Illustrious Canadian drummer MARK KELSO has earned 4 Juno Awards as a sideman, and most recently, was nominated for a Juno as a leader with his own group, The Jazz Exiles. He has been the Head of the Percussion Department in the prestigious Humber College Music Program since 2005. Kelso is not only a highly-skilled musician who plays drums and percussion, but he is also a singer, producer, and composer.
Originally from Belfast, Northern Ireland, his ability to play a wide variety of musical styles has helped him become one of Canada’s most sought after drummers.
He has worked/recorded with a wide array of artists including Pat Metheny, Donny McCaslin, Laila Biali, Michael Brecker, Randy Brecker, Michael Bublé, Changuito, David Clayton-Thomas, Holly Cole, Larry Coryell, Eliana Cuevas, Paquito D’Riveria, Hilario Duran, David Foster, Dave Grusin, Herbie Hancock, Olivia Newton John, Molly Johnson, Chaka Khan, Pat LaBarbera, Donnell Leahy, Natalie MacMaster, Bob Mintzer, Peter Murphy (Bauhaus), Donny Osmond, Danilo Perez, Chris Potter, Jovino Santos Neto, NOJO, Bonnie Raitt, Maria Schneider, John Scofield, Ron Sexsmith, Mike Stern, Soul Stew, James Taylor, Susan Tedeschi, Ian Tyson, Gino Vannelli, Carol Welsman, and his own Juno-nominated band, The Jazz Exiles.
Mark Kelso runs “Groovy Drums Studio” where he records drum tracks for many artists around the world. To date he has played on over 300 recordings. In 2016 Mark released his very first instructional DVD, “Musician First, Drummer Second” to great acclaim. Aside from playing many TV and radio jingles and movie soundtracks, Mark has also been featured in “Drums, Etc.”, “Canadian Musician”, and “Modern Drummer” magazines. He has also been a featured clinician/performer at the Montreal Drumfest, IAJE, Musicfest, KOSA, Percussive Arts Society, Regina Drum Festival, Whack Bam Thudd festival, The Stickman Drum Experience, Victoria Drum Festival, the Ralph Angelillo Drum Festival, and the Cape Breton Drum Festival.
This evening’s all-star MARK KELSO QUARTET features jazz masters PAT LaBARBERA on saxophone, GORD SHEARD on piano, and MIKE DOWNES on bass, entertaining in the up-close-and-personal ambience of The Home Smith Bar.