About
Hi, I’m Ryland Haggis.
I’m a musician from Vancouver, British Columbia
I began my music career at age 10, playing drums in my father’s band. I continued through high school playing drums, percussion, string bass, and electric bass in every band that my school had to offer. Outside of school I kept busy with blues, rock, and funk groups. It was standard practice for me duck in through the back door of the bars in order to play gigs while I was still underage, and by the time I was of age the guys working the door all knew me anyway.
After high school I worked to expand my musical palette. I got into jazz and performed onstage and in-studio with singers, songwriters, and artists performing diverse genres from bluegrass to hip-hop and most points in between. I’ve had the pleasure of performing with artists like Hugh Fraser, Bill Runge, Stephen Franke, Dallas Budd, Jon & Roy, Kia Kadiri, Noah Becker, Rebecca Everett, Sara Marreiros, and many others.
In 2004 I received a B.A. in Music from the University of British Columbia where I focused on Jazz, Latin American music, Film Music, and arranging/orchestration. During that time I also played bass in the UBC Jazz Orchestra ‘A’ Band under director Fred Stride.
After I finished university I toured around Canada with various groups until 2006 when I joined the band for a new Canadian country artist, Jessie Farrell, as she prepared to release her first album, Nothing Fancy (2007). Since then, I have continued to tour back and forth across Canada in Jessie’s band, and to perform with her on numerous national radio and TV broadcasts. I recorded some bass on her latest album Good, Bad, And Pretty Things (2009). As a member of Jessie’s band, I have shared the stage with country music legends like Alan Jackson, Toby Keith, and Brooks & Dunn, as well as superstars like Miranda Lambert and Sugarland.
I’ve been nominated for Canadian Country Music Association Bass Player Of The Year for 2008 and 2009, and as well as for the British Columbia Country Music Association Bass Player Of The Year. I record and perform with some great new country artists like AJ Woodworth.
I’m on the roster of endorsing artists for Lakland Basses. They are just plain awesome.
In addition to playing the bass I have written and produced music for short films and multimedia projects, and I’ve served as musical director/arranger in a number of live and studio projects. I stay busy by playing all different kinds of music, and I’m always up for working with talented artists and producers. Contact me if you have a project you would like me to be involved in.
I’ll be touring and playing gigs all over the place, so check the blog and the list of upcoming shows for updates.
