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Time Out
NORTH ISLANDER
Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2014
Georgia Strait Big Band plays at Thursday night jazz club After two weeks with no jazz, the Georgia Straight Jazz Society is making it up to jazz fans by presenting the Valley’s own big band. The Georgia Strait Big Band is thrilled to have the opportunity of performing this Thursday evening (Feb. 27) at The Avalanche. You can look forward to a highly entertaining evening of great music made famous by The Count, The Duke, and Gillespie and beyond. The music starts at 7:30 but it’s a good idea to arrive a bit early as the band has a loyal following. Over the years, the Band has been a strong supporter of the Georgia Straight Jazz Society and has an impressive history of attracting talented musicians. Many developing young musicians have joined the band while in high school, moving on to pursue music at the post-secondary level. This is a legacy the Georgia Strait Big Band is justifiably proud of. The Band has showcased some of the Valley’s finest singers who captivate audiences with their own unique vocal styles. This Thursday Tonja Maslin is featured as a special guest vocalist. Tonja will be treating the audience to a number of great jazz standards.
The always popular Georgia Strait Big Band takes the stage Thursday night at the Avalanche Pub The tradition of Big Band music in the Comox Valley dates back over 60 years, when folks danced the night away at the Native Sons Hall on Saturday nights. For the past 6 years, the Georgia Strait Big Band has been under the expert leadership of Gregory Bush, Professor of Jazz at Vancouver Island University. Greg has demonstrated an incredible
commitment by driving every Monday night from his home in Nanaimo, to instruct the Band. Originally from Montreal, Greg earned his bachelors of Fine Arts degree from Concordia University and a Masters of Music in Jazz Performance from McGill University. He has served on the music faculties of McMaster University and Mohawk College in
Hamilton, Ontario; and Red Deer College in Red Deer, Alberta. His first CD, Cause and Effect, with The Greg Bush Quintet, featured original compositions and garnered international acclaim. Greg’s passion and love for Jazz is shared by all the members of the Band. If you love swing music and big band jazz, and appreciate great
love songs, plan on joining the friendly crowd that gathers at the Avalanche Bar on Thursday night. Good music, good company in a jazz club atmosphere, and good food available if that’s your choice. It takes a huge commitment of time, energy, as well as money, to put a big band on the stage. To honour the commitment made by the band members, the Jazz Society will be charging a $10.00 cover for this event. Tickets are currently on sale at the club, or Bop City and Red Carpet for the next Sunday concert on March 2nd, when Vancouver based NightCrawlers will be performing. With a mix of jazz, soul and rock and roll, this band appeals to a wide audience, so get your tickets early. Tickets are $18 for members and $22 for non-members. Your “home-grown” Georgia Strait Big Band will be ready to roll out the Big Band sounds to provide you with another great evening of Jazz. See you at The Avalanche, this Thursday at 7:30. For information about the Jazz Society follow us at www.georgiastraightjazz.com or on Facebook.
Rave reviews for the NightCrawlers, performing Sunday in Courtenay
NEW JAZZ WITH THE NIGHTCRAWLERS Jazz with attitude! That’s what Vancouver based band the NightCrawlers delivers. This group will appeal to jazz fans, fans of soul and fans of rock and roll. They’re fun, they’re creative and they will be live at the Avalanche on Sunday, March 2nd, .presented by the Georgia Straight Jazz Society. Inspired by the music of Brother Jack McDuff, “The Mighty Burner” Charles Earland, Big John Patton, and Booker T and the MG’s, the Night Crawlers play gritty, soulful music that’s all about having a good time. This Vancouver Quintet is led by critically acclaimed drummer Jesse Cahill and features the who’s who of the Vancouver Jazz scene with Cory Weeds on alto sax, Steve Kaldestad on tenor sax, Dave Sikula on guitar and Chris Gestrin behind Keys and the Hammond organ.
The band has been having great success with their recording projects in the last few years garnering an Album of the Year Award at the 2009 National Jazz Awards, and a Western Canada Music Award for Best Jazz Recording of the Year in 2011. The album ‘Down at the Bottom’ reached Number 11 of the US JazzWeek charts. Downbeat Magazine’s Ken Micallef wrote glowingly about ‘Presenting’, the band’s live album, “the operative word on Presenting is authenticity, from mixing the recorded digital files on 2-inch tape to sweltering performances of material by Big John Patton, Jack McDuff and Horace Silver. The NightCrawlers play like a decadesold organization, possessing the swagger, muscle and greasy swing feel of yesteryear’s greats.” With a combination of grit and soul, plus successful collabora-
tions with music legends such as Red Holloway, David “Fathead” Newman and Jim Byrnes, the NightCrawlers have been making fans all across the country. Don’t miss this presentation of the Georgia Straight Jazz Society, on Sunday March 2nd. Showtime is 7:30 at the Avalanche Bar and Grill 275 - 8th Street in Downtown Courtenay, for a night of jazz that will keep your toes tapping long afterwards. Tickets are $18 for society members and $22 for non-members, and are available on Thursday Night Jazz at the Avalanche and at Bop City in Courtenay and Red Carpet in Comox. It’s a good idea to get your tickets early as this group appeals to a wide audience. Showtime is 7:30 For more information check out www.georgiastraightjazz.com or find us on Facebook.
KUTAPIRA BRING MARIMBAS TO THE WAVERLEY Kutapira are percussion pounding marimba machines! They perform Friday, February 28, at The Waverley Hotel Tickets $10 advance available at Bop City, The Waverley Hotel, by phone (250) 3368322 or online at cumberlandvillageworks.com. Doors at 9:30 pm That buzzing in your ears? It’s the future of world music. It’s the edge that kept the ancients on their feet dancing. It’s the distortion that keeps music young and vibrant. It’s the key to the phenomenal success of Kutapira, Vancouver’s unique, five piece marimba and percussion ensemble. Born out of a forward-thinking educational initiative introducing youth to global rhythms, formed in 2005 through a Canada Council program matching professional artists and students, Kutapira have hardly had a chance to reflect on their achievements. Through the motivation and mentoring of Artistic Director, Jack Duncan and percussion maestro,
Myles Bigelow, the group is forging new links between the traditions of Zimbabwe’s marimba music and the rhythmic soul of Afro Cuban drumming. Kai Buchan, Jeremy Bryant, Sangito Bigelow, Chris Couto and Theo Vincent are all fluent in both disciplines; rotating through their battery of soprano, tenor and baritone marimbas and trading licks on the drum kit, timbales and hand drums. The marimbas’ funky, wooden resonance isn’t the only buzz Kutapira is generating. The accolades from all corners have been swift in coming and the praise has been fanatical In the sometimes serious and stodgy world of world music, the quintet has been bringing a welcome injection of exuberance and velocity to festival stages, community events and concert halls in Canada and abroad, lifting people to their feet and rattling the cages of the uninitiated. https://www.facebook.com/kutapira