DISCOGRAPHY
LYVELIFE
The long-awaited follow-up to The JHP's debut, LYVELIFE sees a new collaborative direction to the instrumental jazz-funk underpinnings of The Julian Hartwell Project in their second studio effort, featuring a host of special guest vocalists and instrumentalists from the Philly scene. 5 original songs delve into themes of perception, perspective, spirituality and personal growth and run the gamut of musical influences ranging from jazz, funk, soul, go-go, & even pop. Gestated through the year that was 2020, LYVELIFE signals an exciting leap forward for pianist and composer Hartwell into fresh and fertile terrains of songwriting, collaboration and production with vision to match.
The JULIAN HARTWELL PROJECT
The first effort from The Julian Hartwell Project showcases a distinctive blend of high-energy original music by composer and arranger Julian Hartwell and his band of up-and-coming players. Featuring a cadre of rising talent from the Philly jazz scene, many members of the quintet/sextet group are recent graduates of Temple University's Boyer College of Music jazz studies program, and lend a youthful, vibrant approach to the varied tight-knit arrangements throughout the record.
​
​Cinematic, funky, evocative, soulful and swinging…this all-original debut injects fresh lifeblood into the contemporary jazz scene and points to a bright future for the promising group known shorthand as “The JHP”.
What they're saying. . .
“This is feel good music that doesn’t get too unapproachable like so many jazz groups get, making music that appeals not only to the head, but to the heart as well…It’s a fresh take on original jazz music, that somehow manages to sound like something old school AND brand new at the same time.”
-Mark Weber, Mark Weber Music Blog
​
“Well worth a sample and repeated spins, The Julian Hartwell Project offers a splendid slice of straight ahead jazz delivered with a fresh new sound…a gifted pianist leading a group of young talented players in their first recording together, this is one musical project that begs for an encore.”
– Ed Blanco, All About Jazz