Ruslan Sirota

Ruslan Sirota is a Grammy Award winning[1][2] pianist, composer, and producer.

Ruslan Sirota
Background information
OriginUman, Ukraine
GenresJazz, R&B/soul, pop
Occupation(s)Musician, producer, composer
InstrumentsPiano, keyboards, organ
Years active1996–present
Associated actsStanley Clarke, Josh Groban

Early life

Ruslan was born in Uman, Ukraine to a Jewish family on November 4, 1980. His father, Yefim, who was an active local guitarist, introduced him to music at an early age. Picking up guitar around the age of four, Ruslan transitioned to piano around the age of seven. In 1990, his family moved to Israel, where he continued to study piano at the Bat-Yam music school. At approximately 14, Ruslan discovered jazz, instantly showing interest. By the age of 16, he was the "wunderkind" keyboardist for the then-popular Israeli jazz fusion band, "Confusion". With Confusion, he toured Israel and made several appearances at the Red Sea Jazz Festival.[3]

At 18, Ruslan auditioned for the Berklee College of Music, where he received full tuition scholarship, and moved to Boston in January 2000. During his studies at Berklee, Ruslan displayed growing interest in R&B, funk and soul music, playing with local artists and eventually becoming the resident keyboardist in a club called "Wally's Jazz Café".[3]

Later life and career

Circa 2004, Ruslan joined the Stanley Clarke band[4][5] and moved to Los Angeles, thus marking the beginning of his professional career.[6][7][8]

Since then, Ruslan has been touring, performing and recording with major artists (in addition to Clarke), such as Black Eyed Peas, Kamasi Washington, Seal, Josh Groban, Ne-Yo, Thundercat, Chick Corea, George Duke, Marcus Miller, Al Jarreau, Victor Wooten, Eric Benét, Rachelle Ferrell, Larry Carlton, Los Angeles Philharmonic and countless others. Ruslan released his self-titled debut album, featuring Clarke, Corea and George Duke as special guests, on October 24, 2011. The album was produced by Ruslan and Clarke, recorded at Clarke's production company, Roxboro Entertainment Group, mixed by Yan Perchuk at Vibrant Productions, released on Bungalo Records and distributed by Universal Music Group Distribution.[9][10]

Ruslan is also a board member of the Magic Music Foundation, a non-profit organization devoted to granting scholarships to music students worldwide, regardless of their choice of music teachers and/or schools.[11]

Discography

As leader
  • 2011: Ruslan
  • 2019: A Lifetime Away

As sideman or guest
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References
  1. "Grammy nominees and winners". Grammy.com. Feb 13, 2011. Retrieved Feb 14, 2011.
  2. Djansezian, Kevork (Feb 13, 2011). "The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards – Press Room". Zimbio/Getty Images. Retrieved Feb 14, 2011. Ronald Bruner Jr. and Ruslan Sirota accept the Best Contemporary Jazz Album award on behalf of the The Stanley Clarke Band for "The Stanley Clarke Band" in the press room at The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards held at Staples Center on February 13, 2011 in Los Angeles, California.
  3. "Biography". Jazz.ru. Retrieved Nov 8, 2009.
  4. Sullivan, Stefan (Dec 3, 2005). "Stanley Clarke: His bass is hit; Jazz legend plays at Blues Alley". The Washington Times. Retrieved June 17, 2010. Keyboardist Ruslan Sirota[...]displayed not only solid old school chops[...]but also the technical wizardry that Mr. Clarke's fusion idiom seems to demand.
  5. "The Stanley Clarke Band". Concord Music Group. Retrieved July 8, 2010. “Ruslan is becoming a recognizable force in the music world,” Clarke notes. “He is one of the few musicians I’m aware of that knows a thousand songs. He has a unique understanding of the jazz language.”
  6. "Ruslan Sirota Discography and Music". CD Universe. Retrieved June 20, 2010.
  7. "Ruslan Sirota Credits". Artistdirect. Retrieved July 18, 2010.
  8. "Ruslan Sirota". Barnes & Noble. Retrieved September 25, 2011.
  9. "Ruslan by Ruslan". iTunes Store. October 24, 2011. Retrieved November 2, 2011.
  10. "Ruslan: Ruslan Sirota". Amazon.com. October 24, 2011. Retrieved November 2, 2011.
  11. "Ruslan Sirota for magicmusicfoundation.org". NME. Retrieved June 20, 2010.
  12. Wain, Phil (June 15, 2010). "A Review of "The Stanley Clarke Band"". No Treble. Retrieved July 8, 2010. Ruslan Sirota's "Soldier" opens the proceedings; the Ukrainian born, former child-prodigy wrote the piece to frame his concerns about continuing global conflict.
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