| Kurt Schneider | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Kurt Hugo Schneider |
| Born | September 7, 1988 |
| Origin | Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Genres | Pop, acoustic |
| Occupations | Film director, producer, singer, songwriter |
| Instruments | Piano, guitar, percussion, vocals, synthesizer |
| Years active | 2008–present |
| Labels | Mud Hut Digital, NoodleHouse, Sh-K-Boom |
| Associated acts | Sam Tsui, Tiffany Alvord, Megan Nicole, Matisse, Husky |
| Website | www.youtube.com/KurtHugoSchneider |
Kurt Hugo Schneider (born September 7, 1988)[1] is an American film director, producer, singer and songwriter, who is noted for his production of YouTube music videos in collaboration with other musicians. He is best known for his production of music videos for Sam Tsui, especially the musical medley videos in which Tsui appears as a one-man choir, which have garnered both national and international attention from the media.[2][3] His blend of musical and technical skills have been sought after by other musicians and organizations.[4]
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Schneider grew up in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia, where he lived just a street away from Sam Tsui, whom he met while attending Wissahickon High School.[5] He is of German and Austrian descent on his father's side.[6][7] Kurt has an older sister.[8] He graduated from Yale University in 2010 with a degree in mathematics.[1]
Schneider is also a chess master and played for Yale's chess team.[9]
Prior to his studies in Yale, Schneider had already begun to collaborate with Tsui while they were both in high school, and this collaboration continued when Tsui enrolled at Yale, one year after Schneider matriculated there.[4] Initially, they produced videos of Tsui singing covers and medleys, but they have since made an online musical series (College Musical) and produced original songs.
They first garnered media attention with a video of a Michael Jackson medley.[2][3] This video remains the 3rd most viewed (more than 28 million) on Schneider's YouTube channel KurtHugoSchneider, which has over 345 million total views and more than a million subscribers.[10] This medley is one of several in which Schneider, using video editing techniques, is able to create the illusion of a one-man a cappella choir, with Tsui covering both lead and backing vocals and playing multiple versions of himself.[3][11] Their medley videos have been described by Time as a combination of Glee and Attack of the Clones,[2] and the resulting media attention has led to many appearances on national television, including on talk shows like The Oprah Winfrey Show and The Ellen DeGeneres Show.[12][13][14][15] On February 3, 2011, Schneider's video of Tsui covering Hold It Against Me, in which Tsui sang and played the piano with Schneider on percussion, was featured on Britney Spears' official website.[16][17]
The popularity of their videos has encouraged the duo to branch out to other projects.[4] Shooting for an independent film, College Musical: The Movie, based upon their online musical series, has been completed in the summer of 2010 and the film is currently in post-production.[18] A series of behind-the-scenes videos for the movie, filmed and narrated by Nick Uhas, has been released on YouTube.[19] Since September 2010, Schneider and Tsui have also begun to release videos of original songs.[1][20]
Schneider has also made music videos in collaboration with other artists. Popular videos include a Miley Cyrus medley sung by Christina Grimmie,[21] a duet between Tsui and Grimmie singing Just A Dream (the most viewed video on 'KurtHugoScheider),[22] and a Starcraft-themed parody video, with Husky, of Baby.[23] He has also recently parodied the infamous "Friday" known as "Void Rays". In addition he has collaborated with Tiffany Alvord on a Taylor Swift Medley [24] and Matisse on a Medley of Rihanna songs [25].
Schneider was also an associate producer for a musical admissions video for Yale, which features a cast consisting of Tsui and fellow Yale students.[4][26]
The following is a list of singles released digitally to iTunes Store and recorded with artists other than Sam Tsui.
| Year | Title | Artists | Original Artists |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | "Chopsticks!" | Andrew Johnson | Euphemia Allen |
| "Iris" | Kurt Hugo Schneider, Jake Bruene | Goo Goo Dolls | |
| 2011 | "Hold My Hand" | J Rice, Kurt Hugo Schneider | Michael Jackson ft. Akon |
| Year | Title | Credits | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | That's Why I Chose Yale | Associate producer, music producer, sound editor, vocalist, actor | Video (17 min) produced in collaboration with the Yale admissions office |
| Nothing Left Unsaid | Director | Short (13 min) starring Daniel Amerman, Julie Shain and Jay Frisby | |
| 2011 | College Musical: The Movie | Post-production |
This list covers only music videos made for solo works, Sam Tsui originals and collaborations with other artists not listed in the discography for Sam Tsui.
| Year | Title | Artists | Original Artists or Work | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Miley Cyrus medley | Christina Grimmie | Miley Cyrus | Medley of songs by Miley Cyrus |
| "For Good" | Sam Tsui ft. Nick Pitera | Wicked | Cover version of musical number from Wicked | |
| "Don't Want An Ending" | Sam Tsui | Sam Tsui | Original video featuring Amanda Glassman | |
| "I Will Follow You Into The Dark" | Kurt Hugo Schneider | Death Cab for Cutie | Cover version | |
| "Just A Dream" | Sam Tsui, Christina Grimmie | Nelly | ||
| "Banelings" | Husky, Kurt Hugo Schneider | Justin Bieber | Parody version of Baby | |
| 2011 | "Hold My Hand" | J Rice, Kurt Hugo Schneider | Michael Jackson ft. Akon | Cover version |
| "Pretty Eyes" | Alex Goot | Alex Goot | Original video featuring Julie Shain | |
| "Start Again" | Sam Tsui | Sam Tsui | Original video featuring Veronica Ballestrini and Nick Uhas | |
| "You've Been on my Mind" | Dave Days | Dave Days | Original video | |
| "Void Rays" | Husky, Kurt Hugo Schneider | Rebecca Black | Parody version of Friday | |
| "B-e-a-utiful" | Megan Nicole | Megan Nicole | Original video featuring Michael Jimenez | |
| "Rihanna Medley" | Matisse | Rihanna | Medley of songs by Rihanna |