Bruce Kurnow, a native of Minneapolis, Minnesota and now a resident of the San Francisco Bay Area, is enjoying a long career in the music business. At age three he began piano lessons and was immediately hooked. As a teenager he discovered a special connection with the harmonica and has remained dedicated to exploring the possibilities of the instrument. He went on to become a music major at the University of Minnesota, primarily a classical school. He studied piano, stringed harp, guzheng (Chinese harp), voice, theory and composition, which have proven to be a solid foundation for his subsequent work, including twenty-seven recordings of original compositions and eleven others of non-original music (see discography). Combined sales of these recordings are over 1,000,000 copies. His recording, Harmonicaland, was nominated for Best Solo Instrumental Album of 2004 by Just Plain Folks.

 

Bruce has been recognized with four Minnesota Music Awards for his harmonica, stringed harp and keyboard work. Since 1971 he has been an active studio musician, playing on hundreds of commercials, albums and film scores.

 

As a performer, Bruce played piano with harmonica master Mojo Buford, who named him “Creeper.” In 1971 he went to Los Angeles on vacation and was surprised by the sudden opportunity to tour the United States and Canada with popular country-rock group Mason Proffit, playing 300 cities per year and recording with the group from 1971-1974 (the group reunited in 2003). During that time he was also fortunate to have been invited to perform with Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker, two of his all-time favorite musicians. When Mason Proffit disbanded Bruce decided to move back to Minneapolis. He co-founded Passage with guitarist Bobby Schnitzer, his long-time friend and band-mate since junior high school. The group disbanded in 1979 and was followed up by the Doug Maynard Band, based around the original vocalist of Passage. This group leaned heavily toward traditional blues and R&B and released a vinyl LP titled The Lullaby. In a recent Minneapolis Star and Tribune poll, both groups were honored as two of the seven greatest live Minnesota rock acts of the ‘70s. Passage was recently inducted into the Minnesota Rock & Country Hall of Fame. Bruce left the Doug Maynard Band in 1980 to pursue a solo career, performing as a singer/songwriter and also showcasing his unique simultaneous combination of stringed harp and harmonica.