Meet Laura

Laura Fernandez. Photo: Maite Jacobson

Origins

—

Laura Fernandez — Born in Madrid, Spain, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; singer, songwriter, pianist, music producer, painter, illustrator and designer, radio host/producer. Laura was born in Madrid into a family that boasted Laura’s great-grandfather as the mayor. She lived in Switzerland as a child and grew up in Calgary, Alberta, Canada after her family moved there. Laura’s father was an architect, engineer and painter, and, as a result, Laura grew up in a household where art, creativity and culture were valued and encouraged. Laura excelled in academics and ultimately dedicated her life to art. She graduated from the Alberta College of Art with honours and moved to Toronto, Ontario to begin a successful career in illustration; it is also where she launched her music career.

Laura had always loved and played music, and completed piano studies at The Royal Conservatory of Music. However, her primary creative outlet had been visual art, with a distinguished career consisting of commercial illustration, children’s book illustration, design projects and other commissioned work. Some of her commissioned portraits include Margaret Atwood, Bill Gates Sr., and Sir Richard Francis Burton for the permanent collection of the Royal Geographic Society in London, England.  Commercial illustration commissions include works for companies such as Estée Lauder, Air Canada, E.D. Smith, Loblaws, Microsoft, and Coca-Cola. She has illustrated children’s picture books including Jeremiah Learns To Read, The Magnificent Piano Recital, Anne Of Green Gables, Vivaldi’s Ring of Mystery, and Tchaikovsky Discovers America. With Rick Jacobson, Fernandez won prestigious industry awards such as the Ruth Schwartz Award, the New York Art Directors Club Award of Excellence, and the Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Award—a gold medal for illustration awarded by the Canadian Library Association. She has received multiple Toronto Art Directors Awards and a Communication Arts Magazine’s Award of Excellence in four consecutive years.

Laura Fernandez’s transition to a career as a recording artist and performer was a natural extension of the work of a visual artist who sees her musical compositions as paintings expressed in a different medium. Laura says: “Painting, and especially illustrating for 25 years, had become limiting for me and wasn’t answering all my creative questions. Music has become a voyage of self-discovery. There are no rules here, and this is exciting and liberating to me. I love the social aspects of making music, and the fact that it is a more direct route to the heart than painting.” Laura launched her debut CD The Other Side in 2003. It is an English language collection of songs described as lyric-driven, melodic folk, rock-pop with a groove. She won the Best Soft Rock Award at the 2003 New York International Independent Music Festival, which included performances at Madison Square Gardens; she has performed at venues such as The Knitting Factory, The Bitter End, The Continental, The TD Toronto Jazz Festival, Winterfolk, and the World Music Festival In Varadero, Cuba. She is on the Board of Directors of the Association of Artists for a Better World.

In 2010 Laura released her second CD, Un Solo Beso. For producer Laura found her musical soulmate in Montreal-born, Toronto-based JUNO Award-winning Billy Bryans. Before his passing (shortly after release of the record) he was recognized as one of Canada’s leading Latin and world music promoters, DJ and was also the co-leader and percussionist of the internationally-acclaimed band, The Parachute Club. Billy helped ensure cohesiveness within this eclectic album—as he explained: 

“The musical quest for me was to find each song a ‘home’ where it could have a distinctive flavour and personality that supported the lyrics and the melody. Some songs ended up in specific Latin American styles like merengue, bolero, and salsa, some ended up with a kind of hybrid sound, and some stayed in their original singer/songwriter structure.”

This musical marriage created Un Solo Beso, fusing two approaches:  the discipline of pop-folk songwriting, and the musically expansive sounds of Latin and jazz styles.

Un Solo Beso was recorded at Toronto recording studios Hallamusic, Canterbury Sound and Serpent One, and features three arrangers creating diversity that was true to Laura’s songwriting styles: JUNO award-winning pianist Hilario Duran, guitarist/bandleader Luis Mario Ochoa, and keyboardist Roberto Linares Brown. All songs on Un Solo Beso were written by Laura Fernandez, except ‘Inolvidable’ by Julio Gutierrez and ‘Red Red Bird’ by Noah Zacharin—with Spanish translation by Laura—and A Mi Padre and Que Linda es La Noche which she co-wrote with Zacharin. Un Solo Beso features some of Toronto’s most vibrant and highly acclaimed musicians including  Hilario Duran, Roberto Linares Brown, Luis Mario Ochoa, Noah Zacharin, Glenda Del Monte Escalante, Alberto Alberto, Elmer Ferrer, Luiz Deniz, Roberto Riveron, Joaquin Hidalgo, Chendy León, Jalidan Ruiz, and Alexis Baro.

Laura also found expression and joy in working with musicians who shared her Spanish language mother tongue. She also did not feel constrained by genre, preferring instead to let each song organically take on its own shape. Laura explains: “This made for an amazing connection, as language brings people together in a different way. We wanted to give every song its own personality. Instead of focusing on a record that would sound the same, I made a record that has a variety of characters. I don’t stick to convention in my life, so why should I in music? I have to write what I feel inside and I also want to reach out and bring people and elements together.”

In January 2019 Laura spent 5 weeks in India performing with Indian musicians and exploring Indian, Latin and Jazz fusions with Colin D’Cruz (Jazz Goa) and Jazz Junction, and released a CD under the Jazz Goa label.

In October 2020, during the pandemic, Laura released her newest collection of songs OK, Alright, which is receiving international airplay. The album was co-produced with Grammy award-winning producer and engineer Peter J. Moore and musician Howard Gladstone, and released on the Sonic Peach Music label. OK, Alright is an extremely personal collection of autobiographical songs spanning two decades and performed with musicians who have accompanied Laura over her performing career. They were chosen not only for their excellence as musical artists but also because of the intimate connection she has felt with them over the years. The album’s focal point is Laura’s piano performances along with the lyrics and intimate, rich vocals. The album highlights her unique rhythms and range of eclectic styles which blend jazz, folk and singer-songwriter influences. Joining the sessions were George Koller, Marito Marques, Noah Zacharin, Alexander Brown, Graham Mansfield and Tony Quarrington. OK, Alright features string arrangements written by Tony Quarrington and performed by Anne Lindsay, Charmain Louis and Kevin Fox. The album evokes an aural landscape echoing childhood memories, winter landscapes and the joys and difficult life experiences. Laura is presently performing songs from the album and plans to tour again as restrictions ease.

In 2015 Laura was named one of the 10 Most Influential Hispanic Canadians.

Laura Fernandez is an official Steinway Artist. She is the 20th member from Canada of this illustrious list, joining contemporary artists such as Billy Joel, Diana Krall, Harry Connick Jr., and past music greats like Irving Berlin and Cole Porter. Steinway & Sons maintains a selective process in naming Steinway Artists, choosing only pianists who demonstrate a love of Steinway pianos and a high standard of excellence in their music.

Laura Fernandez is producer/host of Café Latino on JazzFM91.

Laura Fernandez is also an award-winning Real Estate broker with Forest Hill Real Estate Inc., Brokerage. She has been in the industry for 15 years, in commercial and residential sales, and co-manages Forest Hill Real Estate- Boutique Branch.