Bernhard Haaks - percussionist, educator and bandleader is a native of Germany. He began his conscious musical journey at the age of seven, discovering “in secret” a late evening Jazz radio program, presenting the music of Dizzy Gillespie and some avant garde jazz groups. During these hours, his dream of becoming a jazz musician in New York City was born. Bernhard is now experiencing music as an important part of his life and is pursuing music as a path of self-realization. In 1989, he moved to New York City to fulfill his dream and to study Master Percussionists Michael Carvin, Lenny White and Joe Morello. Each mentor influenced Bernhard profoundly in his understanding of and approach to music, sound and drumming.

Searching for answers to fundamental questions about the roots of drumming, he also studied ritual - and dance - drumming with Ruben Agbeli in Ghana, West Africa. Since 1995, Bernhard is leading Jazz bands, featuring international performers and Jazz Legends as Pianists Pete Levin, Eri Yamamoto, Donald Vega, Warren Byrd, Bassists Bill Crow, Don Miller, James Cammack, Dave Anderson, Saxophonists Ken Gioffre, Melissa Aldana, Adrian Cunningham, Beavin Lawrence, Trumpeters Kerry Mackillop, Dutch Jazz Diva Saskia Laroo, Hardin Butcher and others. Bernhard directs each performance as a colorful and joyous celebration of music with the focus on giving space to each musician's creativity and expression. He sees music and sound as a medium to uplift and transform the listener, space and environments. The repertoire of the Bernhard Haaks Trio, Quartet and Quintet include Jazz Standards from the forties through the sixties and beyond, as well as original compositions of group members. In 2012, Bernhard received a grant from the New York State Council on the Arts for the educational concerts of his Blue Moon Ensemble, a nine piece ensemble, mixing Jazz, Classical and New Music. Bernhard's new Quintet is scheduled to perform at a UN Gala event in October, 2014. As an educator, Bernhard is dedicated to the cultivation of individual talent and the conservation of tradition. His philosophy is based on the understanding of music being an integral part of each human being, waiting to be discovered and brought forth, viewing music as a path for the development of the creative mind, for self discovery and healing. Bernhard's teaching focuses on the balance between tradition and modernism. He has been teaching privately and at conservatories for 15 years and has lectured at universities. Bernhard is also a specialist of early childhood education and has developed his own methods of educating young children. In addition to his regular classes, he is offering group workshops and private sessions on developing a life in music and fulfilling one's own visions, guiding and accompanying musicians and artists in reaching their full potential. Bernhard is a member of Rosine Kushnick's global online roundtable with the topic "Unlock your Creative Genius (and get paid for it)".