Gabe Hizer is a Nashville, TN-based singer-songwriter, originally from Long Island, NY. He attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA, played in various rock and pop cover bands in the 70s, and more recently led a blues band for a couple of years. He is now performing as a solo artist, featuring his complex guitar arrangements, well-crafted songs, and wide vocal range.

He is clearly influenced by the singer-songwriters of the ’60s and ’70s, such as James Taylor (especially in his guitar parts), Joni Mitchell (especially his use of high falsetto notes), Jackson Browne, etc.

A born musician, Gabe Hizer was already playing the accordion at the age of 6, the ukulele by the time he was 8 and the guitar by age 9. Known for his amazing guitar skills and his ability to incorporate blues, jazz, soul and pop into his original songs, Gabe has come a long way since his ukulele-days.

Gabe began his serious music training while in high school in the mid-1960s when he studied with famed country blues guitar master Stefan Grossman and with Long Island jazz guitar guru Howard Morgen. By the age of 16, Gabe won a Downbeat magazine scholarship for summer study at the prestigious Berklee College of Music, from which he later graduated with a degree in Composition in 1971.

After spending some years teaching guitar and playing in a variety of bands, Gabe took a detour from his music career and attended Boston University Law School, graduating with his J.D. in 1983. For the next 25 years, he practiced law, planning estates and drafting wills and trusts as well as writing a best-selling book in 2003 called “How to Protect Your Family’s Assets from Devastating Nursing Home Costs: Medicaid Secrets.” Although his career in law dominated his time, the pressures of having his own law practice never kept him from thinking about and writing music in his free time.

In Nashville in 2002, Gabe formed the Gabe Hizer Blues Band, which included a 17-year veteran of B.B.King’s band, Michael Doster, on bass and after moving to Boulder, CO, in 2004, Gabe put together another version of the Blues Band, which served as the house blues band at the upscale dinner club Nissi’s.

At this point in his life, Gabe decided to leave law and contemplated retirement, visiting a small historic town in central Mexico, San Miguel de Allende, in 2008. With only his cats, some rudimentary recording equipment, a guitar, bass, and keyboard, and his laptop, Gabe spent his 4 months in Mexico rediscovering his intense passion for music and decided that an early retirement was not the path he wished to take. With his desire to write music reignited, Gabe moved back to Nashville, a town that he says is the perfect environment for a musician, inspiring and motivating.

After years of the music inside of him begging to be written and played, Gabe was finally able to dedicate himself fully to his passion for music. A prolific songwriter since his high school days, Gabe had continued to write even while practicing law, sometimes producing three songs in one day! By the time he was ready to begin his first CD, he had amassed almost 1,000 songs to choose from. His CD, “Persistence of Memory,” which contains several songs he wrote while in Mexico, will be released April 5, 2010. Produced by the well-regarded Indie producer and artist/songwriter Neilson Hubbard, the CD will be available from CD Baby, Amazon.com, and from Gabe via Bandcamp (http://gabehizer.bandcamp.com).

While planning his CD release shows, Gabe has also been busy performing at local songwriters nights, house parties and at Richard’s Café, a Louisiana restaurant in a town 10 miles north of Nashville. His performances have been a big hit among his fans who have said “With his three-octave vocal range, sophisticated guitar arrangements, and well-crafted songs, Gabe puts on a great one-man show!”

After many years of putting his passion on the side in favor of his law career, his music has only gotten stronger. One fan said, “In a world where people get sucked into boring desk jobs, it’s refreshing to see someone not only pursue his passion, but succeed at it! It’s almost as if all the years of not spending 24/7 on his music has instilled it with a sense of urgency, only making his songs all the more powerful and exciting.”

The Right Time is here and now…These are the words that drive award winning smooth jazz artist Rob Tardik.

A 2010 Guitarist of the Year nominee for the Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards, his newest album, The Right Time, is a personal statement and glimpse into his life’s current musical direction, further showing the world his passion for life, music and the guitar.

If you enjoy instrumental music then expect Rob’s smooth guitar work to soothe your soul and provide the soundtrack to your lifestyle.

Rob is destined to capture plenty of attention with his fantastic new musical offering, further growing his status as a rising artist in the current adult contemporary and smooth jazz music scene.

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, 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 includes a lively balanced mixture of 12 tasty instrumental tracks featuring Rob and a stellar cast of musicians he has assembled for this CD. They bring back that feel and interaction of a real band working their musical magic together as one cohesive sonic unit!

The CD features nine new tracks and three off his previous 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 taking 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, always highlighted by his trademark liquid smooth guitar work! Finally the CD’s last track, “Waiting for Rain”, a beautiful serene song about personal growth, captures Rob’s passion for the nylon string guitar with its intimate finger style guitar playing.

An industry veteran, and highly respected guitarist, Rob has also recently co-partnered to launch MDR Music Productions, a new company that will help support his latest release by specializing in licensing new music for TV, film and radio opportunities.

The company has already assembled a fantastic roster of new artists with an ever growing music production library and a dynamic new music publishing company.

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, further establishing himself as a wonderful new growing artist in the adult contemporary music scene and continues to support his passion for the guitar and performing live music for audiences everywhere.

Rob’s latest CD is available on-line at www.robtardik.com.

- Press Release