Jazz saxophonist Robert “Storm” Hartig has lived in West Michigan near Grand Rapids most of his life. He began playing the alto saxophone at age twelve, fell in love with the instrument, and has been playing it ever since. Bob's musical experience spans four decades, starting in eighth grade with a big band called The Formal Aires, which he played in through high school. The band provided Bob with an invaluable exposure to much of the standard jazz repertoire by such luminaries as Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Stan Kenton, and Tommy Dorsey.

Following music studies at Aquinas College and Wayne State University, Bob amassed a wealth of practical experience in formats as diverse as jazz combos, studio horn sections, blues bands, black gospel choirs, church worship teams, and variety bands, in settings ranging from concerts to private parties to dinner clubs and more. View some of the artists, bands, recordings, and events Bob has worked with, and listen to audio samples, on his music page.

Respected as a skilled improviser with a superb technique, Bob is able to quickly grasp the needs of diverse musical settings, and to infuse them with an energy and inventiveness that take the music to the next level. Bob is deeply rooted in the bop and hard bop styles of players such as Phil Woods, Charlie Parker, and Cannonball Adderly. However, his tastes are eclectic, and his influences range from rock, R&B, and smooth jazz saxophonists such as David Sanborn, Dave Koz, and Eric Marienthal, to the inside/outside wizardry of tenor giants John Coltrane and Michael Brecker.

When not playing his saxophone, Bob is likely to be pursuing his other love, storm chasing—hence his nickname “Storm.” Bob's passion for the beauty and drama of severe weather has taken him from the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles, to the South Dakota badlands, to the flatlands and hills of the “Dixie alley,” to the prairies of Kansas, Iowa, Illinois, and other Midwestern states, and, of course, throughout Michigan.

Bob is also a freelance writer, copywriter, editor, and the proprietor of The CopyFox.

Contact Bob for recording projects, private or company parties, wedding receptions, concerts, club dates, and other events.

Purchase Eyes on Mars, Bob's free-jazz CD created in collaboration with well-known West Michigan percussionist, composer, and producer Ric Troll.

Read Bob's Stormhorn blog for literate, personal insights on the saxophone, jazz, and music in church worship, as well as on Bob's other passion, storm chasing.