2008 Calgary Jazz Festival :: Calgaryjazz.com

Access to 40+ shows and 20+ venues with a JAZZ PASS at this year’s Calgary Jazz Festival, June 24 to 29, 2008.

The Dave Brubeck Quartet headlines a stellar line-up for the 29th Annual Calgary Jazz Festival. For more than fifty years, Brubeck has been thrilling millions with his numerous jazz classics, including In Your Own Sweet Way, Take Five and The Duke, showcasing his eclectic style that ranges from refined to improvised and bombastic. Your opportunity to see and hear a true jazz icon, credited with revolutionizing the jazz world by opening up an entirely new audience to the music.

The Dave Brubeck Quartet with Bobby Militello on sax and flute, Michael Moore on bass and Randy Jones on drums. And special guests.

OPENING NIGHT, Tuesday, June 24, 2008

The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra

with Wynton Marsalis

Jack Singer Concert Hall

Wynton Marsalis has been described as the most outstanding jazz musician and trumpeter of his generation. He is one of the world's top classical trumpeters, a big band leader in the tradition of Duke Ellington, a brilliant composer, a devoted advocate for the arts, and a tireless and inspiring educator.

Marsalis is the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City, performing world-wide and making directing jazz to be what it is today. He has won countless awards, including nine Grammys, and has been appointed a United Nations Messenger of Peace. From his skilled and adventurous composition to his swinging virtuosity, music will forever be changed, and our cultural landscape fundamentally enriched. www.wyntonmarsalis.org

She has gained an enviable reputation as one of the hottest singers in the UK right now. Her tracks with the Quantic and Quantic Soul Orchestra projects have further elevated her profile. Alice’s lavishly soulful voice is both timeless and up to the minute modern. Live or on record, she always performs with her trademark self assurance and sass. She often sings with a bluesy, soulful lament but encompasses everything from funk to gospel to jazz and beyond. Her performances captivate the audience and command its attention. www.alicerussell.com

Gateway @ SAIT - Doors Open @ 7 - $28 Advance/$35 Door

They give new meaning to the term a capella. With only their voices, this stunning septet takes you straight into a musical voyage in which you will be stunned to realize involves NO instruments. These New York men have been said to be worth crossing continents for. These handsome and talented men command attention with their voices and revolutionary style of music that needs to be experienced live to be truly understood. www.n7house.de

Duane Andrews w/ Boyle

Auburn Saloon - Doors Open at 8PM - $12 Advance/$15 Door

Heavily influenced by the brilliance of early twentieth century French Gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt, Duane Andrews’ unique blend of jazz and folk music is consistently recognized by both industry and fans with awards and accolades. A virtuosio guitarist, Duane melds traditional Newfoundland music with its mix of French, Irish, Portuguese and English influences with Manouche (Gypsy jazz) in the same way that Django Reinhardt infused jazz with Gypsy melody. Backed by Patrick Boyle on the trumpet, this enigmatic duo hits Jazz Fest with something totally fresh and exciting. www.duaneandrews.ca

Beat Niq - 8:30PM Show - $12 Advance/$15 Door

With twelve solid years of performance experience and a debut recording “The Way You See It,” he emerges as a versatile man with a sax. His sound is distinct and soulful. This Edmonton native graduated from Rutgers University in New Jersey and focuses now on performance, teaching, and recording. www.jerrolddubyk.com

Ironwood Stage - Doors Open at 7PM - $15 Advance/$20 Door

Kellylee strikes again after breathing life into last year’s festival with vocals that give butter a run for the word “smooth.” Based in Ottawa, 2007 saw this enriching voice in urban-jazz recognized with both Juno and Gemini nominations. Kellylee has evolved her career from a whirlwind two-day recording session to numerous festival and musical collaborations to a budding solo career. www.kellyleeevans.com

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

The Portland, Oregon-based “little orchestra,” was founded in 1994 by Thomas Lauderdale, a Harvard graduate and classically trained pianist, to play political fundraisers for progressive causes such as civil rights, the environment, affordable housing and public broadcasting. In the years following, Pink Martini grew from four musicians to its current twelve, and has gone on to perform its multilingual repertoire on concert stages and with symphony orchestras throughout Europe, Asia, Greece, Turkey, Lebanon, Canada and the United States. In one moment, you feel like you’re in the middle of a samba parade in Rio de Janeiro, and in the next moment, you’re in a French music hall of the 1930s or in a palazzo in Napoli. It’s like an urban musical travelogue. www.pinkmartini.com

