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Back to Ad Index torontohearandnow roundup NEWS FROM THE TORONTO COALITION OF NEW MUSIC PRESENTERS by Keith Denning Of course, there is one major event in Toronto this month that simply must be mentioned. This is the soundaXis festival which runs in many locations across the city from June I to 11 and involves almost every member of the coalition, including Soundstreams Canada, Esprit Orchestra, Arraymusic, the Music Gallery, Les AMIS, Talisker Players, Earshot Concerts, New Music Concerts, CONTACT, Continuum and New Adventures in Sound Art. SoundaXis is the first major joint project of the Toronto Coalition of New Music Presenters, and the first community-wide celebration of the art of new music since 2001 's successful NuMuFest. SoundaXis has brought together the new music community, several universities, architectural firms and faculties, for a comprehensive series of concerts, lectures, seminars, and more inspired by the union of music and architecture in the person of Iannis Xenakis. The soundaXis festival is, deservedly, getting much coverage and promotion elsewhere in WholeNote, as well as in other media. Of course, you should see as much of it as you can! Visit www .soundaxis.ca for full details of the festival, or read Jason van Eyk's "Some Thing New" column in this issue for a fuller discussion of the festival. SoundaXis is not the only game in town this month, however. Here is a short roundup of other events: On Sunday, June 4, the Penthelia Singers present a matinee concert called The Four Elements, which features a world premiere by David Stone and also includes repertoire by R. Murray Schafer. The concert starts at 2:00 at the Glenn Gould Studio. On June 20th at 8:00, CONTACT Contemporary Music and Amnesty International join forces to present Mary, Me. This concert features music by Amnon Wolman, Michael Gfroerer, Eve Beglarian and more, and takes place at the Glenn Gould Studio. On Friday June 23rd at 9:00 and Saturday the 24th at 9:00, a relatively new group, the Association of Improvising Musicians, Toronto (AIMToronto) perform two concerts featuring bassist Wilbert de Joode at the Arraymusic Studio, 60 Atlantic Avenue. The Friday show features Paul Dutton, Michel Delage, and one of my favourite experimental guitarists, Michael Keith. The following evening features Ronda Rindone's Quorum, Dan Pencer Quartet, Ken Aldcroft, Rod Campbell, and more, again interacting with de Joode. And on an entirely personal note: The Ugly Bug Band begins its matinee residency at the Tranzac Club (292 Brunswick, just south of Bloor) the last Sunday of May (the 28th) from 4 to 6. We'll be playing the last Sunday of every month for the foreseeable future! Visit www.uglybugband.com for more. LA NEF takes us on a journey through Thrace and Epirus via traditional music from these mountainous regions of Greece. ••• ·~-- " .••. Canada THE ONTARIO GUILD OF ENGLISH HANDBELL RINGERS has sets of handbells and/or chimes to loan to groups interested in forming a handbell choir. Please contact: Rochelle Mulholland, President 302 Collier St, \~ Barrie, ON L4M 515 tel: 705 721 4632 rochmul@rogers.com NEWS FROM THE TORONTO MUSICIANS' ASSOCIATION by Brian Blain Instrument Bank: The TMA Music Education Committee continues to receive instruments for the Instrument bank, for which we are most grateful. We have three violins, ~, half size and full size looking for someone to play them, and two trumpets available. We have also been offered a limited number of upright pianos and guitars through our partnership with Second Line Music and our Music To My Ears project for 'at risk' youth. The pianos are available for only the cost of moving at 0 each. There may be funding available for that too. If your school, community centre, or even music studio could use a piano on loan, please be in touch with Faiza Kanji at faiza@secondlinemusic. ca. We are most grateful to Faiza and her committee for this wonderful opportunity. We have requests for a cello and a clarinet, and drum hardware for the Mississauga Youth Symphony. If you have or are aware of instruments which could be used by our program, we accept donations or loans, and will help appraise and refurbish all instruments. Please contact Corkie Davis for information at corkie.davis@sympatico.ca. Music Education: The ' basics of rhythm' program, called 'Rhythmody' developed by member musician/ educators Jane Fair, Brian Katz, and Alan Heatherington continues to be offered to schools in the GTA. This program, aimed at the grade 6 to 8 age group, is a fun and lively way to gain a better understanding of rhythm. Our committee found that many students could use more time in this area and our program is intended to help the students and teacher find fu~ ways to practice rhythm skills as a warm up or focus for a music session. We will be developing a program addressing 'vocal basics' for the same age group shortly, and hope to get that into schools looking for some fresh ideas and new inspiration in this area. If your school is interested in the program, or for after school programs, please be in touch with Jane Fair atjanefair@sympatico.ca. We will gladly send out a description of the program and follow up any inquiry. Second Line Music is again offering funding for these programs to schools and community centers, so please be in touch to arrange for a fun way to wrap up the musical school year! Memorabilia: The Toronto Musicians' Association has a lot of old memorabilia and some interested members have been going through this treasure trove to begin the long process of cataloguing and archiving. If you have any material of interest from the early days of the Toronto music scene, please contact the office so that we can begin gathering a list of resources. STEPHANE LEMELIN presents the World Premier Recording of this impressionistic work by Georges Migot (1891 -1976). 1•1 ;::· = Canada We'd like to hear from you: The Toronto Musicians' Association invites WholeNote readers to give us your feedback on this column. If you have any suggestions for news items relating to members of the Toronto Musicians' Association, please forward them to Brian@Blain.com. Please include the word "Wholenote" in the subject line. Ooops: The photo of Don Thomson that accompanied last month' s column should have been credited to Don Vickery. We apologize for that omission. 22 WWW. THEWHOLENOTE.COM ] UNE 1 - ] ULY 7 2006
