Richard W. Hart is a

jazz fusion Jazz fusion (also known as fusion and progressive jazz) is a music genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and jazz improvisation, improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric guitars, ...

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...

who has opened for numerous jazz acts and has taught music in Utah, Oklahoma, and California. He has composed his own songs and has recorded the albums ''Fearless Shores'' on

Innervision Records Innervision Records was an independent record label distributed by CBS Records. The label was established around 1981 by Mark Dean and Shamsi Ahmed. Perhaps the most recognizable artist associated with Innervision was Wham!, who scored four to ...

and ''Blue Swing'' on Slowernickels Records. In 2008 Hart signed with GAG Order Films, which used music from his album ''Fearless Shores'' as the background music for their film ''The Lawn Boy''. Seven of the nine tracks from the album are featured in the movie. Then film was screened at the Hollywood Black Film Festival in June 2008 and at the San Francisco Black Film Festival later the same month.

Early life

Richard Hart grew up in the outskirts of Los Angeles, CA before relocating to Oklahoma in 1980. Once settled, he began collaborating with local musicians and writing original music. In 1981, he met Larry Pierce, a jazz keyboardist who had previously been a member of

Blood, Sweat and Tears Blood, Sweat & Tears (also known as "BS&T") is a jazz rock music group founded in New York City in 1967, noted for a combination of brass with rock instrumentation. In addition to original music, the group has performed popular songs by Laura Ny ...

. Together, they performed as 'Richard Hart & Swans Down featuring Larry Pierce' at the Susan Powell Fine Arts Auditorium in Elk City, Oklahoma.

Career

In 2004, Hart started working on a new project, writing original material for an upcoming album release. He formed a quartet with jazz saxophonist Ron Munn, bassist Dorothy Soto, and percussionist Mark Winkel, and they recorded Fearless Shores in 2005, which was later released on the Schepora IRL label. The quartet went on to perform at the Charlie Christian International Jazz Festival in Oklahoma City in June 2005. Since 2009, Hart has continued to work with new musicians from Oklahoma, performing throughout the region including the Texas Panhandle.

References

External links

* American jazz guitarists Living people 1955 births {{US-jazz-guitarist-stub