Halifax Jazz Fest – Day 8 – Andru Branch & Halfway Tree / The BiCoastal Collective / Curse in the Woods
Just some of the Halifax Jazz Fest
talent in store for tonight include Halifax-based Andru Branch & Haflway
Tree, The Nova Scotia-California bred BiCoastal Collective and the Montreal
medley Curse in the Woods. You can also catch free shows earlier in the day at
the festival tent; and for a more intimate atmosphere, check out Jazz Around
Town venues, Jamieson’s, The Press Gang and Rockbottom Brewery.
http://halifaxjazzfestival.ca
The BiCoastal Collective
In 2007, Nova Scotia-based trumpeter, Paul Tynan, and California-based sax player, Aaron Lington, formed The BiCoastal Collective, which will be performing tonight (The Schooner Showroom at 8pm). Arts East caught up with the pair, via e-mail, last week to find out about how two jazz musicians from either side of the continent connected, about the collective’s successful run of recordings and performances, and even how Lington managed to complete an album while going back and forth from the studio to the hospital when his baby girl was born!
How did you two start collaborating?
PT: Aaron and I have been friends for many years;
the BiCoastal project was an outgrowth of Aaron's CD Cape Breton. (I had
Aaron up as an Artist in Residence at St. FX and he was taken by the beauty and
culture of Cape Breton hence the title.) We had/have such fantastic musical
chemistry; we really enjoy playing each other’s music. Cape Breton is a prequel
to The BiCoastal Projects in many ways.
How would you describe The Bicoastal Collective's musical style/genre?
PT: In a word, flexible. We have used
different sized ensembles for each project. Our first album, BC1, featured a
tentet; BC2 a quintet; BC 3 a sextet; BC4, which we are recording in September,
will be an organ quartet; and BC5 will be a full big band recording…more
details TBA. The Style is how Aaron and I write. Aaron brings a very creative
approach to the jazz tradition, while I bring, at times, a bit of the
avant-garde mixed with modern approaches. It melds very well, I think.
Your “BiCoastal Family” includes a range of musicians (trumpet, guitar, keyboard, bass, saxophone, percussion…). How do you decide on instrumentals for each recording/collaboration?
PT: We do not try and limit the collective. Rather, we approach each Chapter as a continuation of the story and pick the ensemble and texture/colours needed from/for that.
What has been one of the highlights since you began BiCoastal in 2007?
PT: Witnessing a display of Aaron’s heroic stamina during
the recording of BC1. We recorded BC1 over two days in San Jose, CA in May
2007. The morning of the second day, I received a call from Aaron. "Hey
Man, what are you doing?" I said I was about to head down to the studio. Aaron
then informs me that his wife gave birth to his daughter early that morning
(she was a few weeks early) and asked if I could drop my wife off at the
hospital to be with his wife until her folks get into town. We delayed the
start time of the recording session by one hour, and Aaron came in and
performed beautifully, went and picked up is in-laws from the airport after the
8 hour recording session, and then performed a three-hour gig with the BC1
band. All while wearing the hospital bracelet parents get and having one hour’s
sleep on the hospital floor. Amazing!
AL:
I can add a bit, although the story Paul relates about my wife going into labor
in the MIDDLE of the recording session is absolutely true and makes for a GREAT
story! I would say that for me, the main highlight has been to see the continued
success of this group; to see its longevity and its diversity as each album has
progressed.
What will audience members
experience at your show tonight?
PT: We'll be playing music that spans chapters 1-3:
Swinging, creative, at times aggressive and other times esoteric, and always
sensitive. The instrumentation will be like the BC3 Band.
Who are some of your musical heroes/influences?
PT: Jazz-wise: Personally I love the trumpet
playing of Tom Harrell, Kenny Wheeler, and Tim Hagans. Compositionally I like
the music of Django Bates, Carla Bley, and Dave Douglas, among others.
AL: My musical influences: Stan Getz, Pepper Adams, Bob Berg to name a few.
Compositionally: Walt Weiskopf, Maria Schneider, Bill Holman, and many others.
