A native of Atlanta, Georgia, Joe Alterman studied music at New York University, where he received both his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Jazz Piano Performance. In addition to performances with Houston Person, Les McCann and his own trio, among others, Alterman has performed at many world renowned venues including the Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, Birdland and New York’s Blue Note, where Alterman has opened, many times, for Ramsey Lewis. Alterman has also opened for Dick Gregory, Norah Jones, John Pizzarelli and Philip Bailey (of Earth, Wind And Fire), among others. 31 years old, Alterman has released four critically-acclaimed albums, his most recent being 2018’s “More Cornbread”. He was profiled three times by iconic journalist Nat Hentoff and was the subject of Hentoff’s very last piece on music in March 2016. Dick Cavett has referred to Alterman as “one fine, first class entertainer” and Ramsey Lewis has called Alterman “an inspiration to me” and his piano playing “a joy to behold”.
In addition to his piano work, Alterman is the Executive Director of the Atlanta Jewish Music Festival, which celebrates Jewish contributions to Music. He’s also a budding journalist and is currently writing liner notes for Wynton Marsalis. Nat Hentoff called one of Alterman’s columns on jazz “one of the very best pieces on the essence of jazz, the spirt of jazz, that I’ve ever read, and I’m not exaggerating.”
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