Bernhardt was born in Wausau, Wisconsin. His father was a pianist, leading him to have early childhood exposure to piano, and he learned some rudiments of keyboarding from his friends. At five his parents moved to New York City, where he began studying seriously under varied instructors. After the death of his father in 1952 he suffered a period of depression and quit music for a time then studied chemistry and physics at the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
. In that city he was exposed to blues and jazz, which influenced the rest of his career.
Career
From 1961 to 1964 he worked in
Paul Winter
Paul Winter (born August 31, 1939) is an American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. He is a pioneer of world music and earth music, which interweaves the voices of the wild with instrumental voices from classical, jazz and world music. The ...
's sextet, which led to his return to New York. Once in New York, he worked with
George Benson
George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist.
A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the 1960s, play ...
,
Gerry Mulligan
Gerald Joseph Mulligan (April 6, 1927 – January 20, 1996), also known as Jeru, was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer and arranger. Though primarily known as one of the leading jazz baritone saxophonists—playing the instrum ...
and others. He also developed a close relationship with the pianist
Bill Evans
William John Evans (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was an American jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, block ch ...
, who served as a mentor to Bernhardt. Bernhardt released several solo LPs in the 1970s, and eventually became a member of the
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 improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric guitars, amplifiers, and ke ...
group Steps Ahead while continuing to work on solo projects. In 1971, he provided the piano accompaniment on the song "Crossroads" by
Don McLean
Donald McLean III (born October 2, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is best known for his 1971 hit song " American Pie", an eight-and-a-half-minute folk rock "cultural touchstone" about the loss of innocence of the early ...
.
Bernhardt released jazz and classical recordings over decades, and is also featured in teaching sessions in both audio and video formats from Homespun Tapes.
Bernhardt toured as the musical director with
Steely Dan
Steely Dan is an American rock band founded in 1971 in New York by Walter Becker (guitars, bass, backing vocals) and Donald Fagen (keyboards, lead vocals). Initially the band had a stable lineup, but in 1974, Becker and Fagen retired from liv ...
in the United States from 1993 to 1994, and can be heard on Steely Dan's '' Alive in America'' album. He has performed with
Simon and Garfunkel
Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo consisting of the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music groups of the 1960s, and their biggest hits—including the electric remix of ...
's '' Old Friends'' tour, on Art Garfunkel's solo tours,''
The Daily Gazette
''The Daily Gazette'' is an independent, family-owned daily newspaper published in Schenectady
Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's popu ...
'' (Schenectady, N.Y.) "Art Garfunkel scheduled for Egg concert Nov. 16" September 28, 2002, p. C6. Retrieved on July 22, 2013. and can be seen on the Art Garfunkel DVD and HDTV presentation ''Across America''.
In 2009, Bernhardt reunited with his band from 1973, L'Image, featuring
Mike Mainieri
Michael T. Mainieri Jr. (born July 4, 1938) is an American vibraphonist, known for his work with the jazz fusion group Steps Ahead. He is married to the singer-songwriter and harpist Dee Carstensen.
Biography
Mainieri was born in The Bronx, Ne ...
Tony Levin
Anthony Frederick Levin (born June 6, 1946) is an American musician and composer, specializing in electric bass, Chapman Stick and upright bass. He also sings and plays synthesizer. Levin is best known for his work with King Crimson (since 1 ...
and
Steve Gadd
Stephen Kendall Gadd (born April 9, 1945) is an American drummer, percussionist, and session musician. Gadd is one of the best-known and highly regarded session and studio drummers in the industry, recognized by his induction into the '' Modern ...
. The group performed at the Iridium Jazz Club in New York City, toured Japan and Europe, and released the album ''L 'Image 2.0''.
Personal life and death
His father, Larry, was also a pianist. Bernhardt's mother encouraged Larry to teach their son to play piano as a toddler. Bernhardt met his first wife, Susan, in the Catskills, they had a son, Tim. Bernhardt's second wife was Jan, whom he married in 1976, they had a daughter, Nicole.
Bernhardt died on August 19, 2022, of natural causes.
Kenny Burrell
Kenneth Earl Burrell (born July 31, 1931) is an American jazz guitarist known for his work on numerous top jazz labels: Prestige, Blue Note, Verve, CTI, Muse, and Concord. His collaborations with Jimmy Smith were notable, and produced the 1965 ...
Art Farmer
Arthur Stewart Farmer (August 21, 1928 – October 4, 1999) was an American jazz trumpeter and flugelhorn player. He also played flumpet, a trumpet–flugelhorn combination especially designed for him. He and his identical twin brother, doub ...
* ''
Yama
Yama (Devanagari: यम) or Yamarāja (यमराज), is a deity of death, dharma, the south direction, and the underworld who predominantly features in Hindu and Buddhist religion, belonging to an early stratum of Rigvedic Hindu deities. ...
'' with
Joe Henderson
Joe Henderson (April 24, 1937 – June 30, 2001) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. In a career spanning more than four decades, Henderson played with many of the leading American players of his day and recorded for several prominent l ...
Tim Hardin
James Timothy Hardin (December 23, 1941 – December 29, 1980) was an American folk music, folk and blues music, blues musician and composer. As well as releasing his own material, several of his songs, including "If I Were a Carpenter (song), ...
*''
Tim Hardin 3 Live in Concert
''Tim Hardin 3 Live in Concert'' is a live album by folk artist Tim Hardin, released in 1968. It was re-issued on CD in 1995 by Polydor, and in 2006 by Lilith Record with four bonus tracks.
Reception
In his review for Allmusic, music critic Ri ...
'' (Verve Forecast, 1968)
With
O'Donel Levy
O'Donel "Butch" Levy (September 20, 1945 – March 14, 2016) was a rhythm & blues, funk and jazz guitarist from Baltimore, Maryland. He was brother of session drummer Stafford Levy.
Levy studied music at the Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins ...
Mike Mainieri
Michael T. Mainieri Jr. (born July 4, 1938) is an American vibraphonist, known for his work with the jazz fusion group Steps Ahead. He is married to the singer-songwriter and harpist Dee Carstensen.
Biography
Mainieri was born in The Bronx, Ne ...
*''
Journey Thru an Electric Tube
''Journey Thru an Electric Tube'' is an album by American jazz vibraphonist Mike Mainieri first released in 1968 on the Solid State label.Payne, D.Sonny Lester discographyaccessed March 16, 2018Pat Martino
Pat Martino (born Patrick Carmen Azzara; August 25, 1944 – November 1, 2021) was an American jazz guitarist and composer.
Biography
Martino was born Patrick Carmen Azzara in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, to father Carmen "Mickey" ...
Gerry Mulligan
Gerald Joseph Mulligan (April 6, 1927 – January 20, 1996), also known as Jeru, was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer and arranger. Though primarily known as one of the leading jazz baritone saxophonists—playing the instrum ...
Limelight
Limelight (also known as Drummond light or calcium light)James R. Smith (2004). ''San Francisco's Lost Landmarks'', Quill Driver Books. is a type of stage lighting once used in theatres and music halls. An intense illumination is created whe ...
Jeremy & The Satyrs
''Jeremy & The Satyrs'' is an album by American jazz flautist Jeremy Steig released on the Reprise label in 1968.
'' (Reprise, 1968)
*''
This Is Jeremy Steig
''This Is Jeremy Steig'' is an album by American jazz flautist Jeremy Steig released on the Solid State label in 1969.Official website *
Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...