Harvey Valdes

Harvey’s eclectic musical journey spans the East and the West, the electric and the acoustic, the ensemble and the solo voice. Traversing expansive stylistic ground from jazz, world, to funk, punk, and avant-garde, Harvey plays the six and seven-string guitar, the oud and Turkish cumbus. Endlessly curious about the guitar’s sonic range, Harvey plays with pushing its potential. Highlighting texture, stretching time, and shaping tone he re-imagines the guitar as a horn, an orchestra, a mechanistic roar. Recently, Harvey was featured for the site, Guitar Moderne. His composition, “Listen", was chosen as Editor’s Pick by Guitar Player Magazine. And, his score for Utopians, which premiered at the 2011 Berlin Film Festival, had “one of the most long lasting guitar improvisations since (Neil Young’s score for) Dead Man.”

On his new solo guitar album of standards, Roundabout, Harvey steps away from jazz guitar tradition to craft a sound all his own. Using a finger style approach and a sense of felt time, Valdes effortlessly plays with multiple voices and complex counterpoint. His adventurous take on harmony creates many moments of spontaneous re-composition born of a free improvisational approach. Each track shines with the originality and sensitivity of Harvey’s voice. While Roundabout as a whole, takes a pianistic approach to radically reshaping jazz standards. In doing so, Harvey, elevates the interpretive possibilities of the guitar itself. Harvey leads his own trio with Sana Nagano on violin and Joe Hertenstein on drums. Exploring the energy of a jazz/rock approach utilizing polyrhythm, atonality and compositional elements within improvisation.

As an oud player, Harvey worked extensively with Middle Eastern Balkan Jazz Ensemble, Anistar, developing a repertoire that blended Middle Eastern forms with jazz improvisation.

Also an Associate Artist with renowned experimental theater company, The Wooster Group, Harvey played electric guitar for Francesco Cavalli’s 1641 baroque opera, La Didone. This production toured Europe and had extended runs at St. Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn and Redcat Theater in Los Angeles.

Harvey teaches Eastern and Western music styles, guitar, and oud both privately and in the NYC area. He is a featured instructor for TrueFire.com, what Guitar Player Magazine calls "the planet's largest and most comprehensive selection of online guitar instruction." He gives equal respect to the musical interests of students at all levels and emphasizes individual creativity. Harvey holds a BFA from The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music. His studies have included lessons with Vic Juris, Andrew Cyrille, Reggie Workman, Jack Wilkins, Dave Fiuczynski, Najeeb Shaheen and many more.

Collaborations include:

Karl Berger Improviser's Orchestra, Butch Morris Luck Cheng's Orchestra and Nublu Orchestra, Harel Shachal and Anistar, Tesla Coils with Blaise Siwula and Gian Luigi Diana, Patrick Brennan Transparency Kestra, Jeffrey Shurdut's BFP and Crisis of a Dream, Damion Reid, Daniel Carter, Federico Ughi, Alan Chan Jazz Orchestra, Sean Sonderegger Ensemble, K.Page & Sleepwalker’s Parade, Killick, Dub Gabriel, Rhys Chatham’s A Crimson Grail, Opera on Tap, The Wooster Group, Vlada Tomova and Balkan Tales, Bombay Rickey Show less