Bio

Garth Stevenson was born and raised in the breathtaking Canadian Rockies where nature became the common thread through his life and music.  He regularly carries his 150-year-old bass to the woods, the beach, the desert, and most recently to the penguins in search of new music, sounds, and inspiration. His solo bass music uses looping and reverb pedals to create rich layers of sound and melody.  In 2007 he released Alpine, his first solo album which received praise in many magazines including Double Bassist Magazine and Yoga Journal. In 2008 his solo composition “Grandfather” won the International Society of Double Bassists Composition Competition.

Stevenson spent February in Antarctica performing and acting in a new film by director Scott Cohen with actors Vincent Kartheiser, Olivia Thirlby and William Campbell. He had the opportunity to play with thousands of penguins, seals, ice bergs, and called twelve whales to the boat by imitating whale calls on his bass. His collaboration with Cohen continues as he composes music for the film score.

Garth introduced his solo music to the yoga community last year at Wanderlust, a festival of music and yoga at Lake Tahoe, California. His improvisations contoured the hour long classes led by Elena Brower, with whom he had an instant connection. Back in New York he plays regularly with Brower at Virayoga, her studio in SOHO. In January they gave a class at MoMA for three hundred people and on June 22 will give a class in Central Park for 10,000 people.

Stevenson graduated from the Berklee College of Music on a full scholarship with a degree composition and performance in 2004. While Boston he played with jazz legends George Garzone, Joe Lovano, John Lockwood, and founded TAQ, a trio with Polish pianist, Marcin Masecki, and Israeli drummer, Ziv Ravitz. In 2005 he moved to New York and joined bands with Sonya Kitchell, John Shannon, Mat Maneri, Petr Cancura and worked as a freelance bassist appearing on over 50 recordings.  Sonya Kitchell’s latest album Convict of Conviction features his arrangements for string quartet. He has performed on David Letterman, Craig Fergusson, hundreds of radio stations, at Bonnaroo, and at music festivals in Europe, Japan, Canada, and South America.