For over a year, I’ve had an amazing experience playing piano and organ at the historical Wesley Church in downtown Minneapolis.  For a long time, the church (New Harmony) had a cat named “Cat.”    This gave new meaning to our mantra of “everyone” is welcome.

This concert will benefit Feline Rescue and Caring for Cats, a non-profit, no kill rescue and adoption groups, AND Wesley Church. I will be joined by my fancy keyboard and yes, I promise to play “Memory” from “Cats!”

For tickets and more information visit http://stevencmusicwesleychurch.eventbrite.com/

I will be joined by a few “mystery musicians” and offer a light reception after the show. The kids have worked hard on the Christmas decorations this year and we look forward the sharing the season with you.

For your FREE tickets visit:

http://www.eventbrite.com/org/76351847

340 Summit

 Do you Hear?

My CD “On Christmas Night” got some nice “ink” last year from Kathy Parsons

I hope to “C” you on the 21st !

On Christmas Night

Help the homeless on Oct. 1st  with Steven C.,

Mary Beth Carlson and Patty Peterson

“Give Me Change” Concert With Steven C & Friends

Special Fundraising Event

Steven C - contemporary Minnesota composer and pianist of recently released “Spiritual Piano” will perform to raise funds for the Wells Foundation to END HOMELESSNESS!

“Steven’s music is a catalyst for healing and inspiration”
—Jim Davies, Wells Foundation Board

• Date:Saturday, October 1, 2011 (doors at 6 pm, concert 7 pm)
• Venue:Saint Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral
  519 Oak Grove Street
  Minneapolis, MN
  (St. Mark’s is located near Loring Park across Hennepin Ave. from the Walker Art Center. )
• Seating:Open EXCEPT for Deluxe (See tickets)
• Ticket Prices:$25 – General admission concert (Tax deductible contribution $20)
  $20 – Students/Seniors concert (Tax deductible contribution $15)
  $10 – Discount concert – some obstructed views (Tax deductible contribution $5)
  $40 – Deluxe concert INCLUDES reserved area, admission to post-concert dessert & wine reception with Steven C., plus a copy of Steven C’s new Spirtual Piano CD  (Tax deductible contribution $25)

All proceeds support grants to organizations that use social innovation to end homelessness.

How to Buy Tickets:

http://www.wellsfound.org/benefit-concert

Steven C.

Spiritual Piano: Message Music

Steven C Music- Steven C’s Spiritual Piano breaks away from his usual musical motif in several ways: One is the abundant presence of accompanists (on mandolin, violin, fretless bass, percussion, and guitar), and the other is the music’s instantly engaging accessibility, almost approaching the breezy New Age pop sound of Wayne Gratz. Some of Steven C’s recent offerings were more anchored in a neo-classical style, so this new direction should open up his fan base considerably. According to the liner notes, the CD is quite personal to him and is aimed at helping listeners take their own spiritual journey. This particular journey is rich and rewarding indeed. Spiritual Piano is an exceptional piano and ensemble album!

-Bill Binkelman - New Age Retailer

Whether you are a new fan or an old friend, I want to say, “thanks” for stopping by. I have some exciting news to share with you now, after a few years struggling to compose new music. I went “deep” -  read a lot of books, reflected on life A-Z  and found new inspiration from simple everyday life!

The result… Spiritual Piano!

Check out this new review from Kathy Parsons

“Steven’s mastery of the piano allows his spirit to freely soar, inviting you to play, settle, meditate, imagine, dream, and simply be.”

~Cyndi Dale (Read more of Cyndi’s glowing endorsement for Spiritual Piano below)

Now available in my music store.

Spiritual Piano was recorded live with a small “intenders” group. I explained the inspiration and message of each song prior to recording. Click here to read what inspired each song. The “intenders” would concentrate on the theme and give it energy, intention and extra emotion. During the process of creating this CD, I have created a new term for my music. “Message Music”  is my center. My music has a greater agenda beyond sounding beautiful, great melodies, etc. “Message Music” is music with a purpose for higher good—music that seeks to inspire, heal, relax, motivate and finally to inspire insightful conversations about life and spirituality. Here are two samples:

Pianisimo

Knowing

With Ed Bonk’s expertise, May is the start of  our Radio and P.R. campaign for Spiritual Piano. We’re off to a good start!