Which acts do you want to catch at
this year's Halifax Jazz Fest?
PT: Dave Douglas!! I hope to hear John Scofield and Lee
Kontiz too. There are some really great local musicians playing too that I'd
like to hear.
Curse in the Woods
Curse in the Woods is a multi-disciplinary,
dark cabaret collective from Montreal who will be playing the late night jazz
set tonight at The Company House (11pm). Arts East music reporter Ekaterina Sushko saw these Galaxie Rising Star Contestants perform Wednesday
afternoon and shares her impressions.
It was a short daily concert on
quite a cloudy day. Despite that, many people forgot about the clouds in the
sky and everything else when Curse in the Woods got up on stage.
With her charming smile, Jeannie
Taylor shared some of her latest inspirations with the audience making them feel
genuinely connected. Then the song started, bringing a theatrical cabaret
atmosphere with its melody. At the same time there was definitely something gothic
(or mysterious) about the ambience, which was enforced by small accessories,
such as a black fan or a black-and-white photo.
During that short concert, the audience
had a chance to experience a contagious energy and a powerful presence that Curse
in the Woods have on stage. Listening to both their cheerful and mystic songs,
especially live, is definitely an unforgettable experience!
~ Ekaterina Sushko
Andru Branch & Halfway Tree
A roots and reggae revelry of epic
proportions will resound across the Halifax waterfront tonight, starting at 8pm,
as Andru Branch and his band Halfway Tree, along with Halifax’s Verbal Warnin’
and the world-renowned Wailers (formed by some of the original members of Bob
Marley’s band), hit the Halifax Jazz Festival Tent.
Branch is an internationally recognized
reggae artist with deep connections to the Jamaican music scene, including
recording his first album (which was JUNO-nominated) with some of The Wailers;
his second with Ziggy Marley’s rhythm section; and his latest, the
award-winning Step Into The Light, with Bob Marley’s Studio One bass player, Brian “Bassie” Atkinson. A few
days ago, Arts East caught up with Branch to find out about his compelling
career and what’s in store for tonight’s show!
How did you
first get into reggae and when did you start playing music?
AB: I began playing the recorder in grade
four and then went on to study the saxophone in grade five for 13 years. My Mother bought a piano about the same time
that I discovered Bob Marley’s music, and was profoundly inspired by the
uplifting nature of reggae music. I
formed my first group in the mid-80s called Oddio, fumbling over a mix of
Police and Marley covers, which led to my first reggae group called
Souljah.
When did you
form Halfway Tree and what have been some of your career’s highlights?
AB: After a long and successful run with a
group called Rockstone, I decided to form a full roots reggae band in around
1994 and was inspired to call it Halfway Tree, named after the bustling music district
in Kingston, Jamaica. I didn’t know then that I would go on to become
intimately familiar, recording and jamming in that part of town. Highlights
have included a featured spot at world famous Reggae Sunsplash in 1998, backing
some of the top reggae singers and DJs at Sting, 2001, and playing percussion
behind the likes of Tony Rebel and Queen Ifrica at Rebel Salute, 2012.
Where are you
from and where are some cool places that you've traveled?
AB: I was born in Sackville, New Brunswick,
and raised in the multicultural metropolis of Toronto. My music has carried me to Jamaica a dozen
times, and I have enjoyed travelling throughout the Caribbean and West Africa.
What will
audience members experience at tonight’s show?
AB: The wonderful Halfway Tree band has been
rehearsing a fun-filled set of original music, infused with a musical salute to
Bob Marley and the Wailers.
Who are some
of your musical heroes/influences?
AB: The great reggae pioneers have shaped
my life and my music over many years, including Brian “Bassie” Atkinson and
Jackie Mittoo from Studio One; Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer aka The
Wailing Wailers, as well as Burning Spear, and many more.
Which acts do
you want to catch at this year's Halifax Jazz Fest?
AB: I am looking forward to seeing John
Scofield and The Wailers, and I very much enjoyed seeing Harvey Miller and
Roberto Lopez’s Afro Columbian Jazz Orchestra.
