Harlan believes in the power of music to comfort our minds and relax our bodies. As a cellist and multi-instrumentalist, his musical talents span genres from classical music for meditation and wellness to hip-hop and jazz. His diverse songwriting and producing credits range from singer-songwriter Michelle Branch to Grammy-winning pianist John Baptiste and genre-bending artist, Duckwrth.
As a solo artist, Harlan has a catalog of six instrumental albums that have been wildly featured on popular playlists for mediation and wellness and on the Calm and Peloton platforms. Inspired by his yin yoga practice and "the spacious harmonies living in nature," Harlan's original compositions showcase his subtle depth as an instrumentalist who moves effortlessly between cello, electric guitar, the native flute, piano, and Minimoog synthesizer.
In live performance, Harlan utilizes the healing power of the cello in combination with ambient textures to cultivate a meditative experience that inspires stillness and relaxation. As the closest in range to the human voice, the cello evokes emotion with its uniquely emotive vocal quality. Relying on breathwork and his yin yoga training, Harlan gently guides the listener through each live cello meditation with a steady, calm presence.
Harlan combines all elements of his musical background as a film and television composer. He has worked with such talents as Lakeith Stanfield, had music featured on hundreds of series, including Issa Rae's Insecure, Netflix's Queer Eye, The Voice, Grey's Anatomy, and Saturday Night Live, and composed original music for brands such as Adidas, Nike, Chase Bank, VISA, and VRBO.
Harlan's musical journey began at age four. Motivated by seeing Yo-Yo Ma perform on television, but still too small for a cello, he began learning on a violin played upright with an end pin. Harlan went on to study with the renowned improv cellist Eugene Friesen at Berklee School of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. Through a partnership with Beyond Yoga, his study of yin yoga took him to the City of Rishikesh in Uttarakhand, India, the spiritual center and hub of Yoga, where he deepened his practice and knowledge of the ancient art and science of Yoga.