Nate Harasim

Nate's album is the translation of Milton's poetry into music. An inclination of reverie and wonder. That was the conclusion of my review about his first album Next In Line (2007). One year later he returned with his album Love's Taken Over. Now this big talent is back with his new album Rush on Trippin' N Rhythm Records.

Nate Harasim is one of the young lions, the new generation of smooth jazz. Harasim just peaked at #1 on the US charts with his Steve Oliver Production for an eight weeks run, and now he was the sensation on the Dubai Jazz Festival 2011.

The title track Rush is the evidence for Nate's fantastic collaboration with saxophonist Darren Rahn, who has co-written with Nate most of the tunes of this album. The easy going uplifting piece takes a funky twist on the last part showcasing the new direction Nate's career is intended.

Compared to his earlier albums one recognizes Nate's impetus to chance his elegant and smooth style to a more jamming character. To reach this effect Open Mic is enriched with strong horn elements by brothers Darren and Jason Rahn and Frank Selman's furious distortion guitar solo.

But there is also a return to a radio-friendly style like Both Sides of the Coin featuring guitarist Steve Oliver. Some classic elements are twinkling in between. The moody Iridescence featuring new talent Cindy Bradley on muted trumpet and flugelhorn captures the fans of Soul Ballet.

The catchy Up exposes Nate's impressive talent as composer and programmer. Blessed in such way and supported by a strong label nothing can go wrong. All together now! Why Don't You... features most of the participating musicians on this album in one song that bursts like dynamite. Big horns and a burning Nate on keys.

The sultry Different Kind of Love presents awesome singer Maxine Hardcastle, daughter of superstar Paul Hardcastle. A melting voice promising the paradise on earth. Put some top cats in the studio and you get Oso's Groove. A funky swing!

The Day After Tomorrow offers a Salsa peppered melody with Nate and Darren in best style, while Lost in You takes the Urban train. West Bound is the final incredibly energetic highlight of the album.

With Rush Nate Harasim underlines his profile as a raising star in the smooth jazz scene pushing the genre into new dimensions. - Smooth Jazz Daily

Amazing, isn’t it? Even though this pianist/keyboardist has been playing for over 20 years, it feels as though Nate Harasim just arrived in a chariot of thunder and lightning. Well, since 2007, he kinda has. There’s been a lot of joyous grooves and funk since his emergence on the smooth jazz circuit.

While I wasn’t clued in to this cat’s talent’s from the rollout of his debut, I was quickly on board with Love’s Taken Over and have been riding along ever since, truly caught up in the vibes of his projects which have even included such fine collaborations with saxman Darren Rahn and sweet vocalist Deborah Connors as the group De Nate (waiting for another from them, by the way!).

Now, we have Rush, Harasim’s latest, a nice collection of attitude and charm all rolled compactly into a scintillating moving thing with everything: spirit, energy, adventure, technical wherewithal, some cool effects with the voicemail thing (gotta listen to get that), guest spots (Cindy Bradley, Maxine Hardcastle, and Steve Oliver stop through) and that something we all call “it.” The CD’s name says it all as it does provide just that.


The opening track brings the momentum, and various tracks, including “Why Don’t You,” with Darren Rahn’s and Cindy Bradley’s outrageous horn arrangements and the “voicemail thing” featuring Mel Brown, Darren Rahn, and Cindy Bradley keep it rolling. Nice, raw and just there.

The sweet vocals of Maxine Hardcastle are certainly not hard to identify as she serenades us through “Different Kind of Love.” Hey, and let’s not omit the Latin groove, as Harasim does a hot number with “The Day After Tomorrow.” Ay, mami, bailamos!Complete package? You’ve got it. Harasim proves again that his formula is a great one for moving the groove forward, always forward. You’ve gotta like that. I do. – Ronald Jackson - The Smooth Jazz Ride

When a promoter called jazz artist Nate Harasim to invite him to perform at an inaugural party, he said his "stomach turned upside down.

"That's a lot of people to be playing in front of," said the Grand Blanc resident. Though he admits "it's pretty cool" to be invited.
President-elect Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, will twirl their way through 10 official inaugural balls Tuesday, reported the Associated Press.

Harasim, 28, will play piano at the "A Time for Hope" Presidential Inaugural Jazz Gala at the Carlyle Club in Alexandria, Va. This and other "unofficial" balls are listed on the Web site www.presidential-inauguration.com.

Besides Harasim, the other artists are saxophonists Darren Rahn and Phillip Martin. The event is presented by High Society Productions and Cool Jazz Forever.
A 1998 graduate of Lapeer West High School, Harasim

A 1998 graduate of Lapeer West High School, Harasim studied at the Flint Institute of Music.

