Stephanie Trick

The next rising star in the stride world…”

– Dr. Mark Borowsky, James P. Johnson Foundation

Award-winning pianist and recording artist Stephanie Trick is a leading authentic interpreter of stride piano today. One of the few female stride pianists to command mastery of this technically and physically demanding jazz piano style, she has been called “the next rising star in the stride world” and one of “only three or four people alive today” with the potential to recreate “the magic” of stride legend masters such as James P. Johnson, Fats Waller, Willie “The Lion” Smith, Art Tatum, and Jelly Roll Morton.

A classically trained pianist and organist, Stephanie began playing piano at the age of five. A year later, she was already performing, and by the time she was ten, she had won her first major competition. In high school, she discovered her true passion – stride piano – and released her first CD before graduating. While in college, it became clear to Stephanie that she wanted to pursue stride and classic jazz styles professionally.

Stephanie’s most recent album, Hear That Rhythm!, has an emphasis on the stride works of Waller, Johnson, and Smith, as well as on some contemporary ragtime compositions. Piano Tricks, her first solo album, is a combination of stride, ragtime, jazz, and classical selections. (CD track listings, video clips, ordering information, and more may be found on her website at www.stephanietrick.com.)

With a music style resembling a mixture of old blues and boogie woogie plus Fats Waller and Teddy Wilson, Stephanie has performed all over the United States as well as in Europe in a variety of venues, including The Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis, Missouri, Philippe Carment’s music studio in Normandy, France, Mimi Blais & Friends’ Concert in Versailles, Missouri, and the West Coast Ragtime Festival in Sacramento, California. In 2008, she was also chosen to perform at the international Stride and Swing Summit in Boswil, Switzerland, where she teamed up with five of the world’s best stride pianists: Louis Mazetier, Rossano Sportiello, Paolo Alderighi, Jon Weber, and Olaf Polziehn.

A serious student, passionate about traditional jazz and stride heritage, her studies have included piano master classes, training abroad in Germany and Austria, and studies under a number of celebrated pianists, including Louis Mazetier, Rossano Sportiello, Mike Lipskin, and Jeff Barnhart. Graduating from college with a Bachelor of Arts in Music, she held several honors including being selected for an arts tour of the East Coast and being inducted into the academic honor society Phi Beta Kappa at the University of Chicago.

Choosing to explore the music deeply, she continues her extensive studies of stride and classic jazz. In order to capture, internalize, and express the joyful sounds of stride, Stephanie enjoys spending many hours a day at the keyboard, while continuing to listen to and study the stride piano legends. In an effort to bring a greater appreciation for traditional jazz and its integral role in the development of American culture, Stephanie shares stories about stride masters of the past during her performances and gives presentations to students in special ragtime and stride programs.

Stephanie is currently editing a CD to be released in the summer of 2010 as well as arranging, composing, and adding new pieces to her repertoire.