Obituaries : * Jimmy Balderas; Retired Pianist

Jimmy Balderas, a retired studio pianist who played for 20 years at a Los Angeles club, has died at an Encino hospital. He was 88.

A longtime Encino resident, Balderas died Saturday of complications of his advanced age, said his son Jimmy Balderas of Tarzana.

Born in El Paso, Tex., Balderas was raised in Tucson, Ariz., and began playing the piano as a child. He moved to California as a teen-ager and studied at the Olga Steeb Piano School in Los Angeles, under the direction of Blanche King Owen. He later played the piano in vaudeville acts and worked as a studio pianist for 20th Century Fox, MGM and Samuel Goldwyn Studios. From the early 1950s to the early 1970s, he played the piano at the Monte Carlo in Los Angeles. Balderas, a member of the American Federation of Musicians Local 47, played at the Chit Chat in Los Angeles until his retirement in the mid-1970s.

In addition to his son Jimmy, Balderas is survived by his wife of 59 years, Eleanor Balderas; son Raul Balderas of Reseda; three grandchildren and one great-granddaughter.

Visitation is planned from 3 to 5 p.m. today at J.T. Oswald Mortuary, 6944 Reseda Blvd., in Reseda, which is handling the arrangements.

A funeral Mass is scheduled at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday at St. Cyril of Jerusalem Church, 15520 Ventura Blvd., in Encino. Burial will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City.

Information on Valley-area deaths is provided by cooperating mortuaries.