Patty Katz may be known in Great Neck as one of its sewer commissioners, but behind the environmental activist is a rich history of music and performing.
While Katz left that career behind her when she began her family, she’s now returning to her passions and pursuing songwriting and singing once again. Already, she is gaining recognition for her talents, including her recent semifinalist award in the international Song of the Year competition for “Lilacs in Winter.”
“I really thought, out of all the things I’ve written, it’s the best song I’ve ever written,” Katz said.
Her 2024 semifinalist achievement is the third time she has won the designation, the other two for her songs “Changing for the Better” and “Fool for Love.”
While Katz is being recognized for her music now, it’s not the first time her talents have been realized.
Katz, who was born and raised in Great Neck, attended NYU’s theater program and became immersed in the city’s theater scene. It was at the West Fifth Theater where Katz got her first break.
Katz was asked to perform in an a cappella girl group as a filler for comic mime Phil Stein’s show – bringing to life The Steinettes.
The Steinettes were comprised of Katz, Julie Janney and Nathalie Blossom, who were all actors who sang. Together they came up with a whole slew of songs they performed together in a comedic act.
But after the show ended, the group briefly disbanded to go their own ways.
Flash forward six months, and Katz and her fellow Steinettes received a call from the West Fifth Theater to return for a fund-raiser, this time with Diane Shaffer.
The Steinettes took their performance to the streets to gain some performance experience, frequently performing under the arch in Washington Square Park in Manhattan.
“While we were doing that people, started throwing money at us,” Katz said. “We were in college, we needed money and we had no money. At the end of singing for a few hours we went to Tiffany Diner in The Village and threw all the money on the table and had some coffee and divided it four ways and went ‘Hey, this isn’t bad.’”
From then on, The Steinettes were in it together and met every weekend to perform as their a cappella girl group.
Their street performances quickly began to gain notoriety, said Katz, who was sometimes stopped in the streets for being recognized as a Steinette.
Through a friend, The Steinettes were connected with film director Robert Altman, who was pursuing his latest film “HealtH.” The Steinettes then found themselves in Altman’s living room in Central Park South.
“And he loved us,” Katz said.
The following week, Katz and The Steinettes were in Florida on set where they not only rubbed elbows with famed actors Carol Burnett, Glenda Jackson and James Garner but were very involved in the production.
“For six weeks we were with everybody,’ Katz said. “It was a family and we became friendly with all of them.”
The Steinettes also performed in Altman’s “Popeye,” where they joined actors Robin Williams and Shelley Duvall.
The Steinettes not only appeared in his films but also wrote their own music – a skill they had to pick up quickly after not having experience writing.
“That’s the way Robert worked,’ Katz said. “He had a knack for looking at talent and seeing what they were capable of doing and giving them free reign.”
This is where Katz first learned to write music.
While the Steinettes continued performing after filming Altman’s two movies, they got close to stardom yet never broke through, Katz said.
“But it was an amazing ride,” Katz said.
Katz’s music career stopped there as she shifted to focus on her family and environmentalist volunteer work that segued into her position as the Great Neck Water Pollution Control District commissioner.
But the music never fully left Katz, who once wrote a song for an electric car video contest – which she won – and can be seen singing whenever driving in her car.
Now Katz is an empty nester and diving back into her music career. After working with a local voice coach Deborah Tartell, Katz recorded some songs she wrote.
“I’m not looking to be a star,” Katz said. “I’m just looking to really be creative and get that part of my life expressed. I think it’s important to do what you love and I sort of forgot about that, so now I’m doing it.”
Katz said she’s planning to continue her singer-songwriter career, aspiring to someday perform her music as well. But her ultimate goal is to inspire others through her music.
“If I’m not going to inspire people, I don’t want to do it,” Katz said. “It’s not really for my satisfaction, although it is, but I think it has to be a little more than that. I really want to find a way to move people.”
Katz’s music can be listened to on iTunes, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Spotify and Pandora.
