Stephen Philip Harvey

About the Artist

Stephen Philip Harvey is an award-winning saxophonist, composer, arranger, educator, and radio producer whose work bridges jazz traditions with the pulse of contemporary Black American music. A dynamic bandleader and recording artist, he leads multiple genre-spanning ensembles and serves as Music Director for Delmarva Public Media, shaping musical programming and creative initiatives across its three public radio stations. Harvey leads a range of forward-thinking ensembles including his electric quintet Sphinx, chordless trio SPH+2, mid-sized contemporary ensemble Stephen Philip Harvey Octet (SPH8), and critically acclaimed large ensemble, the Stephen Philip Harvey Jazz Orchestra (SPHJO). Across all projects, Harvey crafts music described by trumpeter Sean Jones as “a beautiful pairing of the complex and the elementary.” His growing discography reflects a multifaceted artistic voice rooted in improvisation, groove, and genre fusion. His latest release, Multiversal: Live at Bop Stop (2025), showcases SPHJO’s cinematic breadth in a high-energy live setting. It follows a trio of 2024 releases: Live at Radio Artifact and Elemental (Live) with SPH8, and Library Card with SPH+2. In 2023, he debuted the electronic quintet Sphinx and released both Little Gifts EP (SPH+2) and Elemental (SPH8). Earlier works include the large ensemble album Smash! (2022) and his debut Suite Childhood (2016). Most of these releases appear on his artist-run label, Hidden Cinema Records. His compositions have been performed by ensembles across the U.S. and abroad, including the Orchestre National de Jazz (Paris, FR), National Youth Jazz Orchestra (UK), Peabody Conservatory, Eastman School of Music, University of North Texas, and New York University. In 2021, he collaborated with NEA Jazz Master Roscoe Mitchellon Conversation for Orchestra, performed by the Iceland Symphony Orchestra and SEM Ensemble. Mitchell describes Harvey as “an exceptional musician with a very bright future.” In 2025, Harvey was awarded a prestigious Chamber Music America New Jazz Works commission, joining a cohort of nationally recognized composers creating innovative new work. His music has earned praise from DownBeat Magazine, which described him as “a straight-ahead band room swinger with an ear for making four horns sound like a kicking big band.” All About Jazz lauds his “audacious conception” and genre-blurring orchestrations, while Dark Blue Notes calls his soprano tone “not easily matched by today’s saxophonists.” As an educator, Harvey teaches at Salisbury University and Youngstown State University, and regularly appears as a guest artist, clinician, and composer-in-residence across the country. His educational impact spans K–12 and collegiate classrooms, national conferences, and regional outreach. His work has been recognized through numerous awards and grants, including the Distinguished Alumni Leadership Award from Seton Hill University (2024), multiple Creativity Grants from the Maryland State Arts Council, a Jazz Roads Grant from South Arts, selection to the Young Jazz Composers Showcase by the Jazz Education Network, and research and travel support from Salisbury University. He holds an M.M. in Jazz Studies from Youngstown State University, where he received the Young Scholar Award, and a B.M. in Music Education from Seton Hill University. Through each endeavor—whether on stage, in the studio, in the classroom, or behind the mic—Stephen Philip Harvey is shaping a vital and inclusive vision for the future of jazz: bold, rooted, and unmistakably his own.

Artist's Statement

"Stephen is an exceptional musician with a very bright future.” – Roscoe Mitchell, NEA Jazz Master “Sophisticated accessibility! When I listen to Stephen Harvey’s music, that’s what hear. Thoughtful construction of complex structures and orchestrations that take the listener on a beautiful sonic ride without speaking over their heads. A beautiful pairing of the complex and the elementary.” - Sean Jones, Trumpeter/Composer/Bandleader/Educator “Harvey perfroms with a strong personality. He will say it with his tenor. There are no words, but his soprano’s flexibility, strong tone, and direct expression cannot be easily matched by today’s saxophonists.” – Turgay Yalchin, Dark Blue Notes "Maryland-based tenor saxophonist Stephen Philip Harvey is a straight-ahead band room swinger with an ear for making four horns sound like a kicking big band. He has two new live octet albums drawn from the last stop of a 2023 tour . . . The opener, 'Witch Hunt,' is a spar-kler, with a quietly secretive intro that gives way to snappy repartee between horns and creamy Rhodes (Ben Tweedt). 'Jay Tee' has bedroom eyes, with a sexy tenor solo from Harvey himself." - Paul DeBarros, DownBeat Magazine   "Harvey’s arrangements emphasize riffs and melodies over improvisation, though he certainly leaves room for his crew to express themselves when called upon. But his focus on tunes keeps the songs effervescent and accessible” - Michael Toland, The Big Takeover "There's a fine indiscipline to Harvey's big band writing. Ominous horror-film riffs sit comfortably alongside soaring album-rock guitar solos, urgent, cop-show horn fanfares and creamy unison sax-section passages straight out of the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra's book. It's a fridge-raid omelette of sounds held together by the audaciousness of Harvey's conception and the joy with which his players bring it to life.” - John Chacona, All About Jazz