LARNELL LEWIS is a GRAMMY Award winning musician, composer, producer, and educator. A Toronto native, Larnell has quickly established himself as one of the most diverse and in-demand drummers currently on the music scene. Along with his long-standing position behind the drums in Snarky Puppy, Larnell has led many highly successful groups of his own and toured the globe with some of the most well known names in music, including Etienne Charles, Gregory Porter, Benny Golson, Lalah Hathaway, John Scofield, Pat Metheny, Lisa Fisher, Kurt Elling, Gary Burton, and more. Larnell’s immense talent, fierce creativity, and continually evolving musical style is what has kept him at the top of the list as a musical collaborator for artists across the globe. While just in his second year of college, Larnell was recognized by JUNO award-winner Jully Black and acclaimed vocalist Matt Dusk, who took him out on his first national tour. Since then, Larnell continued to climb his way up the ladder, performing in various capacities with the Humber College Studio Jazz Ensemble. After his time at Humber, he found himself spending time both on the road, the big and small screens, and in-studio with some of Canada’s most celebrated artists, including Laila Biali, Molly Johnson O.C., Divine Brown, Colleen Allen, Elizabeth Shepherd, Johnny Reid, Kellylee Evans, and David Clayton-Thomas. Among his many accolades, including the 2004 Oscar Peterson Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music (Humber College), Larnell was named as the fourth recipient of the Toronto Arts Foundation’s “Emerging Jazz Award” (2017), which is a $10,000 cash prize intended to support the creation of a project that features original compositions from each recipient. Says Larnell; “As a creative person you have a lot of dreams of things you would like to do, and finances often stop them. I often dream and dream big. An award like this makes those dreams possible.” Larnell’s highly anticipated debut album “In The Moment” was released in June 2018, and featured ten original compositions in a variety of musical styles. When discussing the title track of the album, Larnell says that “For me, what that song represents is staying locked in the moment, running the course of life and not getting too distracted with small things or letting big things tear you down. It’s really about staying in the moment and absorbing the beauty.” While certain tracks on the album (such as “Beignets” or “No Access?”) really showcase Larnell’s jazz chops, “In The Moment” also heavily taps into his Caribbean background and deeply personal relationship with Gospel music, growing up the son of a Musical Director in a Pentecostal church. There are few musicians who take you on the musical journey that Larnell has embarked on, and the ways in which he tells a story are unlike that of any musician of this generation. In a year full of exciting performances including the North Sea Jazz Festival with Snarky Puppy and the Metropole Orkest, the 2nd annual GroundUP Music Festival with Joshua Redman, Lionel Loueke, and Michael League, Larnell also made his debut at Carnegie Hall with Snarky Puppy and guests David Crosby, Laura Mvula, Chris Thile, and Fatoumata Diawara. Larnell’s vast talents not just as a musician but as a producer also landed him the opportunity to act as Musical Director for a performance during the Toronto International Film Festival’s premiere of the critically-acclaimed documentary of Quincy Jones, “QUINCY”, (directed by Rashida Jones & Al Hicks), where he led performances from the likes of Yebba Smith, Mark Ronson, and Chaka Khan. Larnell’s talents can be seen worldwide via his various social media platforms, which have a combined total of over 100,000 followers. His reach to fans and musicians of all generations is proof that he not only possesses undeniable talent, but a spirit unlike any other that excites, inspires, and encourages music fans of all ages to further explore their musical tastes and the follow him on the road he has paved for himself
Russell Hartenberger’s performance history begins with the Oklahoma City Symphony in 1960. The ensembles he has played with include the United States Air Force Band, The New Haven Symphony Orchestra, The Paul Winter Consort and the Canadian Opera Orchestra. His longest performing tenures have been with two of the most important musical ensembles in North America; the Steve Reich Ensemble and the percussion group NEXUS. Both of these groups were formed in 1971, and Russell has been a continuous member of both from their inception until today. Being involved directly with Steve Reich’s music from the earliest pieces has given him a unique position from which his recent publication “Performance Practice in the Music of Steve Reich” (Cambridge University Press, 2016) was written. This insiders’ look at performance issues in Mr. Reich’s music has quickly become an indispensable tool for musicians performing this music. His countless performances and recordings with The Steve Reich Ensemble are staples. This ensemble won a Grammy in 1998 for the recording of Music for 18 Musicians. NEXUS, also formed in 1971, has literally reshaped percussion music over the last 5 decades. Russell, as a founding member of this Toronto-based ensemble, has toured the world with the group. NEXUS has led the charge for bringing percussion music to concert halls and university music curriculums the world over. Described as “the high priests of the percussion world” by the New York Times, the ensemble has been at the forefront of the percussion world for decades. John Wyre (former timpanist with the Toronto Symphony and member of NEXUS) described Russell as “the Rock of Gibraltar” in NEXUS. His calm, solid musicianship has always been at the core of NEXUS as an ensemble. Russell also has a significant list of compositions he has penned. Upon his recent retirement from the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Music, this aspect of Russell’s musical life has been ramped up even further with several large scale works of note. His most recent work, Requiem for Percussion and Voices, is an hour long, multiple movement piece currently in production. He has past compositions that have made their way into the modern percussion ensemble repertoire worldwide. He and NEXUS created the score for the full-length documentary “The Man Who Skied Down Everest”, which won an Academy Award for its’ soundtrack in 1978. His arrangements can be found on several NEXUS recordings and are performed frequently world-wide. In addition to all of his performing and composing accomplishments, Mr. Hartenberger has just recently completed a significant career as a music educator. His teaching career began in 1962 and ended with his recent appointment as Professor Emeritus at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Music. His influences on his students has led them into teaching positions throughout Canada, the United States, Europe and Asia. Former students have also landed significant playing positions in major orchestras the world over, and in some of the foremost musical ensembles globally. In brief, Russell’s career is extensive and far-reaching. His recent publications on Cambridge University Press, his extensive discography and concert experience, his 2017 Leonardo da Vinci World Award of Arts award, presented to him by The World Cultural Council and his former students long lists of successes attests to a musical life well done! It is with great pleasure that the Toronto Musicians’ Association honours Russell Hartenberger with the Lifetime Achievement Award!
As well as performing with his own groups, many well-known artists have sought out Bernie in his capacity as a first-call accompanist in the Canadian club and concert scenes. In order to provide a sense of this, here is a listing of just some of the musicians with whom he has performed (and, in many instances, recorded as well) over the past several decades:
