Bruce A. Russell
Biography
Bruce A. Russell (aka Ibrahim El Mahboob) is a composer and self-taught pianist living and working in Toronto (Tkarón:to, the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat). He studied at York University with James Tenney and Phillip Werren. He has composed music for the Madawaska String Quartet, Modern Times Stage Company, McMaster Dancers and choreographers Pam Johnson and Tracy Renee Stafford. Interest in his work increased in 2020, with performances by Second Note Duo, Prism Percussion, San Juan Symphony and Idaho Falls Symphony. Arraymusic presented the first full concert of his music in November 2020. He was host of Radio Music Gallery, and has written for Musicworks and I Care if You Listen. His interests are in 20th and 21st century concert music especially postminimalism, and music of the African diaspora including notated and non-notated forms. He is a parent of three and is employed in the financial sector.
Read more on his website.
In this Interview
Allyship, Anti-Blackness, Black Identity, Black Lives Matter, COVID-19, Cultural Biases, Economic Disparity, Elitism, Eurocentrism, Geographic Disparity, Identity, Imposter Syndrome, Performative Diversity, Tokenization, White Fragility, Mental Health, Mindfulness, Multiculturalism, Music Pedagogy, Police Violence, Racial Politics, Racism, Slavery, Terminology in Diversity, White Privilege
Trigger Warnings
This interview includes references to and use of historical racial terminology and classifications which may be upsetting to viewers. A censored version of this interview is linked here.
This interview includes mentions of suicidal depression, mental health, and institutionalization, which may be triggering.
This interview also mentions the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Mike Brown, Trayvon Martin, and Sandra Bland.
Interview
On November 3, 2020, Bruce A. Russell participated in an interview with Elizabeth Robinson (TALint student at the Music Library).
View interview in full screen.