Art Stern grew up in New York in the 50’s and spent a considerable amount of time visiting the clubs and piano bars in Manhattan where his style evolved. He was able to hear Bill Evans, Cy Walter, Teddy Wilson, Marion McPartland and Oscar Peterson to name a few of the the greats. Those were times when you could sit down and have a drink or two at a piano bar or hotel lounge for a few dollars. He “inhaled” the flavor of these piano stylists and picked up some of what they were doing. Luckily, he had a great ear and could replicate many of the phrases he heard. Art studied under John Mehegan who was a protégé of Teddy Wilson and learned a great deal about jazz improvisation from him.