Praise for Spiritual Piano

Available in my music store

From my home in Saint Paul, MN to the famed Abbey Road recording studios in London…what an amazing experience it was recording Heartstrings with the London Symphony Strings. I love to share this experience. Heart Strings is currently enjoying a surge in popularity thanks to a major P.R. and radio promotion campaign by Ed Bonk of Lazz promotions

I’d love for you to have a listen:

Heartstrings

Please enjoy this full track of Heart Strings with my compliments, and feel free to download it and share it with a friend. If you play piano, you can find the sheet music of my original composition here. And check out this nice review by one of this genre’s best…Kathy Parsons of mainlypiano, and from RJ Lannan from the UK,  here’s the review from John at The Borderland:

Steven C – Heart Strings

This album caught my eye when it arrived as the musician/composer Steven C [Anderson] is accompanied by the London Symphony Strings and recorded at the legendary Abbey Road studios. Now, this is quite classy, these are the string musicians drawn from the various symphony orchestras based in London. In other words, these guys ain’t cheap and neither is the recording studio, so this album has had quite a budget spent on it. So what is it like? Well, perfectly pleasant – ‘new age’-style piano-led compositions with a strong romantic theme, quite lush sounding considering the rich orchestral backing. There are fifteen tracks altogether on the CD – personally, I would class the album more as ‘easy listening’ or ‘lounge’ and it offers similar pleasures to that found on the old albums by Mantovani, Nelson Riddle, and Percy Faith. The music is smooth, glowing with a serious musicality [enhanced by some of the best orchestral musicians in the world], definitely several levels above the usual elevator music style of ‘new age’. Track titles include: My Angel, Embraced, Heartstrings in F#, Chloe, Heaven Bound, First Light, Grace, Sundown, Gift of an Angel, Too Many Hats, Over The Moon, Mistress Music, Romance, Opus Derian, and Wedding Day White. Steven C’s music is quite mellifluous, gently soothing and massaging the brain cells, easing daily stress and bringing some relief from the daily grind. This isn’t an album to change the world but it will help calm your internal one if you allow it.

I hope you enjoy this music as much I enjoyed making it.

Steven C

Happy  Valentine’s Day!

In honor of Valentine’s Day… enjoy a few FREE downloads  Heartstrings and  Daybreak

Thanks to all who attended my home concerts in November and December, they were tons of fun !

NEWS

Talk about “Luv it”,  check out this recent request…

“Dear Mr. Steven C, Hello, my name is (blank) and I’m currently a graduate student at the University of Maryland.  My girlfriend and I recently had the pleasant opportunity to listen to your album “Signature” and instantly fell in love with your music. I was wondering where I could find the sheet music for the piece titled “Daybreak” on this album. This piece is my girlfriend’s absolute favorite and I’d like to play it when I propose to her in the spring.”

I’m helping him out with a lead sheet !

In the Valentines day spirit, I really want to share part of this recent “Heartstrings” review by Bill Binkleman… wow !

“I admit it. I am die-hard romantic. I cried (actually sobbed is more like it) when I got to end of reading The Bridges of Madison County. I cry every time at the end of Children of a Lesser God, and I even tear up when Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan find true love in Sleepless in Seattle. What does this have to do with pianist Steven C’s Heart Strings CD? Simple – this is an album (of instrumental piano and orchestral strings) for lovers.

Now, I don’t mean just lovey-dovey look in their eyes lovers. I mean anyone who has ever been in love, is in love, or even dreams about being in love. If you love sunsets, if you love walks on the beach, if you love cool, crisp, grey autumn days (I do), then you are a romantic and might as well face it. And, if you also enjoy warm, emotionally rich piano music accented with strings (and not samples, these are the real deals), then you will almost certainly enjoy Heart Strings. Seldom do pianists in the “new age” genre know how to apply strings to their piano music as aptly as “C” does (his real last name is Anderson – fitting for Minnesota, doncha know). Never melodramatic, maudlin,  sappy or over the top, Anderson integrates the assorted strings (sometimes as solo instruments, sometimes as an entire section) with his flowing melodies with an uncommon dexterity and skill. He should teach this artistry to a few others, whose names will not be uttered.

Going back to Heart Strings, the CD is simply wonderful to immerse yourself in when you are in a dreamy reflective state but not restricted to melancholic or somber music.  “My Angel,” and ending with the “Wedding Day White.” With nary a hint of cloying sentimentality or schmaltzy melodrama, the pianist paints these truly romantic soundscapes, one after another. Heart Strings will send your spirit soaring to new heights, borne on recalled moments of joy, and your soul will reflect inward on memories long forgotten.” Rating: Very Good+

Upcoming events

I am now performing Wednesday’s at 7:30pm and Sunday’s at 9:30am  for a ‘new’ church in an amazing old space right next to the convention center in Mpls.

Check out the Wesley ambiance by looking here. I play, I speak and with this church— “everyone is welcome.”

Friday March 4th… a big day !

I’ll be speaking and performing “Spiritual Piano” at my alma mater Hamline University for their popular “First Friday Forums.”

