Attila Fias
Attila’s extensive experience includes working with many notable international musicians such as New York based Brazilian jazz harmonica virtuoso Hendrik Meurkens (Oscar Castro-Neves, Paquito D’Rivera), Indian master singers Hariharan, Shankar Mahadevan, Madhushree, Chitra, Oscar-winner A.R. Rahman (Slumdog Millionaire), legendary tabla master Zakir Hussain, percussionists V. Selvaganesh, Sivamani, renowned American drummer Steve Smith, composer/arranger Jolly Mukherjee (Bjork), Nell Carter and Olivia Newton-John to name a few.
He also had the good fortune to perform with many outstanding Canadian musicians such as Peter Appleyard, Rob Piltch, John Johnson, Pete Coulman, George Koller, Jason Fowler, Jim Vivian, Richard Underhill, Rick Gratton, Mark Kelso, Reg Schwager and many more, as well as members of The Boss Brass, The National Ballet of Canada and The Toronto Symphony Orchestra.
As a bandleader and as a performing musician, Attila has toured around the world – Europe, South Korea, Brazil, Africa, Japan, Australia, the UK, Singapore, Hong Kong, India, and the US, playing everything from packed stadium concerts to small clubs.
He has performed in major concert arenas such as Madison Square Garden Theater, Singapore Indoor Stadium, Los Angeles Convention Center, Bangalore Palace Grounds, Wembley Stadium, Sydney Superdome, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, as well as many smaller international venues.
Over the years he has also played live music across Canada in places such as Roy Thomson Hall, The Living Arts Centre, Toronto Centre for the Arts, Copps Coliseum, Danforth Music Hall, The Rex, Montreal Bistro, Upstairs Jazz Bar, The Jazz Bistro, The Old Mill, Dominion On Queen, The Beat Niq, Yardbird Suite, The Cellar, Lula Lounge, Hermann’s Jazz Club, Breakfast Television, The Arts and Letters Club, Toronto International Jazz Festival, Beaches Jazz Festival, Barrie Blues and Jazz Festival, Sunfest Jazz Festival and lots more.
Attila has produced, composed, arranged, and performed for Universal/MCA, Sony/BMG, EMI America, Somerset Entertainment, Fisher Price and independent labels, on over 100 internationally distributed CDs. With over two million units sold worldwide, including multiple gold and platinum-selling albums in Canada and the US, they cover a diverse range of styles such as jazz, world music, rock, pop, gospel, children’s music, new age, big band, classical, latin, Brazilian music, R&B and Indian fusion.
He has worked with award-winning producers/sound engineers Jack Douglas (Aerosmith, John Lennon), John “Beetle” Bailey (Molly Johnson, Serena Ryder), Jeff Volpert (Holly Cole, Loreena McKennitt), Ed Krautner (Sum 41, Ben Folds), Bill Bell (Tom Cochrane, Jason Mraz) to name some. He has also been involved in recording film music for North America and India, and has worked with acclaimed producer Rodney Jerkins (Michael Jackson, Jennifer Lopez) for Universal Pictures, and A.R. Rahman for UTV Motion Pictures.
Born in Budapest, Hungary, Attila began studying music at an early age with his father’s guidance. When his family moved to Stockholm, Sweden, he started taking piano and theory lessons with Laszlo Beer, and developed an early interest in jazz, playing through jazz standards from his father’s old handwritten notebooks and took his first formal lessons in jazz improvisation with Alvaro Is Rojas. He also sang in the Stockholm’s Boys Choir. After moving to Canada, he studied with distinguished Canadian musician Dr. David Ouchterlony, and was lead choir boy in his church choir, with whom he went on a performance tour of the UK.
He took jazz lessons with Art Maiste, music theory, and composition with Dr. Roman Toi, and clinics with Barry Harris. He also sang in the renowned Toronto Children’s Chorus, performing at venues such as Roy Thomson Hall. He attended Cawthra Park SS where he was an active participant in the music program, focusing on jazz, and toured Japan with the school’s award-winning jazz choir. He formed an early jazz trio with brothers Kevin and Mark Zubek, with whom they won first place in the Kiwanis Music Festival and were invited to perform at Roy Thomson Hall. Later, he studied with Gary Williamson at the University of Toronto and graduated with an honors performance degree in jazz.
