Gary Schwartz

I have been fortunate to live and work in Montreal, Québec, the place where I was born. The only formal music education that I received was 6 months of classical guitar when I was 10 years old and 2 years of jazz studies in my mid 20's at Concordia University, one of the first schools in Canada to offer jazz education. I have been teaching there for a long time. I learnt what I know about music from playing gigs, my peers, role models, listening to recordings and live music no matter where it is performed. A deeply developed sense of humour is essential for me. I am influenced by everything and everyone around me although Monk, Miles, Gil and Bill Evans, Sonny Rollins, Ornette Coleman, Toots Thielemans, James Brown, Jim Hall, Ed Bickert, John Scofield and Bill Frisell continue to kick my ass. I have played with creative people, some known and others unknown and have played and recorded across a wide range of styles/situations throughout my life. I am looking forward to continuing my involvement in as many creative situations as possible.