Liam Hurlbut is a Maryland-based saxophonist, composer-improviser and educator. During his years spent living in Baltimore, he had the foundational experience of participating in the improvisation collective Out of Your Head. Through this collective, he had the opportunity to meet and work with some of the most talented musicians in the city and formed a musical identity based on his passion for trans-idiomatic improvisation.
In addition to his work as an in-demand freelancer, Liam has extensive experience as a bandleader and co-leader. His jazz fusion band Ephemera Quartet released the EP Energy Music in 2018. With saxophonist Jarrett Gilgore, he co-led Time Toss. This group performed original works and played on musically diverse bills with artists ranging from Susan Alcorn and Amadou Kouyate to Cuddle Magic and Super City. Liam also led the ensemble Life Sound featuring vocalist Sinead Fahey, which emphasized traditional songs and arrangements mixed with process-oriented improvisation. In the last five years, Liam has shifted his focus toward the jazz tradition. In 2024, he recorded an album with a sextet dedicated to the music of Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane.
Liam has shared the stage with The Phil Cunneff Trio, Dan Deacon, Michael and Peter Formanek, Baltimore Afrobeat Society, Jazzmeia Horn, Keyon Harrold, and John Clayton among many others.