About George

Performer. Composer. Producer.
George Maurer is all three. But if you asked him to trim his talents to a single word, he would simply say “collaborator”. Whether he’s composing a score for a movie or helping Eric Clapton with a few chords, George has a genius for working as part of a creative team and realizing a collective artistic vision.

PRODUCER.

When the St. John’s Boys’ Choir needed an artist who could arrange Broadway tunes for its choreography and world-famous voices, the director commissioned George Maurer for the job – for 10 years straight.

When a rocker like Bobby Vee needs someone to create an arrangement that integrates strings with drums, bass and electric guitars, he brings George on board.

George has become known for his diverse production skills, which have seen him arrange for everything from gospel to pop, avant-garde theater to the architects of rock and roll. He’s versatile enough to span the musical chasm between orchestra and country, smart enough to respect each project’s artistic integrity while lending his compositional voice, and experienced enough to pull it all off.

“It’s about developing the relationship between the music and words and showing off each compositional style,” George says.

Just ask legendary groups like the Crickets, Chiffons and the string section from the Minnesota Orchestra, who all have played George Maurer arrangements. And judging from ticket sales and audience reaction, his co-production of the St. John’s Boys’ Choir’s “Boys on Broadway!” enjoyed enormous success. His music direction has set the soundtrack for a long list of theater productions, including Minneapolis-based Nautilus Theater’s “Rough Cuts” series and 10,000 Things’ “Ms. Julie.”

“When you arrange music for a production, you work with the director and choreographer and tech staff to put on a show. It’s putting all of those elements together, which in the end is creating a story,” George explains.

For George, it’s all about the details. “I love to go in and detail the nuances of a movie score. I like to watch for every little movement of a dancer, every little inflection of a voice, every color and texture of a movie or the lighting of a theatrical stage. Good musical production is about grabbing the right texture, using the instrumentation that enhances the story.

George regularly produces music for artists he performs with, like revered Twin Cities vocalists Prudence Johnson and Debbie Duncan. He also produced his own 15 solo piano CDs and five George Maurer Jazz Group CDs released on George’s own label, Pine Curtain Productions, plus CDs for a variety of other artists. Samples from George's newest CD are available here.

“That’s one thing I love is to be in the studio and put an album together or arrange the overall view of what an artist wants to say on a project. And after you’ve done it for years, you know what to do. You know what feels right.”