September 18, 2009
Oliver Jones, Musician of the Year, returns
to All-Canadian Jazz Festival Port Hope
When
pianist Oliver Jones was named "Musician of the Year" at
the 2009 National Jazz Awards, jazz fans across the country and
around the world nodded in agreement.
On September 26, Jones comes to Port Hope for a repeat engagement
at the All-Canadian Jazz Festival, where he played a sold-out concert
in 2006.
Growing
up in Montréal in the '30s and '40s, Jones had
an early role model. Not only did he take lessons from Oscar Peterson's
sister Daisy, but spent many hours sitting on the steps of the
Peterson house listening to Oscar practice. "Peterson has
been my greatest source of inspiration, without question," he
says.
Jones
also trained extensively in classical piano, and worked for 16
years as music director of a calypso band in Jamaica. As a result
he can play an astonishing range of styles, while never losing
sight of his primary goal – to connect with his audience
in shared enjoyment of beautiful music.
When
Jones returned home in 1980, he quickly became a fixture on the
Canadian music scene. He opened and closed the Festival International
de Jazz de Montréal 17 times between 1981
and 1999, and performed a memorable duet there with Oscar Peterson
in 2004.
"Though he can let loose flurries of complex pianistic gestures,
he also knows restraint, and how to highlight a song's expressive
nature rather than burying it in virtuosity," writes Evan
Wale in the Encyclopedia of Music in Canada. "Not surprisingly
for someone whose influences are Bach and Chopin, he has a marked
preference for ballads."
His
many original compositions include "Big Pete" (dedicated
to Oscar Peterson), "Blues for Hélène", "Bossa
for CC", "The Sweetness of You", and "Fulford
Street Stomp".
For his All-Canadian Jazz Festival date he is joined by an equally
stellar rhythm section: Eric Lagace on bass and Norman Marshall
Villeneuve on drums.
A
teacher at Concordia University, Lagace has played bass with
the Ottawa National Arts Centre Orchestra and Montréal
Symphony Orchestra, and has accompanied Oscar Peterson, Slide
Hampton, and Winton Marsalis.
Villeneuve
first started to work with Jones, who happens to be his cousin,
in 1964. After settling in Toronto he became a regular at clubs
including George's Spaghetti House and Bourbon Street. In 1996
he and Oliver Jones were invited to perform for Prime MInister
Jean Chrétien and President Bill Clinton.
The Oliver Jones Trio takes the stage in Port Hope's Memorial
Park at 8 pm, Saturday September 26. Tickets are $40, available
at www.allcanadianjazz.ca and 905-885-1938.
September
11, 2009
Three great vocalists, coming to the All-Canadian
Jazz Festival this month
Three great voices. Three distinctive styles. Three
sets of music that you don't want to miss.
June Garber, Diana Panton and Carol McCartney perform at the eighth
annual All-Canadian Jazz Festival Port Hope, sharing the stage
with Canada's best jazz players.
June
Garber steps up to the mic on Saturday afternoon, September 26.
A veteran of stage and concert halls, she does justice to the
songs of Gershwin, Rogers & Hart, Kurt Weill, as well as to
classic blues and romantic ballads. Her debút album "Smile" was
produced by Bill King and released in 2006.
In the last year her performances in tribute to Ella Fitzgerald
and Louis Armstrong were recorded and broadcast by Jazz FM 91.1.
She has also performed at the Toronto Downtown Jazz Festival and
the Toronto Beaches Jazz Festival.
Geoff
Chapman of the Toronto Star wrote, "June has a potent
voice brimming with character and readily adaptable to any material.
She's clearly able to tackle tunes of infinite variety." In
the words of Barbara Cook of the National Arts Centre Theatre, "June
sets the stage on fire."
For
this appearance she will be accompanied by Kelly Jefferson (sax),
Mark Kieswetter (piano), Ross MacIntyre (bass) & Davide
Direnzo (drums).
Hamilton
native Diana Panton takes the stage on Sunday afternoon, September
27. For her debut CD "Yesterday Perhaps" in
2005, she had the all-star backing of Don Thompson on bass and
piano, and Reg Schwager on guitar.