As a teen, he played at area clubs in a group called MoJazz, formed with other students from the Flint School of Performing Arts jazz ensemble.

After graduating from high school, Harasim joined the U.S. Navy and studied for six months at the Navy School of Music in Norfolk, Va.

He said he attended a few classes but never finished college. He said he earned an online associate degree in business.

Harasim travels around the country performing at clubs, casinos, festivals and for radio stations.

Last year, he released two albums on nuGroove Records -- "Reminisce," an R&B record with vocalist Deborah Connors, and "Love's Taken Over," a smooth jazz record.

The best part of playing at the inauguration party is the exposure, Harasim said.

He said he'll be performing before an even bigger audience April 24 at the Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards in Mississauga, Ontario. DeNate -- consisting of Harasim, Connors and Rahn -- is a nominee in the category of International Group of the Year (Rahn is from Canada).

A percentage of each ticket to the inaugural party will be donated to Hope Farm, a mentoring program for black and Latino boys designed to create successful men and leaders in our society. Details are available from Tom Kennedy at The Carlyle Club, (703) 548-5953, or at www.presidential-inauguration.com. Tickets cost $350. - The Flint Journal

GRAND BLANC — Here’s the kind of 2010 Nate Harasim had.
Over the summer, the jazz pianist was fast asleep in his Grand Blanc home when the phone rang at 3 a.m., with Harasim’s production partner Darren Rahn on the other end.
Fearing the worst, he immediately asked his friend what was wrong.
“He was doing some work with Dave Koz at his studio in Beverly Hills, and Dave had heard one of my tracks, just a sketch of an idea, that Darren was playing on his iPod,” recalls Harasim, 30. “As soon as he heard it, he asked what it was and said he had to have it.
“So Darren is on the phone telling me to upload the track right away. At that point I was almost too tired to be excited about Dave Koz wanting to put my music on his album.”
Harasim’s offering wound up as part of the song “When Will I Know For Sure” on Koz’s album “Hello Tomorrow,” earning him a co-writing credit with the titan of the contemporary smooth jazz genre.
Harasim could be making a bid to join the Grammy winners’ echelon in 2011, with a new album, “Rush,” set for release in early February and a first single, “Different Kind Of Love,” that’s already been widely embraced by fans and popular jazz radio.
His third album will be his first with new label Trippin’ N Rhythm Records, the jazz and soul division of Sony/BMG that’s also letting Harasim work on producing pop and dance music under the moniker Hitmakerz.
Talking about the extremely full plate in front of him in the year ahead, Harasim is gung ho and overjoyed at the opportunities he’s received since first taking to jazz as a teen while studying at the Flint Institute of Music.
“The label thinks this will be my breakthrough record, and I really believe that, because I took 24 months on this, polishing every single piece that went into it,” he said. “On previous records, I had six months, and you can tell the difference when you’re able to take the time you need. The songwriting gets better and you get to make sure every melody is perfect, to the point that I’m in love with every track on this album.”
While Harasim’s main focus is piano — he’s had a Yamaha endorsement since he was 22 years old — he also plays alto saxophone and some guitar and drum parts on “Rush.”
An enthusiastic fan and student of smooth jazz, Harasim said he’s trying to move the genre forward beyond the easy listening, waiting room territory it’s stuck in thanks to what he sees as stagnation and laziness by many of its big names.
“Lots of vets of the scene were cool and innovative when they first came out. But they just kept on making the exact same music, and it’s like all they were doing was changing the song titles from one album to the next,” he said. “You’ve got to look at popular music and see what people are into and take inspiration from that, which is why I put high hats that sound like hip-hop, or a really fat bass tone that makes the music sound current and can appeal to fans of more pop stuff.”
With the new single, which features British singer Maxine Hardcastle and could double as a soft R&B ballad, doing swift business at radio, Harasim heads into the new year ready to hit the road, including a spot at February’s Dubai International Jazz Festival, where he’ll play to as many as 60,000 people.
And when he’s not in front of fans, Harasim plans on making the most of his new venture into pop music, possibly producing Hardcastle’s record and looking for opportunities to make his name known to as wide an audience as possible.
“It’s a new challenge, and my main dream has always been to be a top 40, pop music record producer,” he said. “I’ll be bringing that flavor into the jazz music I do, but I really want to push forward into the production side and do things that you’re going to hear on the dance floor in clubs. I’ll feel like I’ve made it if I can produce a track for someone like Christina Aguilera.”
If destiny calls, chances are it’ll be at 3 in the morning. And as was the case with Koz, Harasim will be ready on the other end of the line.
- The Flint Journal