Harris Eisenstadt is a Toronto-born, Brooklyn-based jazz drummer and composer. On Oct. 27, Eisenstadt will bring his Canada Day ensemble to Toronto to promote the band’s eponymous debut recording.
The release, Eisenstadt’s eighth as a bandleader, documents his book of originals for Canada Day, developed at gigs around New York City and beyond. It’s built around the specific personalities of the band members – trumpeter Nate Wooley, saxophonist Matt Bauder, vibraphonist Chris Dingman and bassist Eivind Opsvik – with whom Eisenstadt has been performing since 2005.
“I’m proudly Canadian, and happy to name my band after my country,” writes Eisenstadt in the album liner notes. The band got its name when its first gig with this permanent lineup fell on July 1. Two of the tracks, Halifax and Every Day is Canada Day, are dedicated to Canada, while the others take their inspiration from outdoor bathing, life on tour and a line from Isaac Bashevis Singer’s book, 
Shadows on the Hudson, among other things.
Left: Harris Eisenstadt. Photo by John Fowler.
Nominated for 2009 up-and-coming artist of the year by the Jazz Journalists Association, Eisenstadt has received rave reviews in international press. “Harris Eisenstadt is strong proof that jazz is still young and growing,” LA Weekly. Critics have called him “a rising presence as a composer of note” (AllAboutJazz.com), and “vital and increasingly influential” (JazzReview.com).
A highly versatile and prolific musician, Eisenstadt’s eclectic resume includes studies with some of the most respected names in both improvised music and West African drumming, and performances in genres ranging from film and theatre to poetry and dance, contemporary classical music and opera. Most active in jazz and improvised music, he has performed all over the globe and has appeared on more than 35 recordings over the past decade. His latest, Guewel (Clean Feed, 2008), was named one of 2008’s best in publications such as AllAboutJazz.com, Time Out New York and the Village Voice.
Eisenstadt’s concert will take place Tuesday, Oct. 27, in the Martin Family Lounge, 219 Accolade East Building. Admission is free. The concert starts at 12:30pm. For more information, click here or call 416-736-2100 ext. 22926.