Eric Stern
About Me
Eric Stern is a 24-year old jazz pianist, composer, educator, and arranger who makes “keyboarding more like surfboarding, wave after wave at breakneck speed. Every solo is a show unto itself" (BroadwayWorld). Eric’s ability to blend seamlessly into almost any style within the genre, while staying authentic and true to the music, has allowed Eric to quickly establish himself as a rising star in the NYC jazz scene.
Eric grew up in Brooklyn, New York, studying at the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music with various classical and jazz teachers. His passion for jazz began in middle school, and in high school, he got involved in several New York City arts programs, including the Belongó Fat Cats Big Band directed by noteworthy drummer Zack O’Farrill. He also studied privately with Jacob Sacks.
In 2019, Eric moved to Miami, Florida to study at the Frost School of Music, University of Miami. While at the Frost School of Music, Stern had the opportunity to study privately with Shelly Berg, Martin Bejerano, Alex Brown, and Gonzalo Rubalcaba, as well as working with GRAMMY-winners Dafnis Prieto, Regina Carter, Terrell Stafford, Dick Oatts, and John Daversa. After graduating from Frost in 2023, Eric returned to NYC to pursue a Masters Degree at the Manhattan School of Music, studying with Ted Rosenthal, Phil Markowitz, Jon Faddis, Nicole Glover, John Benitez, Buster Williams, and others. Eric graduated in 2025 with his Master’s from Manhattan School of Music.
Stern has won numerous awards throughout his career, including being a National YoungArts Honorable Mention in 2020, the winner of the Bösendorfer prize at the American Jazz Pianist Competition, and an attendee of the 2022 JAS Summer Jazz Academy, working with Christian McBride. He also is a 2023 Downbeat Award Winner as the pianist for the Funk Fusion ensemble at the Frost School of Music, directed by Steve Rucker. He is a 2025 Detroit Collegiate Combo Competition Winner.
In 2023, Eric played on two records, Kate Kortum’s debut record Good Woman, and on a live record from the Frost Jazz Orchestra, Live at Gusman Concert Hall.
In 2024, Eric started working for the Misty Copeland Foundation, a non-profit aimed at providing ballet to underserved youth in New York City. Eric’s mission in education is to serve community deeply and provide joy on the ground to kids all over New York City through music. Joining the MCF family has been an important part of crystallizing Eric’s mission as a educator. Eric also started to collaborate with a Brooklyn-based hip-hop collective, Good Lives Crew, and has recorded extensively with the crew, with a goal to release the music by the end of 2025. The Eric Stern Trio also did a short tour of Florida in 2024, stopping in St. Petersburg, Miami, and Orlando.
Recently, Eric has been playing with Grammy-winning bassist John Benitez in John’s Evolution Sextet, playing regularly at venues such as Terraza 7 and Arthur’s Tavern, and at the Jersey City Latin Jazz Festival. Additionally, Eric has been playing with Noah Myers’ group Sonder. The group won the 2025 Detroit Collegiate Combo Competition, and a month later played in the Detroit Jazz Festival, Eric’s first major jazz festival as a performer. Sonder will also be playing the WAHA Jazz Festival in November. Eric also works with La Carabali, a mambo-style salsa band founded by legendary pianist Oscar Hernandez. Eric is also playing in the 26-year anniversary production of Retumba La Roka, a production which highlights Puerto Rican discourse in modern-day New York City. Eric also is the sitting pianist in Rene Calvo’s Strawberry Mouth, a psychedelic blues band. The trio plays every Tuesday at the Harlem Flophouse seasonally. Additionally, Eric has a duo project with acclaimed vocalist Joie Bianco. The duo will be playing in Massachusetts this coming November in Ashtonwood.
Eric leads two bands, his Quintet, and his Trio. The Trio will be performing in a new format, with Zack O’Farrill on drums and Raul Reyes on bass, at Saint Peter’s Church (the Jazz Vespers) later this year for a Day of the Dead Celebration. The Quintet has played at venues such as ShapeShifter Lab, and Chelsea Table and Stage, and Lagniappe and WDNA in Miami.