Thompson and Schwager are still performing with Panton, and for
this gig veteran flugelhorn player Guido Basso, a member of the
Order of Canada, also joins the group.
In 2009, Panton earned nominations for vocalist and album of the
year at the National Jazz Awards, Basso was recognized with a Lifetime
Achievement Award, Thompson was nominated in seven categories and
won three Awards, and Schwager was nominated for guitarist of the
year.
Reviewing
Panton's second CD "If the moon turns green",
Ric Taylor writes: "With a subtle, understated vocal style
and a minimal yet intriguing musical backdrop … Panton breathes
new life into these songs embracing the elegance of melody and
still lifting some songs to a new level. Jazz fans should be delighted
but music fans as a whole should take note of this up and coming
singer."
Carol McCartney performs in the Festival's finale on Sunday afternoon,
September 27, as special guest of The Ambassadors Big Band. This
17-piece combo, led by Bobby Herriot, covers big band classics
from the Swing Era through contemporary compositions, with a special
place for the contributions of Canadian composers and lyricists.
The band's membership includes alumni from The Boss Brass and
The Phil Nimmons Jazz Orchestra, and members have played with Maynard
Ferguson, Woody Herman, Buddy Rich and Stan Kenton.
McCartney's
impassioned and impeccable vocal style has made her a favorite
among audiences and players alike. Her 2007 CD "A
Night in Tunisia" features many of Canada's most well-known
players. Carol first met many of these jazz greats through Peter
Appleyard, whom she has worked with since the early eighties.
Reviewing "A Night in Tunisia", Ted O'Reilly says "Carol
is sweet and swinging, warm, dramatic and rhythmically assured
at all tempos. The last word Carol sings is 'Goodbye', but I hope
she soon says 'Hello' again."
Day passes to the All-Canadian Jazz Festival are just $20. Advance
tickets are available online at www.allcanadianjazz.ca, and by
phone at 905-885-1938.
September
8, 2009
Robi
Botos brings "Tribute to Oscar Peterson" to All-Canadian
Jazz Festival Port Hope
What does a young man from a Romani family in Hungary have in
common with a Canadian legend who dazzled jazz fans for more than
60 years?
Robi Botos and Oscar Peterson both started playing piano as young
children, both put in countless hours to master the instrument,
and both were winning accolades on the international stage when
they were still teenagers.
When Robi Botos immigrated to Canada at the age of 16, he had
already won numerous awards. He quickly made a name for himself
in the Toronto jazz scene, and it wasn't long before his fluid
virtuosity was earning him comparisons with Oscar Peterson.
So it was fitting that Robi opened for Oscar Peterson at the Stravinsky
Theatre in Montreaux, Switzerland, in 2005. Botos, of course, had
long been an admirer of Peterson, and after the Montreaux concert,
the feeling was mutual.
In recent years Botos has been in demand as a sideman with groups
such as Archie Alleyne's Kollage, while also creating many original
compositions, recording his own CDs, and winning numerous Juno
and National Jazz Award nominations.
Since Peterson's death in 2007, Botos has frequently included tributes
to Oscar Peterson in his concerts. At the All-Canadian Jazz Festival,
his trio will perform Peterson compositions including Requiem,
When Summer Comes, and Kelly's Blues, as well as the Botos' original
Emannuel, dedicated to Peterson.
Reviewing
a performance this summer, the Ottawa Citizen said "When
Botos gets going, he can recall locomotive-like pianists such as
McCoy Tyner, Kenny Kirkland and Joey Calderazzo. That said, he
showed his tender side on My One and Only Love, which featured
delicate, precise chords and lyrical single-note lines."
Robi
Botos performs in Port Hope on Sunday, September 27, at 1 pm.
Sunday's program also includes sets by TD Canada Trust Young
Jazz Showcase, Diana Panton with Guido Basso, Don Thompson and
Reg Schwager, the Carlos del Junco Quartet, and The Ambassadors
Big Band With Carol McCartney. A day pass to the All-Canadian Jazz
Festival is just $20.
Advance tickets are available online at allcanadianjazz.ca, and
by phone at 905-885-1938.