The music is a melting pot created out of a unique fusion of traditional Nigerian Yoruba music including Highlife, Afrobeat, and folklore with jazz, rock, pop, and latin music. This music is an expression of African culture. Toby has taken this message to people worldwide and now resides in the US. www.fastlaneintl.com/foyeh.htm

One of the great unsung heroes of jazz singing, he is a commanding interpreter of lyrics who has a wide vocal range and a big, rich, full voice. Bey enjoys a following that swears by him, nonetheless, he isn't nearly as well known as he should be. Born in 1939 and a child prodigy, Bey garnered appearances at the Apollo Theatre and in television. He has shared the stage with such greats as Sarah Vaughn, Louis Jordan, and Dinah Washington. MySpace: Andy Bey

Beat Niq - 8:30 Show - $12 Advance/$15 Door

Since moving to Montreal in 1984, pianist and composer, he has been increasingly called upon to perform his music at the national and international level. In the ‘90s, he decided to put together his own jazz ensemble dedicated to interpreting his compositions. He has three recordings to his merit and is one of Canada’s finest jazz pianists, performing all over the world. www.yvesleveille.ca

Advance Tickets Here

Charlie HADEN Quartet West w/Jean Vanasse & Miroslav Vitous Double Bill, Double Bass Feature

Thursday, June 26, 2008

The Dave Brubeck Quartet

Jack Singer Concert Hall

Brubeck is a living legend and jazz icon. He has been playing piano longer than most jazz musicians have been alive. And Brubeck still possesses one of the most distinctive piano styles in jazz, combining an acute and delicate lyrical sense with the power of block chords and a dramatic musical force that comes from years of playing in any number of time signatures. Add to this his clear connection to the history of jazz piano, including stride and honky tonk, and you find an iconoclast, both popular and controversial. www.dave-brubeck.com

Tickets Available @ TicketMaster

Beate S. Lech and Marius Reksjø collaborated during school at the University Of Oslo to create the groovy, danceable, duo known as Beady Belle. In 2001, the pair had their first internationally recognized album, “Home.” Acclaim by contemporary phenom India Arie for their “beautiful sonic landscapes” and continued touring around the world got the attention of North American fans. Beady Belle’s fourth album “Belvedere” was just released in February 2008. www.beadybelle.com

Cuban born David Virelles was christened “the marvel” for his outstanding piano technique. In a nation of musicians, it is no small feat to be considered destined for greatness. Virelles blends elements of his Cuban heritage with contemporary American jazz, creating his own distinctive sound. David has won several awards including the prestigious Grand Prix de Jazz General Motors, the highest distinction given out at the Montréal Jazz Festival. MySpace Page

She introduces warm, deep grooves and a fresh new sound to the standard jazz trio. Her functional bit of fusion blending jazz-funk, soul, blues and samba will make you sit up and listen. She strives to push the boundaries of what is considered conventional jazz to create a sound all her own. There is a romance and playfulness to her music that ties in with her piano as well as her voice. www.dorightmusic.com/elizabeth.htm

The Davidson/Murley/Braid Quintet will liven up our festival with their brand new CD release “DMBQ Live.” Recorded in Toronto to kick off the new year, the album will steam this melting pot of musicians including Juno laden Mike Murley (saxophones) and David Braid (piano), the fresh saxophone of Tara Davidson, bass dynamo Jim Vivian, and Ian Froman (drums). The recording is an example of contemporary mainstream jazz at its finest, and illustrates a rhythmic and harmonic cohesion only possible through an ensemble that shares a wealth of playing experience together. www.davidbraid.com

Friday, June 27, 2008

Maceo Parker & Divine Brown DOUBLE BILL!!!

Jack Singer Concert Hall

Maceo Parker’s name is synonymous with good time, funky music. His pedigree is impeccable; his band, the tightest little funk orchestra on earth. He has played with each and every leader of funk, starting with James Brown, which Maceo describes as “like being at University”; jumping aboard the Mothership with George Clinton; stretching out with Bootsy's Rubber Band. And helping Prince (and the artist formerly know as Prince) get his groove on tour around the world.

