Kurt_Hugo_Schneider

Kurt Hugo Schneider

Kurt Hugo Schneider

American video editor and musician

Not to be confused with Kurt Schneider.

Kurt Hugo Schneider (born September 7, 1988),[4] sometimes referred to by his initials KHS, is an American video editor, producer, musician, singer and songwriter, whose primary medium is YouTube music videos. He has produced music videos for various YouTube musicians, such as Sam Tsui.[5][6]

Quick Facts Born, Alma mater ...

Early life

Kurt Hugo Schneider was born in Baltimore to Laurie S. Auth, a visual artist, and Michael Schneider, a mathematician.[7][8] He 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 middle school. They both later attended Wissahickon High School.[9] He graduated class valedictorian.[10]

Schneider attended Yale University, where he got his start producing videos when he worked at Yale's Digital Media Center for the Arts.[11] He graduated magna cum laude in 2010 with a degree in mathematics and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa.[4][12]

Career

Collaboration with Sam Tsui

Schneider began collaborating with Sam Tsui while they were both students at Wissahickon High School.[13]

Schneider and Jake Bruene created the musical web series College Musical fall semester 2008 at Yale. Schneider composed the songs and cast the project from Yale's music community, which included Sam Tsui and Allison Williams. The first episode aired on YouTube in January 2009.[13] They shot an independent film based upon their online musical series, College Musical: The Movie, summer of 2010 and released online it on September 3, 2014.[14] A series of behind-the-scenes videos for the movie, filmed and narrated by Nick Uhas, has been released on YouTube.[15]

He produced videos of Tsui singing covers and medleys.

They garnered wide media attention with a video of a Michael Jackson medley.[5] This video remains the 9th most viewed (more than 34 million) on Schneider's YouTube channel KurtHugoSchneider.[16] This medley is one of several in which Schneider, using video editing, creates the illusion of a one-man a cappella choir, with Tsui covering lead and backing vocals, playing multiple versions of himself.[5][17] Their medley videos have been described by Time as a combination of Glee and Attack of the Clones.[6] The viral videos led to a few appearances on national television, including The Oprah Winfrey Show and The Ellen DeGeneres Show.[18][19][20][21] 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.[22][23]

The popularity of their videos has encouraged the duo to branch out to other projects.[13] Since September 2010, Schneider and Tsui have also begun to release videos of original songs[4][24] and in May 2013, Sam Tsui's debut original album, Make It Up, was released.[25]

Other works

Schneider has also made music videos in collaboration with other artists. Popular videos include a Miley Cyrus medley sung by Christina Grimmie,[26] a duet between Tsui and Grimmie singing Just a Dream (the most viewed video on 'KurtHugoSchneider', with over two hundred million views),[27] and a Starcraft-themed parody video, with Husky, of "Baby".[28] He has also parodied the infamous "Friday" by Rebecca Black with his variation being known as "Void Rays". He has collaborated with Tiffany Alvord on a Taylor Swift medley[29] and Matisse on a medley of Rihanna songs.[30] Some of his earlier videos include collaborations with now-actress Allison Williams. He has also collaborated with Max Schneider (no relation) on a number of occasions: for example he directed a Bruno Mars medley for Schneider and Victoria Justice, a Maroon 5 medley and a Christmas medley.[31] Schneider also co-wrote 'Standing In China' with Schneider for Cody Simpson's album Paradise. Schneider was also an associate producer for a musical admissions video for Yale, which features a cast consisting of Tsui and fellow Yale students.[13][32]

He has also performed a cover of "Beauty and the Beat" by Justin Bieber with Alex Goot and Chrissy Costanza from Against the Current[33] as well as a cover of "Counting Stars" by OneRepublic,[34] a cover of "Can't Hold Us" by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis,[35] and a cover of "Heart Attack" by Demi Lovato with Halocene.[36]

Collaboration with Coca-Cola

In 2013, Schneider and Coca-Cola created music videos featuring creative covers of two 2011 singles: Calvin Harris' "Feel So Close" and Of Monsters and Men's "Little Talks" for a campaign called "The Sounds of AHH". Commercial edits of the singles premiered on the inaugural episode of season 13 of American Idol on January 14, 2014, on FOX.

