About this Artist
Born in Cleveland Ohio, percussionist/drummer JAMEY HADDAD holds a unique position in the world of jazz and contemporary music. Haddad’s musical voice transcends styles and trends, and the universal quality of his playing has attracted many international collaborations. Regarded as one of the foremost world music and jazz percussionists in the U.S., Haddad is an associate professor at Boston’s Berklee School of Music, Oberlin Conservatory, and the Cleveland Institute of Music, and has published articles internationally relating to the experiences of the contemporary world musician.
Haddad was voted one of the top four world percussionists by the percussion periodical Modern Drummer (July 2007). In the snapshot of a two-week period, Haddad recorded with singer Nancy Wilson, performed with Paul Simon, helped create a part in a film score with Elliot Goldenthal, rehearsed for an upcoming tour with the Sacred Music Festival of Fez Morocco, recorded with saxophonist Joe Lovano, and learned the music of Osvaldo Golijov for an upcoming performance of a cello/percussion concerto with Yo-Yo Ma. Haddad collaborates regularly with Paul Simon, Simon and Garfunkel, Osvaldo Golijov, Yo-Yo Ma, Dawn Upshaw, Danilo Perez, Joe Lovano, Elliot Goldenthal, Brazil’s Assad Brothers, Daniel Schnyder, Simon Shaheen, the Paul Winter Consort, Nancy Wilson, Dave Liebman, Esperanza Spalding, Maya Beiser, Trichy Sankaran, vocalist Betty Buckley, Steve Shehan, Leo Blanco, Nguyen Lee, and Bobby Salvaggio, among many others. Haddad performed with Paul Simon at the 25th anniversary celebration of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Jamey began a collaboration with the Cleveland Orchestra called “Friday@7,” which combines a short classical program with an after-concert performance by a world-music ensemble chosen by Haddad. This series has been embraced enthusiastically by audiences and musicians alike and has resulted in a significant increase of first-time attendees at Severance Hall Concerts.
Jamey is the recipient of three National Endowments for the Arts Performance Grants and a Fulbright Fellowship and can be heard on more than 200 recordings.