Maceo is the living, breathing pulse which connects the history of funk in one golden thread. And he pulls it all together for Calgary on Friday, June 28^th. Just see if you can stay seated through this show. www.maceoparker.com

Oh that voice. All five octaves of it. Divine Brown has no choice but to take it across musical genres. She has performed alongside music legends The Temptations, George Benson, Taylor Dayne, and KRS One and opened up for Nikka Costa, Jill Scott, and Erykah Badu. At this year’s Calgary Jazz Festival, she shares the stage with the living legacy of Maceo Parker in what could be the best funky R&B double bill you’ll ever see. www.divinebrown.ca

Corkestra's sound is vintage Cor Fuhler: tuneful, lively, colorful, humorous and a little bit off-centre. That's not to deny the contributions of the varied players involved: two outstanding drummers (Michael Vatcher, Tony Buck), versatile Nora Mulder on cymbalom, classical flute and piccolo virtuoso Anne La Berge, two brilliant tenor saxophonists/clarinetists in Ab Baars and Tobias Delius, the limber and forceful bassist Wilbert de Joode, and The Ex's gloriously noisy guitarist Andy Moor.Their sound is distinctive as a fingerprint, what with that percussion section, three plucked and hammered string instruments, three winds but no brass, and the leader's own puckish work on organ and clavinet spearheading the rhythm trio. www.euronet.nl/users/fuhler

Composer Carlos Bica is one of the most prolific and innovative sound artists of Portugal. Known for his lyrical tone on the double bass, Bica has the rare ability to write melodies that essentially are songs without words, haunting and unforgettable. Among the several musical projects he leads along with various theatre, film and dance projects, his trio AZUL with guitar player Frank Möbus and drummer Jim Black has become his showcase as a bass player and composer. www.carlosbica.com

Lee Konitz has been playing improvised music across six decades, with more than 50 albums to his credit. He's a main figure in jazz, known for the distinct sound he gets from his alto sax and his penchant for exploring. He is well known for his cool jazz sax stylings and his work on the revolutionary Birth of Cool by Miles Davis. NYC based Chris Tarry hails from Canada and is one of that country’s most successful and celebrated electric bass exports. With two Juno Awards for best jazz album, eight Juno Award nominations, and other high profile accolades, he has established himself as one of North America's top musicians. www.christarry.com

Multi talented instrumentalists, with a little craziness and joie de vive, presents an eclectic, hybrid, high energy contemporary show. This group of nine entertaining artists includes some of the best musicians from Montreal: Jean-Denis Levasseur, Marc Villard, Pierre Labbe, Roberto Murray, Claude St-Jean, Maxime St Pierre, Bruno Blouin-Robert, Jean Sabourin, and Remi Leclerc. www.oppmusik.com

Robert Cray has talent to burn. His sound is cool, danceable, unmistakeable. The Robert Cray Band has been heightening their sound and profile since 1974. For thirty plus years Robert Cray has laid down track after track of good-time, uptown, low-down blues. He's won five Grammys and been nominated for 11 more, inspired critics to praise his soulful vocal and instrumental artistry, earned respect from his peers, and sent young guitarists running back to the woodshed. www.robertcray.com

A great Canadian voice, Molly Johnson has helped propel pop, jazz, and blues forward in our country. She has a deeply moving, melodic sound and made history at the Toronto Downtown Jazz Festival by being the only woman to sell out the mainstage. An artist and social activist, Johnson organized the Kumbaya Foundation and festival to benefit AIDS awareness. www.mollyjohnson.com

A jazz trio, which sees itself as a popband that plays jazz, Esbjorn Svensson Trio (EST) broke with the tradition of leader and sidemen in favour of equality within its members. Across Europe, they not only play jazz venues but also concert halls and stadiums usually reserved for rockbands. Magnus Ostrum, Svensson’s childhood friend commands the drums while Dan Berglund rounds out the trio. www.est-music.com

Guitarist, composer and arranger Maciek Grzywacz is well known and respected across Europe. With accompaniment from Canadian Tyler Hornby, Maciek will thrill audiences with his new work, an interplay of melodic composition and modern sounds. www.maciekgrzywacz.art.pl www.tylerhornby.com

By grafting the traditions of American jazz to his authentic Jamaican roots, pianist Monty Alexander has spent a lifetime exploring the rich depths of musical and cultural diversity. In a career that spans more than four decades, he has performed and/or recorded with artists from every corner of the musical universe: Frank Sinatra, Ray Brown, Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins, Quincy Jones, Ernest Ranglin, Sly Dunbar, Robbie Shakespeare and many more. www.montyalexander.com

The Paris virtuoso strokes and cajoles the double bass with a raw, euphoric musicianship. Adding a fifth string allowed him to explore improvisation and crossover into musical worlds spanning jazz, traditional and con temporary music, and create sounds and moods like no other. He won acclaim as a master of his instrument from the French Cultural Minister at the early age of 21. Now 46, Renaud has recorded eight discs that have changed the way Europe hears the double bass. www.renaudgarciafons.com

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