musical experience. “So”, you ask, “how did this come about”? (more…)

My Friend Chip Davis

stevenc — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 03:54:44 +0000

Chip Davis is a legend for many of us in the instrumental and “do-it-yourself” music and merchandise business. Again I am a lucky guy. I’m fortunate to say that Chip Davis and his family are friends of mine. I’ve had numerous opportunities to work with Chip in his awesome studio with his very talented musicians and staff. (more…)

Were you just born talented?

stevenc — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 05:46:31 +0000

Or does it take the guiding hand of another to nuture you toward accomplishment? Or is it a little of both? So then the question: Is talent born or nurtured?I’m sure many of you have explored the interesting relationship between math and music. Just Google it and wow! There’s tons of information like this. (more…)

I Just Need My Space

stevenc — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 02:47:42 +0000

Is there a correlation between your “space” and the music you create?In search of answers on music creativity, I decided to read the biographies of some of our greatest composers. Since I like the letter “B”, I started with Bach, Beethoven and Brahms. I wanted to learn as much as I could about each composers everyday life. I was looking for clues on just where this masterful music was inspired. Although I learned a lot, specifics did not surface from which to draw a conclusion. (more…)