Using visual cues pointed out by his elder: “here, you leave two keys, and then you play a chord.” His first piano pieces and some duets followed. Just like his first compositions, “just for fun.” After a few years at this pace, Steve decides, pushed by his father, to seriously study the piano. He takes lessons and then spends three years at the Nice Conservatoire of Music, where he also receives harmony lessons. “This allowed me to put words to principles I was already using in my compositions.”
At 18, with a high school diploma in sales, he decides to try his luck in the music scene. A few months later, he sees a pianist playing in the streets of Old Nice. “He was mainly playing pop songs, like *La bohème*. I thought I could do the same with my pieces.” After convincing his father, who did not want to see the family piano in the street, Steve Villa-Massone quickly achieves some success. His very demonstrative piano playing is one of the reasons: his hands genuinely leap from high notes to low, he stands up to emphasize a chord. More than his agility or his talent at the keyboard, it’s his enthusiasm that gets him noticed. According to Steve, the street is a very good school for an artist: “it’s there that you see if people like you and if you are good, or not.” For him, the outcome is very encouraging. As soon as someone stops walking to listen to him, the bet is won for Steve. “There, I managed to touch people with my music.”
### Without Neglecting the Classical Repertoire
It has now been seven years that Steve Villa-Massone has been playing in the streets of Nice. His favorite spot? Currently, it would be the arcades of Place Masséna. He prefers it over Old Nice, as “it offers a huge space.” Perhaps also because it’s a prime spot for tourists. Just like the Promenade des Anglais, where he sets up in the summer.
His art, however, is not limited to his own compositions. Steve is proud to present a classical training. “I also need to know how to play classical pieces, if a tourist asks me for a specific piece. So I work on the repertoire of Mozart, Beethoven, or Chopin. But it is very difficult to break through playing classical music: you are competing with real geniuses,” he laments. Nevertheless, he is occasionally asked by the local council or the city hall of Nice to perform publicly. “I have played at the TNN (National Theatre of Nice), where I accompanied plays directed by Sophie Duez. I have stayed in contact with the theatre. And for the past two years, I have had the opportunity to play at *C’est pas classique*,” he proudly announces.
But with “two or three contracts per quarter,” Steve Villa-Massone cannot make a living from his concerts. The problem is that, having no agent, he struggles to manage his career himself. He would like to obtain the status of a freelance entertainer, go on tours, and live off his concerts. His remedy: a patience that withstands all trials. “I give myself until 35-40 years old to make it work,” he acknowledges. And what is certain is that he will continue to play in the streets of Nice, for pleasure, no matter his fame.
