Michael Herring

Biography

Michael Herring is JUNO-nominated a double-bassist and composer based in Toronto who writes, performs and records across genre lines, equally comfortable in jazz as in folk, world, and pop/rock settings. Herring is a major contributor of original music to a number of groups that he leads and co-leads: Michael Herring Quartet, a chordless two-saxophone band drawing inspiration from 1960’s jazz, especially Mingus and Ellington; Way North (New York/Toronto/Ottawa collaboration with Petr Cancura, Rebecca Hennessy, and Richie Barshay) exploring folk musics through improvisation - one Ottawa Citizen top Canadian Jazz albums of 2015; Peripheral Vision, a JUNO-nominated modern-jazz quartet co-led with guitarist and long-time collaborator Don Scott. Peripheral Vision has recorded five albums, maintains a busy touring schedule, and won the Galaxie Rising Star Award at the Montreal Jazz Festival; Michael Herring's Vertigo, a modern-jazz sextet which recorded two albums featuring New York’s David Binney - the first was included in All About Jazz New York’s Top 5 Debut albums of 2006; and The Uplifters and Harrington (New Orleans/Roots), two groups where you can hear Herring’s lyrics, and lead and backing vocals. Herring has toured and recorded with such great musicians as Kevin Breit, Michael Ward-Bergeman (New Orleans), Ab Baars (ICP/Amsterdam), Ken Vandermark, Dave Clark, David Braid, Mansa Sissoko (Mali, Africa), Bucky Pizzarelli, Percy Sledge, and Ernest Ranglin. He received a Chalmers Arts Fellowship (through the Ontario Arts Council) and used it for an extended stay in New York City.