Steve Hunt

Steve Hunt

Steve Hunt is a jazz pianist, keyboardist and art director associated with jazz fusion and contemporary jazz. He builds his playing and composing around a technically demanding approach, and he cites Keith Jarrett, Joe Zawinul, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock and Thelonious Monk among his main influences.

Early study and training

Hunt studies first with concert pianist Albert Hirsh and jazz pianists Sid Davis and Lyle Mays, who help shape his fast technique and individual style. He later attends Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he continues his jazz studies.

Boston work and touring career

After studying in Boston, Hunt records and performs with local jazz musicians including Randy Roos and Tiger Okoshi, and he leads his own jazz fusion band. He then spends ten years touring with a range of jazz and related artists, including Billy Cobham, Stanley Clarke, Angela Bofill, Tom Brown and Allan Holdsworth. His touring takes him to Japan, Israel, Austria, France, England, Italy, Sweden, Argentina and Australia, as well as major cities in the United States and Canada.

Work with Allan Holdsworth and Stanley Clarke

Hunt has a long association with Allan Holdsworth, whose progressive style influences his own development. He appears on Holdsworth releases including Secrets, Wardenclyffe Tower and Hard Hat Area, and those recordings also include Hunt’s original pieces “Maid Marion”, “Joshua” and “Dodgy Boat”. While touring with Holdsworth, he is featured in the Japanese edition of Keyboard Magazine. He also contributes to two Stanley Clarke albums, If This Bass Could Only Talk and East River Drive.

Solo work, direction and teaching

Hunt produces his solo jazz album From Your Heart and Your Soul and organises a quintet for its promotional tour, with Gregg Bendian, John Lockwood, Ole Mathisen and Bruce Bartlett. Alongside performing and touring, he teaches at Berklee College of Music in Boston and runs his recording studio, The Kitchen, in Massachusetts. He lives in Massachusetts with his wife, Gina.

Jazz Explosion

He also serves as musical director for the touring Jazz Explosion, leading a trio that headlines artists including Freddie Hubbard, Gato Barbieri, Stanley Turrentine, Ramsey Lewis, Noel Pointer, Kenny G and Phyllis Hyman. The show plays venues such as the Circle Star in San Francisco, the Beacon Theatre in New York, the Universal Theatre in Los Angeles and Hammersmith Odeon in London.