Steve Holt (born 1954) is a Canadian jazz pianist.
Early life and education
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 JazzPerformance,[3] and taught jazz improvisation there.[1]
Later life and career
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, Eddie Henderson, 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,[4] that operates as a jazz venue once a week.[5]