Then Friday night at 7pm on March 4th, experience a very different side of my music-ness with this concert event at our house, featuring acclaimed singer/songwriters Jeff Arundel and Holly Long, a great musical night -“Holly Long and Jeff Arundel -Together Again for the First Time – A House Concert”

This will be a great night of acoustic/electric music ( I will be sitting in too).

Only $10.00 includes wine, beer, coffee, beverages and snacks.

The first 25 people to purchase tickets will receive FREE -Holly Long’s new CD “Frequency.”

Limited seating – so get your tickets now!

REGISTER for tickets: http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?oeidk=a07e3buko1pa61232cf&llr=bsur4kcab

Finally… Not quite a Grammy Award but…

Be well!

Steven C.

On Christmas Night is available in my music store

Second, with the success of my recent “Heartstrings” CD (#5 on the charts), we decided to re-work “On Christmas Night” and re-issue it after it was rescued from a label that went under. With the chance to revisit this album, I heard some songs differently (they went away) and thankfully new Christmas songs arrived, plus the graphics needed updating so I enlisted my o-so-talented designer friend Kelli May Krenz of 730thursday.com to create the visual holiday spice. And WOW!, check out these early reviews from Kathy, Keith, and Raj.

Here’s some of what they love:

Gesu Bambino
Christmas Time Is Here
Walking in the Air

There’s more.

Sometimes the most exciting projects are created when they’re created from a love of the repertoire, and what started as a simple gift idea for Christmas has become a new and special CD from yours truly. “Duet Noel“  is brand new and truly one of a kind, featuring fifteen amazing arrangements by such artists as Melody Bober, Eugene Butler, and Rebecca Bonam. Finding these arrangements was quite an adventure and in retrospect it seems almost impossible that I had never heard of Melody, Eugene, and Rebecca prior to this project. Most of all, it seems impossible that no one had ever recorded them. So I did. I’m joined at the piano by the very talented Ann Tracey of the Crocus Hill Music School and the sound of our four hands on my Bosendorfer is breathtaking.

Duet Noel is available in my music store

Give Duet Noel a sample:

Still, Still, Still
Sing We Now
Merry Christmas Medley

Both Duet Noel and On Christmas Night, plus all the single song downloads from each CD, are available now in my store, or at CD baby, and very soon at iTunes and Amazon. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Be Our Guest at Our Free Christmas Concert

While immersed in all this recording, a Christmas light bulb went on in my head, reminding me I have never given a Christmas concert. Well, it’s the perfect year to fix that! My family and I love decorating for the holidays and this year we want to share this wonderful Christmas season with you.

Steven C. & Friends will present three free Christmas concerts on Sunday December 19th at 3pm, Monday December 20th at 7pm, and a special “Solstice” performance on Tuesday December 21st at 7pm. You can reserve your free tickets here.

Won’t you please come and be our guest, and bring a friend or loved one. After all, Christmas is about sharing peace, joy, and love with the entire world.

Be well,

Steven C.

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”?

Well, I wish I could say that the phone rang and someone said, “Steve, it’s that guy from the London Symphony on line 3″. Or that my “record label” thought it was a great idea. . . ha, ha; the music world doesn’t work that way. It’s a sphere of relationships and connections. While performing and recording with Chip Davis of Mannheim Steamroller, I met his concert master and violinist Arnie Roth (who is also a great music producer out of Chicago). Arnie called one day and asked if I knew of anyone looking to have some “strings” recorded for an upcoming project. I did not. But for some reason, I asked Arnie if he would give my piano originals a listen. Not expecting anything to come of it, I sent him a few of my tracks. Soon after he called to say, “Steve, we have got to do this”! With plenty of pre-production, it was off to the famous Abbey Road studio room A. That’s right, the same room where the Beatles made history. When I got there, ahead of schedule, Arnie had the room busy with a corporate client, Barbie’s Nutcracker. It was amazing to watch the sessions.

What Am I Doing?

After overcoming jet lag and the “what am I doing in the same room with these musicians” feeling, it was time to step up to the 9-foot Hamburg Steinwayto play my music. I was nervous and distracted by

the amazing sound of the orchestra. I hadn’t heard Arnie’s arrangements before the session and the things he composed were simply stunning. I chose to record live with the strings. No click track, over-dubs or tricks. Kinda Classical old school, but the feel is always better.

I usually record at home where I am also the engineer/producer. Now at Abbey Road I was focused as the artist performing my own music…pinch me! It was the most amazing musical experience of my life. So good, you don’t even care if anyone else hears it. But you can. The songs are featured on my new “Heartstrings” CD. Room 1 has such a rich history, friendly vibe and the staff was the best…and to enjoy a “pint” after you’re done recording with the musicians…yes…Cheers!

Here’s a sample, the title track from “Heart Strings”:

Heartstrings