Stefon Harris
| Stefon Harris | |
|---|---|
Harris at the North Sea Jazz Festival in 2007
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| Background information | |
| Born | March 23, 1973 (age 51) |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Instruments | Vibraphone Marimba |
| Years active | 1996–present |
| Labels | Blue Note |
| Associated acts | Classical Jazz Quartet |
| Website | StefonHarris.com |
Stefon Harris (born March 23, 1973) is an American jazz vibraphonist. In 1999, the Los Angeles Times called him "one of the most important young artists in jazz"[1] who is "at the forefront of new New York music" and "much in demand as a star sideman".[2] Harris has played with several jazz luminaries including Kenny Barron, Steve Turre, Kurt Elling, and Charlie Hunter, in addition to releasing several of his own critically well-regarded albums.
Harris is a resident of Newark, New Jersey.[3]
Contents
Education and early career
A 1991 graduate of Albany High School, Harris earned his bachelor's (in 1995) and master's (in 1997) from Manhattan School of Music in New York City.[4] He credited his teachers in High School, saying they recognized his "passion for music early on and offered lessons and the chance to bring home instruments to practice."[4] He has stated that "Music education and performance in ensembles, like the Empire State Youth Orchestra, exposed me to me to other cultures and genres."[4] He also was the captain of the high school wrestling team.[4] Of Manhattan School of Music he has said: "The School gave me the opportunity to explore the diversity of both classical and jazz music and find the direction I wanted to go artistically."
Performances
He plays the vibraphone, has composed music, and has released six CDs.[4]
He has performed throughout North America and Australia, from New York's Lincoln Center, to San Francisco, Chicago, East Lansing, Michigan, Troy, New York, Eilat, Israel, and Sydney, Australia.[4] In April 2009, he headlined at the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Orange County, California.[5][6]
Collaboration
Harris collaborated with saxophonist David Sánchez and trumpeter Christian Scott in 2011 on the album Ninety Miles. They recorded the album in Havana, Cuba.[7]
Discography
As a leader
- A Cloud of Red Dust (1998) Blue Note
- Black Action Figure (1999) Blue Note
- Kindred (2001) Blue Note
- The Grand Unification Theory (2003) Blue Note
- Evolution (2004) Blue Note
- African Tarantella: Dances With Duke (2006) Blue Note
- Urbanus (2009) Blue Note
As a co-leader
- Ninety Miles (2011) Concord Picante with David Sanchez and Christian Scott
As member of The Classical Jazz Quartet
- Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker (2001) Vertical Jazz (deleted)
- The Classical Jazz Quartet Plays Bach (2002) Vertical Jazz
- The Classical Jazz Quartet Play Rachmaninov (2006) Kind of Blue
- The Classical Jazz Quartet Play Tchaikovsky (2006) Kind of Blue
- Christmas (2006) Kind of Blue[8]
As a sideman
- with Terell Stafford Centripetal Force (1996) Candid
- with Joe Henderson Porgy & Bess (1997) Verve
- with Charlie Hunter Return of the Candyman (1998) Blue Note
- with Jason Moran Soundtrack to Human Motion (1999) Blue Note
- with Greg Osby The Inner Circle (2002) Blue Note
- with Kurt Elling Man in the Air (2003) Blue Note
- with Kenny Barron Images (2004) Sunny Side
- with Janis Siegel Sketches of Broadway (2004) Telarc
- with Lea DeLaria Double Standards (2005) Telarc
- with Diana Krall Christmas Songs (2005) Verve
- with Raul Midón State of Mind (2005) Blue Note
- with Joshua Redman Momentum (2006) Nonesuch
- with Steve Turre Keep Searching (2006) HighNote
- with Ry Cooder My Name Is Buddy (2007) Nonesuch
- with Courtney Pine Transition in Tradition (2009) Destin-E
- with Tim Warfield "Jazz Is, A Whisper in the Midnight,
References
- ↑ "Faces to Watch '99" in Los Angeles Times, January 3, 1999 pg. 10
- ↑ The Penguin Guide to Jazz by Richard Cook and Brian Morton, pg. 598
- ↑ Wise, Brian. "Eclectic Sounds of New Jersey, Echoing From Coast to Coast", The New York Times, February 8, 2004. Accessed November 22, 2007.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 "Alumni achievement Stefon Harris ’91 – Hitting all the right notes: Stefon Harris is living his dream," Capital Education -- Spring 2008 (City School District of Albany's quarterly newsletter), p. 4, found at Albany Schools official website. Accessed July 10, 2008.
- ↑ OCRegister. Accessed July 10, 2008.
- ↑ Orange County Performing Arts Center official website. Accessed July 10, 2008.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ allmusic ((( Classical Jazz Quartet > Discography > Main Albums )))
External links
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