Biography
Claire Ritter entered the world in 1952 in Charlotte, North Carolina, and spent her early years on a horse farm in the rural community of Weddington. Athleticism and equestrian activities came naturally, yet the piano exerted an equally strong pull that gradually assumed precedence. Public-school lessons began under Marlene Broome, and during her teenage years she continued studies with Charlotte-based jazz pianist and arranger Ziggy Hurwitz. At Sun Valley High School outside Monroe she earned recognition both as a musician and as a track-and-field standout.
She pursued the same dual focus at Arizona State University, receiving a B.S. in 1974 while competing in collegiate tennis, softball, soccer, field hockey, and basketball. Back in Charlotte she completed a B.A. in music at Queens University in 1978, guided by Anita B. Tritt, then worked from 1978 to 1980 as a private graduate student of the legendary Mary Lou Williams at Duke University. For the next four years she served simultaneously as sports coach and music instructor at Charlotte County Day School.
Ritter subsequently relocated to Boston and studied with Ran Blake at the New England Conservatory, remaining associated with him until 1997, when she returned to Charlotte. During those fifteen years in Boston she became a fixture on the local scene, establishing contemporary songwriting classes at both the New England Conservatory and Queens University while collaborating with artists such as Dave Holland, Houston Person, Ricky Ford, Dominique Eade, Steve Swallow, and Stan Strickland. She also founded her own label, Zoning Records, through which she has issued several titles. Performances have taken her throughout the United States and Canada, and she has received grants and commissions in Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Georgia.
Claire Ritter’s jazz style presents a modern sound grounded in classical music and infused with cool and light swing, yet she remains equally adept at considerable bop-inflected material and composes original works that intersect these disciplines.
She pursued the same dual focus at Arizona State University, receiving a B.S. in 1974 while competing in collegiate tennis, softball, soccer, field hockey, and basketball. Back in Charlotte she completed a B.A. in music at Queens University in 1978, guided by Anita B. Tritt, then worked from 1978 to 1980 as a private graduate student of the legendary Mary Lou Williams at Duke University. For the next four years she served simultaneously as sports coach and music instructor at Charlotte County Day School.
Ritter subsequently relocated to Boston and studied with Ran Blake at the New England Conservatory, remaining associated with him until 1997, when she returned to Charlotte. During those fifteen years in Boston she became a fixture on the local scene, establishing contemporary songwriting classes at both the New England Conservatory and Queens University while collaborating with artists such as Dave Holland, Houston Person, Ricky Ford, Dominique Eade, Steve Swallow, and Stan Strickland. She also founded her own label, Zoning Records, through which she has issued several titles. Performances have taken her throughout the United States and Canada, and she has received grants and commissions in Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Georgia.
Claire Ritter’s jazz style presents a modern sound grounded in classical music and infused with cool and light swing, yet she remains equally adept at considerable bop-inflected material and composes original works that intersect these disciplines.
Albums