In the two new versions, recreated by Schneider, he is shown making the track playing only Coca-Cola bottles, glasses and cans. In addition, "Feels So Close" features the vocals of Sam Tsui whereas on the track "Little Talks", he is accompanied musically by beatboxing cellist Kevin Olusola.[37]

Chess and puzzles

Schneider played for Yale's chess team.[10] He currently holds a USCF Elo rating of 2235, holding the title of master,[38] and has held a blindfolded simultaneous exhibition for the comedy series The Try Guys.[39] He has also featured at the CES 2014 in the HRM Chess Tournament, hosted by Nordic Semiconductor in Las Vegas, while playing against Magnus Carlsen.[40]

In February 2020, Schneider created a sudoku-based puzzle for Cracking the Cryptic.[41]

Personal life

He is of German and Austrian descent on his father's side.[42] Schneider has an older sister who is a classical pianist.[43]

In August 2019 Schneider got engaged to his girlfriend of 5 years, Patty Ho. They were married in September 2021.[44]

Discography

Main article: Sam Tsui discography

The following is a list of singles released digitally to iTunes Store and recorded with artists other than Sam Tsui.

Covers
More information Year, Title ...

Filmography

Film

More information Year, Title ...

Music videos

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.

More information Year, Title ...

References

  1. [1]
    "Kurt's YouTube history". YouTube. April 30, 2016.
  2. [2]
    "Another catchy tune promoting something you don't actually do, but maybe would, if life were more like a music video". Maureen O'Connor, Ivygateblog. December 19, 2007.
  3. [3]
    "About KurtHugoSchneider". YouTube.
  4. [4]
    "Sam Tsui and Kurt Schneider Interview". The Star Scoop. November 21, 2010. Archived from the original on January 6, 2011. Retrieved February 15, 2011.
  5. [5]
    "Sam Tsui's one-man choir hits YouTube". ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs. September 12, 2010. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  6. [6]
    Fletcher, Dan (November 23, 2009). "YouTube Effect: Making Money from Viral Videos". Time. Time Inc. Archived from the original on November 17, 2009. Retrieved December 2, 2010.
  7. [7]
    "Visual Artist Laurie S. Auth's Artworks". lsauth. October 18, 2014. Archived from the original on October 16, 2014. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  8. [8]
    "New Haven Asset Management, Management Team". newhavenllc. October 18, 2014. Archived from the original on October 21, 2014. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  9. [9]
    "Sam Tsui & Kurt Schneider: The Covers". Sh-K-Boom Records. Archived from the original on February 17, 2010. Retrieved September 14, 2009.
  10. [10]
    Hiltbrand, David (November 16, 2014). "Talking YouTube with Kurt Hugo Schneider". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia Media Network. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  11. [11]
    Pierce, David (June 2, 2016). "Kurt Schneider: The Chessmaster Who Turned Into the King of YouTube Music". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
  12. [12]
    "Senior Year Inductees". Yale.edu. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  13. [13]
    "Kurt Schneider re(de)fines formula for YouTube success". The Yale Herald. Yale University. January 29, 2010. Archived from the original on September 5, 2010. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  14. [14]
    Zhang, Baobao (September 3, 2010). "The stacks are alive ... with the sound of "College Musical"". Yale Daily News. The Yale Daily News Publishing Company. Archived from the original on November 24, 2010. Retrieved February 17, 2011.
  15. [15]
    "Ep. 01 of The Making of College Musical The Movie". YouTube. August 12, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2011.
  16. [16]
