Douglas Schultz

Douglas Schultz, pianist and composer, is a graduate of Bard College where he received a BA in music. Along the way he also studied at the Berklee School of Music, and began accompanying dance classes, both ballet and modern, at Wilkes-Barre Ballet and Bard College. From there, he moved to NYC where he spent most of his decades long career. This included playing class and rehearsals for American Ballet Theatre, the Joffrey II dancers, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Ballet Academy East, Ballet Arts, the Merce Cunningham school, the Martha, Graham school, and the Alvin Ailey School to name few. This led to four years as Company Pianist for the Joffrey ballet, a position in which he played company class, rehearsals, and in dozens of performances at theaters and opera houses throughout the United States as well as on several international tours. When the Joffrey Ballet relocated to Chicago. Mr. Schultz remained in NYC where he became senior pianist at the world famous Steps Studios, Ballet Academy East and Adelphi University, positions he held for two decades, until relocating in Lexington, Kentucky. During this time, he also served as pianist for Good Faith Shepherd Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, and performed extensively with the wonderful modern teacher and choreographer Aileen Passloff, whose work included dance choreographed to the music of Mr. Schultz.

Known for his improvisational skills, as well as his huge repertoire of ballet class music, Douglas Schultz has had the honor of working with or under some of the most famous teachers choreographers, and directors of the dance world including Mikhail Baryshnikov, Robert Joffrey, Gerald Arpino, Arthur Mitchell, Maggie Black, Kim Abel, Cheryl Yeager, Nancy Bielski, Irina Dvorovenko, Maxim Beloserkovsky, Heather Hawke, Francis Patrelle, and in the last two decades before leaving New York, he had a close professional association with the eminent teachers David Howard, Wilhelm Burmann, and Frank Augustyn.

Mr. Schultz has recorded his own original ballet class music and his arrangements of music for ballet class for his recording label Cynosura Sound. Under this label he has sold tens of thousands of his ballet class CDs, and his music, which is used for ballet classes around the world, has been streamed millions of times.

Since relocating to Kentucky, Mr. Schultz, now enjoys his new relationship with the University of Kentucky Dance Program, and also Louisville Ballet, where he works for the company and the preprofessional program.