070509 Brian Blade Fellowship, Ottawa, ON
Can we just take a moment to appreciate those rare and beautiful instances where a drummer (a drummer!) has taken the reins and fronted a band of his very own…
Tag: Ottawa Jazz Festival
070217 Feist, Ottawa, ON
Feist was an energetic, thoughtful, intelligent performer who was clearly deserving of the attention she had been receiving and I was interested enough to see her again that the looming dark clouds weren’t enough to keep me away…
063015 Jamie Cullum/Jaga Jazzist, Ottawa, ON
On June 30th, 2015 I spent my evening downtown, abreast of the Rideau Canal at the Ottawa Jazz Festival. The main stage headliner was a fellow named Jamie Cullum, a very popular British jazz pianist that I had never heard of…
062805 Bela Fleck, Ottawa, ON
My phone rang on the morning of June 28th, 2005 and I discovered one of the Rogers Television directors on the other end. He asked if I would like to come out and try working the big screen for the headlining act that night? “I remember you telling me that you were a fan of Bela Fleck,” he said…
062718 Jerry Granelli, Ottawa, ON
On June 27th, 2018 I cycled downtown for another instalment of the Ottawa Jazz Festival. I only had one set on tap for the evening and I had little idea what I would be hearing. I was on my way to see Jerry Granelli, a jazz drummer I had seen a few times before. Why then would I be so in the dark as to what to expect…
062617 Maceo Parker/Robert Glasper Experiment, Ottawa, ON
On June 26th, 2017 I enjoyed another slice of one of my favourite summer treats, an evening at the Ottawa Jazz Fest…
062518 Chaka Khan, Ottawa, ON
On June 25th, 2018 Chaka Khan was the evening’s headliner at the Ottawa Jazz Fest…
062414 Bill Frisell, Ottawa, ON
June 24th, 2014 was a jazzfest evening that was astoundingly memorable for me, one that contained a somewhat crushing low, an incredible highlight, and a self-defeating decision that remains submerged in regret…
062307 Dave Brubeck, Ottawa, ON
Dave Brubeck was almost ninety years old so I wasn’t expecting much more than an appearance really, but even at that stage of the game the now-late pianist was still right on time, as it were. It was a beautiful night out and the amazing weather was perfectly augmented by the high-quality on-kilter compound jazz…
062115 Chris Botti/Timber Timbre, Ottawa, ON
A viola player dies and finds himself banished to Hell. He takes his seat in the string section of a large orchestra and starts playing along…