The festival season gets into full swing this month with events across Canada. It's an opportunity to see some of the biggest names in jazz, but it is also a time when you can discover some lesser known artists who might not otherwise be heard. A case in point with Jazz Notes by Jim Galloway The June Bug the Toronto festival is the appearance of tenor saxophonist George Coleman. He is one of the great tenor players, but largely overlooked by the trendsetters and the industry at large. That he is a better player than some who have gone on to renown is without question. The music has more than its share of unsung heroes. Not that he is a stranger here in Toronto. He played Bourbon Street in the early days of that Queen Street West club run by Doug Cole for a number of years. He has also appeared in the festival and has a solid base of devotees in this city, but real international recognition has eluded him. However, let's not overlook the fact that he preceded Wayne Shorter in the Miles Davis Quintet. It is his tenor you hear on the classic recordings of Seven Steps To Heaven and My Funny Valentine. And on Herbie Hancock's quintessential album Maiden Voyage who is the wonderful tenor player? George Coleman. But fame eluded him. Call it what you will - the luck of the draw, the roll of the dice, but George was not smiled on by Lady Luck. He even considered retiring two or three years ago. Fortunately he had to rethink that one and he is still out there and playing as well as ever. When he plays he takes no prisoners, but he does captivate his audiences. Another interesting aspect of the festival scene is the Euro-Jazz component. A lot of very creative jazz comes out of Europe and again, the festival circuit provides one of the few opportunities to hear it live. In Toronto this year one of the highlights will be the appearance of Richard Galliano. He is French, ofltalian ancestry and considered by many to be the world's greatest exponent of the accordion. Yes, that's right, the accordion! There are probably as many accordion jokes as there are about the banjo - in fact they are almost interchangeable. You've heard J UNE 1 - J UL Y 7 2006 Back to Ad Index them all - What is the definition of a gentleman? Somebody who knows how to play the accordion, but doesn't. What's the difference between an accordion and a trampoline? You take your shoes off before you jump up and down on a trampoline. And on and on they go. Well, forget all about them when you speak of Galliano. As a child, he began adapting his skills on the accordion to jazz, inspired by Miles Davis and the hard bop of Max Roach and Clifford Brown. He has worked with Chet Baker, Ron Carter, Jan Garbarek, Michel Petrucciani, Toots Thielemans and Joe Zawinul to mention a few, and in Toronto he will be accompanied by George Mraz and Al Foster. It will be one of the gems of this year's event. Other European representation includes groups from The Netherlands, Norway and Sweden and even a group from Moscow featuring Russia's leadingjazzer, tenor sax player Igor Butman. The music is abreast of the times, so, for example, don't expect any banjos, but the musicians will bring you some of the best contemporary European jazz. So, by all means enjoy your favourites, but give some of the names you are not so familiar with a try. And no matter what, get out and hear some live jazz. Richard Galliano ~unday Jung 25 ::it thr. T tatrn S!tudio 9t 8Athut~t S:lteef 11~ ~art of thr, TD C::inada T tu!:t T otonto Jazz l=r,!:tival ~Ii and f:"tiend!! (11kl! Latin S:oul~tire) LATIN JAZZ Doot~ opo.n al" 7 Jirn l'.OVet cli~tg:c c~11 4W \?r7-QS60 fot futlf,et info WWW. THEWHOLENOTE.COM ------::) \' cosmo '7 music Fine quality instruments & accessories lo suit any budget - Woodwinds, Brass, Strings & Percussion Expert Instrument Repairs in one of North America's largest and best-equipped facilities Comprehensive Band & Orchestra Rental Program with over 9,000 instruments in inventory York Region's Largest Music School serving over 1,200 students SALES • RENTALS • REPAIRS • LESSONS • PRINT MUSIC Featuring some of Toronto's best jazz musicians with a brief reflection by Jazz Vespers Clergy Sunday, June 11th· 4:30 pm THE VERN DORGE TRIO Sunday, June 25th· 4:30 pm BARLOW BRASS & DRUMS Christ Church Deer Park, 1570 Yonge Street (north of St. Clair at Heath St.) 416·920-5211 Admission is free. An offering is received to support the work of the church, including Jazz Vespers. Dave Snider Music Centre 3225 Yonge St. PH (416) 483-5825 eM ai I: snidc rmusic @ sniderm usic.co m www.snidermusic.com One of Toronto's Oldest Music Stores ... With The Best Selection of Pop, Jazz & Broadway Sheet Music in the city - For Beginners and Professionals - Come in and browse over 25,000 sheet music publications. We have a wide array of Woodwind, Brass, Keyboards, Guitars and Accessories. Music Lessons offered on site.