    As at December 2011. Schneider, Kurt Hugo. "KurtHugoSchneider's Channel". YouTube. Retrieved December 26, 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  17. [17]
    Smith, Mark W. (October 3, 2009). "Michael Jackson medley video a Web hit". Detroit Free Press. Gannett Company, Inc. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
  18. [18]
    "Incredible Feats". The Oprah Winfrey Show. Harpo Productions. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  19. [19]
    Miranda (February 16, 2010). "Bullblog breaking news: Sam Tsui to be on Oprah". The Yale Herald. Yale University. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  20. [20]
    Zuckerman, Esther (December 2, 2010). "Tsui '11 and Schneider '10 on 'Ellen'". Yale Daily News. The Yale Daily News Publishing Company. Archived from the original on February 22, 2011. Retrieved December 2, 2010.
  21. [21]
    "YouTube Sensation Sam Tsui Performs!". Ellen.WarnerBros.com. Warner Bros. December 2, 2010. Archived from the original on December 6, 2010. Retrieved December 2, 2010.
  22. [22]
    "Sam Tsui Covers Britney's "Hold It Against Me"". britneyspears.com. February 3, 2011. Archived from the original on February 22, 2011. Retrieved February 16, 2011.
  23. [23]
    "My "Hold it Against Me" cover was just posted on @britneyspears official website!! Ahhh! :-D". Twitter. February 4, 2011. Retrieved February 6, 2011.
  24. [24]
    "Sam Tsui - Don't Want An Ending". YouTube. September 4, 2010. Retrieved February 16, 2011.
  25. [25]
    "Preorder "Make It Up" on iTunes"". YouTube. May 4, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  26. [26]
    "Miley Cyrus Medley (ft. Christina Grimmie)". YouTube. May 2, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2011.
  27. [27]
    "'Just A Dream' by Nelly - Sam Tsui & Christina Grimmie". YouTube. November 20, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2011.
  28. [28]
    "NERD ALERT - Banelings - (Justin Bieber - Baby PARODY) ft HuskyStarcraft / KurtHugoSchneider". YouTube. November 20, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2011.
  29. [29]
    "YouTube". YouTube. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  30. [30]
    "Rihanna Medley!! (ft. Matisse)". YouTube. July 28, 2011. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  31. [31]
    "Breakeven - The Script (ft. Max Schneider)". YouTube. January 8, 2012. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  32. [32]
    "That's Why I Chose Yale". YouTube. January 14, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2011.
  33. [33]
    "Beauty and the Beat Cover". YouTube. January 5, 2013. Retrieved April 11, 2014.
  34. [34]
    "Counting Stars Cover". YouTube. January 25, 2014. Retrieved April 11, 2014.
  35. [35]
    "Can't Hold Us Cover". YouTube.
  36. [36]
    "Heart Attack Cover". YouTube. January 9, 2018.
  37. [37]
    "Behind the Bottles: 5 Questions With Kurt Hugo Schneider". Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
  38. [38]
    "The United States Chess Federation - Chess Master Appeared on Oprah". United States Chess Federation. Retrieved April 1, 2011.
  39. [39]
    "Can 4 Guys Beat A Blindfolded Chess Master? • The Try Guys: 4 Vs. 1". YouTube. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
  40. [40]
    "Nordic Semi @ CES 2014 - HRM Chess Tournament starring Magnus Carlsen". YouTube. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
  41. [41]
    "World-Famous YouTuber Creates Genius Sudoku". YouTube. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  42. [42]
    "my dad's family is all german and austrian". Twitter. February 8, 2011. Retrieved February 15, 2011.
  43. [43]
    "older sister!". Twitter. February 8, 2011. Retrieved February 8, 2011.
  44. [44]
    I PROPOSED in an ESCAPE ROOM (YouTube video). Kurt Hugo Schneider. August 10, 2019.
  45. [45]
    Chaiyya Chaiyya / Don't Stop MASHUP!! - INDIA EDITION ft Sam Tsui, Shankar Tucker, Vidya on YouTube
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