Email: ekalwa@uwaterloo.ca
The leader and founder of the Royal City Saxophone Quartet, Ernie is a graduate of the University of Waterloo in Mathematics and Music. A native of Peterborough, Ontario, Ernie operates a successful database consulting firm, and now calls Elora home. He played his first professional gigs on saxophone and clarinet at age 14, competed in the local Kiwanis Festival, and was active in dance bands, concert bands, Dixieland, Ska, R&B, and saxophone quartets. He studied saxophone at Humber College with Pat LaBarbera, Alex Dean, Mark Promane, and later in the USA with James Houlik, Jerry Coker, Eric Alexander, and Berklee College of Music. He has traveled to play in jazz events and festivals throughout the United States and Canada. His influences include Stan Getz, Sonny Stitt, Zoot Sims, Dexter Gordon, Hank Mobley, Branford Marsalis, Eddie Daniels, and various classical performers.
Ernie served six years as President of the Central Ontario Musicians’ Association (Kitchener Local 226 of the Canadian Federation of Musicians), and is an adjudicator with the Guelph Kiwanis Music Festival. In 2006 he produced his first Jazz Quartet CD “The Autumn Leaves” and is working on new recordings in addition to teaching saxophone, clarinet and flute privately to aspiring musicians. Lately, the Ernie Kalwa Jazz Quintet tours performing concerts as “A Tribute to 1960s Jazz and Bossa Nova”. Ernie often assists with the UW Jazz Ensemble, and performing in concerts at Conrad Grebel University College.