Results for "Toronto"

Christian Overton

Originally from Sudbury Ontario, Christian Overton is now one of the most in demand trombonists and composers in Toronto in every scene from jazz and rock to salsa, R&B, theatre work and everything in between. He has a degree from Humber College where he studied with some of the nation’s top jazz musicians including Pat LaBarbera, John MacLeod, and Alistair Kay. Christian has also completed a Masters degree at the University of Toronto studying with Kelsley Grant, Gary Kulesha and Tim Ries. 

Jazz collaborations include:  Hermeto Pascoal, John Clayton, The Panamanian Big Band featuring Danilo Perez, John Patitucci, Brian Blade, Miguel Zenon. Also Kurt Elling, Bobby Shew, Guido Basso, Peter Appleyard, Jane Bunnett, Bill Dobbins, The Art of Jazz Orchestra, Jens Lindemann & the Order of Canada Band, Christine and Ingrid Jensen, The LaBarbera Brothers, The Don Thompson Big Band, John MacLeod's Rex Hotel Orchestra, Turboprop, The Carn Davidson 9, The Heavyweights Brass Band, NOJO and Gary Morgan’s Panamerican All Stars as well as many other acts. Christian was also featured on the Cuphead video game soundtrack which reached #1 on the billboard jazz charts in 2019.

2022: The Year in Jazz

by Ken Franckling
December 29, 2022

Current events impacted the jazz world in significant ways throughout 2022. In its third year, the coronavirus pandemic continued to lurk in some settings, while others recovered in robust fashion. Russia's war on Ukraine was felt by musicians and triggered an outpouring of support for its victims. Initiatives to ensure greater equity in jazz advanced. The ...

Neil Brathwaite

Neil Brathwaite was raised in Montreal, Quebec, with West Indian roots from Barbados. Introduced at the age 7 to classical music, he studied piano with Daisy Sweeney (the sister of Oscar Peterson) and was initiated into jazz by listening to the music his father played in the house. Brathwaite began playing alto sax in high school while getting experience playing with local R&B bands in Montreal. He later went on to complete his music education in Toronto attending the Humber College music program and studying under Pat LaBarbera.

Throughout his career he has worn many hats including leading a successful commercial R&B act B-Fun with their versiion of Bruce Cockburn's “Wondering Where the Lions Are”). He's also been the co-host and musical director for a Canadian television show (The Toronto Show) and co-founder and musical director of the former Toronto annual urban showcase Bump N' Hustle.

Fernanda Cunha

Born: November 5

Fernanda Cunha is a Brazilian jazz singer from Rio de Janeiro. She grew up with an affinity for both the music of her home country as well as jazz. She has toured Brazil, Europe, and North America, performing at prestigious international jazz festivals.

She has released 10  solo albums in Brazil with worldwide distribution.

Fernanda has been a regular performer in Canada from coast-to-coast-to-coast for many years.  

Regular appearances at jazz festivals in Canada have helped to carve out a fan base for Cunha’s post-bossa groove, and in 2019 she moved to Ontario, Canada.  

Nick Storring

Born: October 4, 1981

Nick Storring is a Toronto-based composer, musician, writer, and curator. His varied and idiosyncratic body of musical work spans chamber compositions to meticulously constructed recordings consisting solely of Storring’s own overdubbed instrumental performances. This output reflects his eclecticism as a listener — juxtaposing the familiar and the abstract to conjure moments of hallucinatory reminiscence.

He has worked with a number of leading artists and organizations in contemporary music including Montréal’s AKOUSMA Festival, Oxford UK’s Audiograft Festival, Késia Decoté, the Esprit Orchestra, Arraymusic, Soundstreams, Eve Egoyan, Sophia Subbayya Vastek, Thin Edge New Music Collective, Quatuor Bozzini, and Vancouver New Music. Winner of the Canadian Music Centre’s 2011 Toronto Emerging Composer Award, he also placed first in the 2008 Jeux De Temps competition for electroacoustic composition. His recorded output has also been released on celebrated experimental music imprints such as Orange Milk Records, mappa editions, Scissor Tail, Notice Recordings and Entr’acte.

Harry Bartlett

Born: January 19, 1998

Harry Bartlett is a Canadian guitarist, composer, and educator. Growing up in British Columbia, Harry’s early musical experiences were in the folk tradition which informed his honest and melodic voice in the context of jazz and improvised music. 

As a bandleader Harry has appeared in festivals and venues across Canada including Jazz YYC (Calgary, Alberta), Music Niagara (Niagara, Ontario), The Rex Hotel (Toronto, Ontario), The Brookstreet Hotel (Ottawa, Ontario), Resonance Café (Montreal, Quebec), Tangent Cafe (Vancouver, British Columbia), Herman’s Jazz Club (Victoria, British Columbia), and the Lighthouse Bistro (Nanaimo, British Columbia).

So Long Seven

Active since: June 8, 2012

So Long Seven is a delicious mix of jazz, classical, blues, folk, and music from around the world is both a funky, relentless force and an atmospheric cornucopia of sound.

Nestled in the rhythmic drive of tabla player Ravi Naimpally, Neil Hendry (guitar), William Lamoureux (violin), and Tim Posgate (banjo) create an aural space beyond boundaries. This highly skilled quartet references several global traditions including traditional musical forms of India, Europe, Africa and the many musical traditions of the Americas, in a unique and cohesive cultural bridge.

So Long Seven has performed with Canada’s top global music venue, Small World Music, and plays concerts and clubs across the country. From a tour of Vancouver Island, appearances at Victoria Jazz Festival, Ontario’s Hillside Music Festival, and Sunfest, the band is a national force. The band has also performed internationally with multiple concerts across Europe.

Jay Reed

Born: August 14, 1976

Short History:

Piano > 1980 | Guitar > 1987 | Gigs > 1992 | Music College > 1995 | Tours > 1997

​Influences:

​Led Zeppelin | Oscar Peterson | John Scofield | Lenny Breau | Elvin Jones | Glenn Gould | Barney Kessel | Charlie Hunter | Beastie Boys | Woody Shaw |  John Coltrane | The Beatles | Mel Lewis/Thad Jones | Pat Martino | Keith Jarrett | McCoy Tyner | Bill Frisell | Jim Hall | Jerry Reed | Pat Metheny | Dave Holland | Ed Bickert | Larry Young | Wayne Krantz | Derek Trucks | Kenny Wheeler | Charlie Parker | John Abercrombie | Etc. | Etc. | Etc.

Ben Bishop

Born: June 2, 1977

Way North

Way North is a cross-border mash-up of North American artists born out of the joy of playing together. Formed in Brooklyn in 2014 by three Canadians and a New Yorker, the band features saxophonist Petr Cancura (Down Home - JUNO nominee), trumpeter Rebecca Hennessy (2018 Toronto Emerging Jazz Artist/Women’s Blues Revue bandleader), bassist Michael Herring (Peripheral Vision - JUNO nominee) and American drummer Richie Barshay (Herbie Hancock/Chick Corea/Esperanza Spalding). The quartet brings together four composers who love to explore folk and world music with a backbone in jazz improvisation