Frequently asked Questions

Send your date, venue and the kind of event through the form on this page. Steven answers every inquiry personally, usually the same day, with availability, a suggested set plan and a quote.

Three to six months is comfortable for most dates. Saturdays in May, June, September and October, and any date in December, book further out. Short-notice requests are always worth asking about.

Pricing depends on the date, the length of the performance, the venue and whether you want solo piano, piano and vocals, or additional musicians. Send your details and you will get a firm quote rather than a range.

Yes. A signed agreement and a deposit hold the date; the balance is due on or before the day of the event.

Reach out as early as you can. Steven will move the booking to a new date when his calendar allows.

Yes. A short call is often the fastest way to plan the music, and Steven is happy to talk through the run-of-show before anything is signed.

Steven performs for private events throughout Chicago and Chicagoland, including in-home parties, corporate gatherings, milestone celebrations and cultural events.

All of Chicagoland. The North Shore including Evanston, Wilmette, Winnetka, Glencoe, Highland Park and Lake Forest; the North and Northwest suburbs including Skokie, Niles, Park Ridge, Arlington Heights, Schaumburg and Barrington; the western suburbs including Oak Park, Hinsdale, Naperville, Wheaton, Aurora and Elgin; the southwest including Joliet, Plainfield, Orland Park and Tinley Park; the south suburbs; and northwest Indiana. City work spans the Loop, Gold Coast, Lincoln Park, River North, Hyde Park and Edgewater.

Yes. Steven splits his calendar between Chicago and Los Angeles, performs in Milwaukee and throughout the Midwest, and travels nationally and internationally on request.

Hotel ballrooms, private clubs, museums, banquet halls, restaurants, parish halls, corporate offices, senior living communities, outdoor terraces and private homes of every size.

Yes. Among them Carnegie Hall, Symphony Center in Chicago, the Hotel Bel-Air, The Beverly Hills Hotel, Spago, Disneyland, Navy Pier and Frank Sinatra's Twin Palms Estate.

Birthday parties, house parties, anniversaries, bar and bat mitzvahs, quinceañeras, engagements and proposals, vow renewals, baby showers, retirement parties, corporate events, office holiday parties, brand activations, senior living communities and memorials.

Yes. Steven performs at client dinners, galas, conferences, office holiday parties and brand activations, and has been trusted by Rolls-Royce, Hulu, Disney, Mattel, National Geographic, La Roche-Posay and Caudalie.

Yes. Steven regularly performs uplifting, engaging programs for senior living and retirement communities, with music chosen for the residents' era and room for sing-alongs.

Yes. Steven plays processionals and recessionals, accompanies soloists, and continues through cocktail hour and the reception. He also performs vow renewals and anniversary celebrations.

Yes. Steven arrives discreetly, plays your song on your signal, and keeps the surprise intact.

Steven is trained in both jazz and classical piano and performs a repertoire that spans jazz standards, today's pop hits, classical and cinematic pieces, Latin music, show tunes and holiday music. Cocktail jazz early in the evening and familiar favorites later is the most requested arc.

Jazz standards and the Great American Songbook, classical and cinematic piano, current chart hits, classic rock, soul and Motown, Latin, country, stage and screen, Jewish liturgical and klezmer, and holiday music.

Yes. Requests are always welcome, on or off the song list. Steven reads music on sight and plays most songs in any key. There is a setlist builder on each event page that produces a list you can send with your date.

Yes. Steven regularly learns and arranges specific songs for first dances, father-daughter dances, the vals, processionals and tribute moments.

Yes. Steven is an accomplished vocalist as well as a pianist, and can perform solo piano, piano with vocals, or accompany a family member or soloist who wants to sing.

Yes. Requests taken live from the room are one of the things Steven is known for, and he transposes to whatever key suits whoever is singing.

Yes. Steven is known for fun, interactive performances that include sing-alongs, live requests and audience engagement, which turns the piano into part of the party rather than background furniture.

Guests choose a song, Steven plays it live in their key, and the room sings. There are no backing tracks and no fixed key, so anyone can sing anything — and it is one of the most requested formats for birthdays, mitzvah receptions and office parties.

Yes. Steven holds a real conversation without missing a note, which is part of why guests remember being talked to rather than played at.

Two pianos and two performers trading songs, taking requests and building a singalong. It works in ballrooms and large living rooms alike.

Steven plays the venue's piano when there is one, tuned and in good order. When there is not, he brings a full-size weighted digital piano that looks and sounds appropriate for a formal room.

Yes. Steven brings a sound system sized to the room, along with microphones for vocals or toasts. For very large rooms he will coordinate with your AV team.

A footprint of roughly six by six feet and one standard outlet within reach. For outdoor performances he needs shade or cover and a level surface.

Two to three hours of performance is typical, usually structured in sets with short breaks. Longer engagements and multi-part days can be arranged.

A classic black tuxedo is the standard. Wardrobe can be adjusted to your dress code, theme or brand direction.

Yes. Steven follows the run-of-show closely, cues moments on your signal, and coordinates directly with planners, photographers, choreographers and production teams.

Steven Solomon is a luxury event pianist and vocalist based in Chicago and known as Pianist to the Stars. He began studying piano at four, played his first professional engagement at ten, and made his Carnegie Hall debut at twenty. More than three thousand performances have followed across twenty-five years.

Yes. Steven is a lifelong Chicagoan and is raising his family in Chicagoland, where both he and his wife are from. He divides his working calendar between Chicago and Los Angeles, with studios in both cities.

Yes. Among those he has performed for and alongside are Lady Gaga, Conan O'Brien, Kristen Wiig, Bob Odenkirk, Natalie Morales, Emanuel Ax, Melissa Villaseñor, Nia Vardalos, Heather Graham, Father John Misty and Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Yes. Certificates of insurance are available for venues that require them.