Eric Stern
About Me
Eric Stern is a 23-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 an upcoming 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.
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 Downbeat Award Winner as the pianist for the Funk Fusion ensemble at the Frost School of Music, directed by Steve Rucker.
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 the same year, Eric also moved back to NYC, and is currently finishing up his master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music, studying with Ted Rosenthal, Phil Markowitz, Jon Faddis, Nicole Glover, John Benitez, Buster Williams, and others.
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. Eric was also featured in the 25-year anniversary production of Retumba La Roka, a production which highlighted Puerto Rican discourse in modern-day New York City.
Eric also started to work with La Carabali, a mambo-style salsa band founded by Oscar Hernandez, and John Benitez in a Modern Latin Jazz Sextet. The latter played at the Jersey City Latin Jazz Festival, and recorded a record to be released in 2025.
Currently, Eric has two active bands - his Quintet, and his Trio. Each has performed extensively throughout NYC, in places such as Chelsea Table + Stage, ShapeShifter Lab, SoapBox Gallery, and the Harlem Flophouse.