Peter Barr a New York Rock, Reggae, Dance Hall musician

uartists2012
Oct 29, 2015
2 min read

Peter Barr is a drummer and multi-percussionist who has been exceedingly active on the New York music scene. Barr has lenthis talent to an array of modern music stars as a performer, a composer, a recording artist and as a bandleader/producer. Peter Barr started playing the drumset at age 11. Barr’s musical background began with interest in rock, was later tempered in jazz and has since expanded into explorations of the various forms of African and Caribbean expressions. By the age 17, Barr’s passion for drumming and music led him to leave his native Chicago for the East Coast, where he formed the bands Aqua Prophet and Mingus Three. Barr was later to enroll into the Berklee School, where he befriended and played together with bassist Esperanza Spaulding. Barr’s stay in the Boston area found him playing with steel pan visionary Mackie Burnette and in collaborations with the Wild Sextet, Marco Benevento, Timo Shanko and Boubacar Diabate. In 2005, Barr relocated to Brooklyn, where he played with a diverse cross section of musicians and singers that include Ornette Coleman, Alan Cave, Tiga and Tchaka, Nomsa Mazwai, Nonthantha Kheswa, Manze Dayila and Nago Nation, Les Ambassadeurs du Manding, On Ka’a Davis, The Underground Horns, Dana Manno, Anthony Cedras, Jojo Kuo, Fan-Fan Damas, Miles Nielsen, The Rodeo Clowns, Monvelyno Alexis, Lamine Toure and Group Saloum and The Manifestation of Benchoumy. In 2011, Barr wrote and performed the musical score for the critically acclaimed Off-Broadway theater production Drawn and Quartered, presented at Intar theater in New York. Most recently, Barr has been leading his own groups and has been producing his recorded releases.

Barr cites his musical influences to be; Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Cheap Trick, Charles Mingus, John Coltrane, Ravi Shankar, Bob Marley, David Byrne/Talking Heads, Radiohead, Mighty Sparrow, Lord Kitchener and Salif Keita. Website: http://www.peterbarrmusic.com/

Music from a Heart and Soul, Incantations of a past experiences, travels, and learnings. "It comes from every where ive been and every where i go."