Kingston Jazz Society

On Sundays 5:00-8:00pm, you can catch The Downtown Quartet at The Mansion on the main floor with no cover.

The Downtown Quartet performs a mix of instrumental jazz standards and original compositions.  The band is:

• Noah St. Amand – bass
• Sean Jensen – drums
• Mark Taras – guitar
• James Wannamaker – saxes

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Fridays at 5:30 at the RCHA Club

Fridays at 5:30, live at the RCHA Club, you can catch Rubbaboo.
The lineup features:

• Cameron Schaefer: Rhodes piano
• Jak Thrasher: Percussion
• Bobv Arlidge: Bass
• Dan Charbonneau: Guitar

Greg Runions Big Band featuring Composer Fred Stride
Saturday, March 5th 7 pm
The Wilson Room,
Kingston Public Library
130 Johnson Street

$20.00 adult, $15.00 students and seniors, available at the door!

Award Winning composer Fred Stride

Vancouver jazz composer, Fred Stride will be visiting Kingston at the beginning of March to collaborate with local musician Greg Runions and his big band.

For this performance the ensemble will be joined by Stride who will rehearse the band and conduct them through his music at the performance.  An award winning composer, Strides works are played throughout North America and are published alongside the works of Bill Holman, Don Sebesky, Slide Hampton, Joe LaBarbera through Sierra Music.

In 2007 Stride’s arrangement of the Michael Brecker tune Peep won the first International Jazz Arranging Competition. The chart since been performed and recorded by Chuck Owen’s great Florida big band The Jazz Surge with Randy Brecker as soloist.

As usual the band will feature some very exciting guest soloists.  These include trumpeters Brian O’Kane, Jocelyn Couture, saxophonists Chet Doxas, Merlin Williams and pianist David Braid. In addition to these exceptional soloists the band will include the band’s regular players saxophonists Chris Alfano, Jonathon Stewart, Merlin Williams, brass players Janet MacRae, Blair Yarranton, Mike Verner, Andy Sparling, John Palmer, Tim Booth, rhythm players Mike Cassells, Arthur Roth , Dave Barton and Greg Runions.

This concert is made possible through the generous support of the Canada Council for the Arts and has also been fortunate to receive funding from Queen’s University. SOCAN has also generously helped to fund a three day residency in Kingston so that Fred Stride can interact with many of the local school music programs including Queen’s University, St. Lawrence College and the Limestone District School Board

For more information contact Greg Runions gregrunions@gmail.com 613-384-4307

Jesse Zubot - Sat. Feb 12 at The Mansion

Violinist, Jesse Zubot

Jesse Zubot (violin,viola) is one of those exceptional musicians whose praxis spans multiple genres and transcends contextualization into an idiom. Between moments of impassioned, visceral outbursts and quiet emotive sensitivities, Zubot exposes the full range of affects through a pristine sonic architecture. Diving head-first into the world of creative and improvised music with his self-produced, critically acclaimed solo release Dementia, Zubot has since collaborated with the likes of Evan Parker, François Houle, Eugene Chadbourne, Mats Gustafsson, Dave Douglas, Peggy Lee, Fred Frith, Eyvind Kang, Nels Cline, and many others.

Perhaps best known as founding member of the Juno Award winning acoustic-roots duo Zubot & Dawson, Jesse Zubot aided and abetted in the creation of a new genre called Strang, which synthesizes elements of folk, jazz and other of the duo’s diverse influences. Jesse has also performed or recorded with many contemporary artists including Hawksley Workman, Kelly Joe Phelps, Alpha Yaya Diallo, Justin Rutledge, Mother Mother, The Be Good Tanyas, and Stars. In 2003, 2008, and 2009, Zubot was named “Violinist of the Year” at Canada’s National Jazz Awards. Zubot’s current projects include touring and recording with acclaimed Inuit throat singer Tanya Tagaq and Vancouver’s “post-everything”, avant-rock group Fond of Tigers.

Jean Martin (drums) is and has been one of Toronto’s most in-demand drummers in the creative music scene for some time now. He has worked with the likes of William Parker, David Murray, Don Byron, Dominic Duval, Mark Dresser, The Henry’s and many others. His group Barnyard Drama, has performed at festivals such as the prestigious FIMAV. His group, LaConnor (with Jesse Zubot), recorded an album which was named one of Canada’s best experimental albums by !Exclaim.  Current projects include touring and recording with Inuit throat singer Tanya Tagaq, and with celebrated songsmith John Southworth.  Jean has been nominated for ‘Best Drummer’ at Canada’s National Jazz Awards and is a past recipient of the Freddy Stone Award from St. John’s Sound Symposium.

Workshop Description

Jesse Zubot, along with Jean Martin, will host a workshop demonstrating how traditional instruments can be used in modern improvisation. The two will improvise together & separately using extended & traditional techniques. They will explain their setup and eagerly answer questions about how they go about doing what they do. Zubot & Martin have worked with many different forms of music including folk, pop, jazz, blues, ambient & experimental. This workshop will focus on how improvisation plays a part in all forms and how to go about it.

Each concept must be presented as a completed puzzle to avoid being lost in the noise of today’s society. Decomposing Pianos seek to remove ornamental enclosures, reveal the mechanisms within, and allow them to breathe alongside modern day electronics and the natural sounds of our world.

The Kingston Jazz Society is pleased to announce the return of its long-standing “Live @ Your Library” concert series. This series of four intimate Sunday afternoon concerts offers Kingston jazz fans a chance to experience some of the best in Canadian music and meet the artists in the intimate and beautiful confines of The Wilson Room of the downtown Kingston Public Library.

Tickets are available at Brian’s Record Option, through the Grand Theatre box office (613-530-2050) or at the door on the day of the performance. Ticket price is $20 per show, student pricing is $15/show with valid student ID.

Second Concert: Broadview Sunday February 13, 2pm

Sunday, February 13, will showcase a new project by three of Canada’s most highly regarded instrumentalists. Broadview is a trio featuring Juno award winning saxophonist Mike Murley, Ted Warren on drums and bassist Rich Brown playing original compositions drawn from their 60 years of combined experience on the jazz scene.

Broadview - February 13

Third Concert: Kingston Jazz Composers Collective Sunday March 13, 2pm

Then, on Sunday, March 13, The Kingston Jazz Composers Collective, an all-star ensemble of home grown artists comprised of saxophonist Jonathon Stewart, guitarist Dave Barton, vibraphonist Greg Runions with Mike Perlin on bass and Mike Cassells on drums, team up to present a selection of their most recent compositions.

Closing Concert: Arlene Smith Sunday April 10, 2pm

The series will wrap up on Sunday April 10, with another duet performance by a pair of Canadian jazz icons. Vocalist Arlene Smith and Pianist Mark Eisenman will swing their way through a captivating and very personal repertoire of standards.

The Kingston Jazz Society gratefully acknowledges the generous support of The City of Kingston, The Kingston Arts Council, Sun Life Financial and Chez Piggy Restaurant, which help to make this series possible.

Michelle Kaz - Live at Olivea tonight

Wednesday, February 2nd, 2011
An Evening of Jazz – Live at Olivea – 6PM-9PM

Michelle will be performing jazz and standards with a trio during dinner seatings at the contemporary Italian restaurant, Olivea!

A great dinner and night out on the town! Please contact the restaurant for reservations.

Michelle’s trio features:

• Piano – Nicholas Papaxanthos
• Bass – Brock Ingrassia
• Drums – Sean Donaldson