Rob Tardik- Biography
In a career spanning nearly two decades, Rob Tardik has established himself as an award winning guitarist and a rising instrumental music artist! He has performed for 5 consecutive years, and running, at the coveted Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards, held annually in Mississauga’s Living Arts Center. Rob has shared the stage with the likes of legendary producer Phil Ramone, Tower of Power founding member Greg Adams, guitarist Peter White, 4-time Grammy award winning saxophonist David Sanborn, and along with his band, Rob has opened for legendary guitarist/singer Jose Feliciano.
Taking center stage with his release of “The Right Time”, and having won the prestigious 2010 Canadian Smooth Jazz Guitarist of the Year, Rob has held the #1 spot on the U.S.-based, Music Choice Contemporary Jazz charts for 4 weeks in a row during Sept/Oct 2010! Rob always finds a way to combine his guitar virtuosity and ever tasteful melodic sense to create his signature liquid smooth sound!
Born and raised in Toronto, Rob began playing the guitar at the age of 7. By 17 he received a high school music scholarship, and then went on to study music at York University in Toronto. Rob also holds diplomas in both Recording Engineering and in Media Arts from Humber College. In 1991 his musical act, Paradise Alley received a recording contract with MCA/Duke Street records. Rob has also been honoured being named Mississauga’s 2007 “Established Performer of the Year” for his musical contributions, an award won previously by Oscar Peterson and Rik Emmett.
Rob has worked for Roland Canada as a guitar product specialist/clinician and has been a faculty member at the prestigious Merriam School of Music in Oakville for over 14 years. Rob has also taught at the Guitar Workshop Plus music program and has served as an adjudicator for the Midland Y’s Music Festival. Rob has played several prestigious venues which include the 2010 American Smooth Jazz Awards at the DuSable Museum in Chicago, Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Toronto, Mississauga’s Living Arts Center, Roy Thompson Hall, the Buffalo Center for the Performing Arts, the 2009/2010 Toronto International Film Festival, and the Oakville Jazz Festival.
An industry veteran, and highly respected guitarist, Rob’s work can be heard on his successful debut CD “Without Words” which was met with great enthusiasm and radio play world wide from Sweden and Hungary to the U.K. In spring 2006, Rob earned a #1 Smooth Jazz chart single in Canada with his soulful remake of Stings “Fields of Gold”. His subsequent album released in Oct 2009 featured the singles “Crusin”, “Smoothy” and “Frame of Mind”, which have been favourites on many Canadian and over 100 U.S. terrestrial and internet radio stations including our own Toronto’s Wave 94.7 FM, CBC Radio Canada, Winnipeg’s Groove FM 91.1, Smooth Jazz.com and #1 on the Music Choice cable/satellite network charts in the U.S.! The CD continues to be active on all the current contemporary jazz charts in the U.S.!
With diverse musical influences such as Larry Carlton, Al Di Meola, Paco De Lucia, George Benson, Lee Ritenour, Carlos Jobim, Sting to Eddie Van Halen, Rob’s current album, “The Right Time” is an amalgamation of these inspirations which have helped shape his musical voice on the guitar and are moving him forward as an artist!
The Right Time is HERE AND NOW!
These are the words that drive award winning Smooth Jazz artist Rob Tardik. His newest album is a personal statement and musical glimpse into his current life’s musical motion, direction and how he shares his passion for music and the guitar with the world.
Expect Rob’s smooth guitar work to soothe your soul and claim his place as a new fresh face on the Adult Contemporary and Smooth Jazz music scene. Rob is destined to capture plenty of attention with his fantastic new musical offering!
“The Right Time” includes a lively balanced mixture of 12 tasty instrumental tracks featuring Rob and a stellar cast of musicians he has assembled for this CD that brings back that feel and interaction of a real band working their musical magic together as one sonic cohesive unit! The CD features nine new tracks and three off his last CD which have been re-massaged thoroughly to capture the excitement of Rob’s music with the melodic addition of saxophone player Carson Freeman and the lush piano work of Davor Jordanovski. Songs like “That’s a Strut”, “Smoothy” and “You Know What I Mean” all pulsate with this new musical chemistry that takes Rob’s music to another level. New tracks like “Crusin”, “Frame of Mind”, “Bounce” and the CD’s title track “The Right Time” further reinforce Rob’s ever tasteful melodic ear and as always is highlighted by his trademark liquid smooth guitar work! Finally the CD’s last track “Waiting for Rain” a beautiful, serene song about personal growth that captures Rob’s passion for the nylon string guitar with its intimate finger style guitar playing. This song is destined for a future movie soundtrack!
With the new release of “The Right Time”, Canadian born Rob Tardik is poised to make a musically infectious return to concerts and radio worldwide and further establish himself as a wonderful new growing artist in the adult contemporary music scene and continue to support his passion for the guitar and performing live music for audiences everywhere!
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