We are really happy to be welcoming Adrean Farrugia back to Music Camp this year!! We haven’t stopped smiling since meeting and working with him last year! He is not only an award winning pianist and composer, but one of Canada’s most distinct voices on the piano. He comes from the world of Jazz and brings with him an abundance of talent, soul, expertise, and experience.
Adrean grew up in a very musical family, studied classical piano through the Royal Conservatory, and eventually discovered a passion for Jazz. “It was music that spoke to me on a deeper level than anything I’d heard before.” Interestingly, his grandfather was Joseph Ivan Arsenault, a noted fiddle player who grew up in PEI. Adrean used to sit at his feet and listen to him playing jigs and reels for hours. “He had a great time feel and even though he didn’t play jazz I think that the early exposure I had to the triplet-based music he played laid a solid foundation in my psyche for being receptive later on to music that swings.”
Since the late 1990s Adrean has been in high demand as a freelance performer and teacher. Keeping a busy touring schedule, he has toured extensively across Canada and the United States as well as in venues across Europe and in Japan. Adrean has performed/recorded with some of jazz’s greatest and most diverse artists including: Larry Carlton, Curtis Fuller, Tom Scott, Bob Brookmeyer, Randy Brecker, Eric Alexander, Chris Potter, Joel Frahm, Matt Penman, Brad Goode, Kenny Wheeler, Darcy James Argue, Don Thompson, Lorne Lofsky, Kevin Turcotte, Kelly Jefferson, and Pat Labarbera. Adrean is currently pianist for such diverse projects as the Matt Dusk Band, the Brad Goode Quartet, The Ernesto Cervini Quartet (featuring saxophonist Joel Frahm), Tim Shia’s ‘The Worst Pop Band Ever’, the Bob Brough Quartet, the Darcy Hepner Big Band, and his wife – vocalist Sophia Perlman.
Adrean has appeared on more than 30 recordings and has released three of his own CD’s. His second album ‘Ricochet’, was nominated for a 2011 Juno award for best contemporary jazz recording. As a composer, he has penned more than 30 works to date. He is currently on the faculty of York University and Mohawk College of Arts and Technology where he teaches jazz piano and improvisation. We are extremely excited that he’ll be with us in July and we look forward to everyone at Camp having a chance to meet and work with him!
To learn more about Adrean Farrugia, you can visit his website here.