Volume 23 Issue 3 - November 2017

Beat by Beat | Jazz Notes
Leaps of Faith:
Teaching an Old
Dog New Tricks
STEVE WALLACE
Clubs have traditionally been the lifeblood of a city’s jazz scene.
It was certainly that way for this “old dog” in the early part of
my career, during the heyday when Toronto boasted numerous
longstanding clubs such as George’s Spaghetti House, Bourbon Street
and Basin Street, the Montreal Bistro and Top O’ the Senator, which
presented both international and local jazz six nights a week.
If measured by this yardstick alone the health of jazz in Toronto
now, with just three major clubs presenting the music on a multinight-per-week
basis – The Rex, Jazz Bistro, and the Home Smith
Bar – can be called into question. However, it’s not as bad as all that,
because in recent years new ways of hearing live jazz have arrived,
thanks to the persistence and ingenuity of the jazz community at large
– those who play the music, those who are trying to learn to play it,
those who enjoy listening to it, and those who present it. These new
models include:
Student Jazz Concerts at The Rex
For the past several years, Monday nights at The Rex have been
given over to sets by student ensembles from the jazz programs at U
of T and Humber College. These generally begin with three different
U of T ensembles starting at 6:30pm and playing for 40 minutes each,
followed by the Humber groups at about 9:30pm. I began teaching
(and, unusually, also playing in) a jazz ensemble at U of T last year,
which brought me into direct contact with this scene, and I liked what
I saw and heard right away. Playing in a real club setting, one where
their teachers often perform, brings out the best in the students,
and I wish this opportunity had been on offer when I was a jazz
student. Mondays are not a prime night out but I urge local jazz fans
to attend, not just to support the students – which is worthy in itself
– but because you will hear some interesting and sincere music. Both
schools are brimming with young talent; in essence you will hear
the future of the music in Toronto, a future I feel confident is in good
hands after hearing some of these young people play.
Big Bands Are Back
Well, sort of. Phil Nimmons retired his big band years ago and
following the deaths of Rob McConnell and Dave McMurdo, it seemed
the future of big-band jazz in Toronto was in peril. Starting and
running a big band in these times is perhaps the ultimate jazz labour
of love, but John MacLeod has persisted in doing so with his Rex
Hotel Orchestra, which has performed at its namesake club on the last
Monday of every month for years now. The lion’s share of the arrangements
are written by MacLeod in an eclectic style reflecting both
modern and traditional elements, featuring stellar ensemble work
and plenty of solo room for some of Toronto’s best players carrying on
in the tradition established by those mentioned above. The band has
produced several recordings and its latest, The Toronto Sound, will be
released at a gala concert at the Old Mill on November 6, which I will
be attending. Kudos to John MacLeod for his perseverance and talent
in guaranteeing that high-quality big-band jazz can still be heard
around these parts.
But there’s more. Three days after the Old Mill event, November 9,
the Wee Big Band will be heard in concert in the Garage at the Centre
for Social Innovation, 720 Bathurst Street, starting at 7:30pm. The
John MacLeod
band has been a Toronto fixture for
years and has survived the death of
its founder-leader Jim Galloway and
several of its key players, such as
lead-alto stalwart Gordie Evans. But
it continues in the capable hands of
Martin Loomer, its longtime rhythm
guitarist and principle arranger, or
perhaps I should say transcriptionist.
The band’s repertoire consists mostly
of early big-band classics from masters
like Fletcher Henderson, Don Redman,
McKinney’s Cotton Pickers, Duke
Ellington, Benny Moten, Count Basie,
Jimmie Lunceford and many others, all
lovingly transcribed by Loomer and
played with authenticity and spirit by
the musicians. It’s not possible to hear
this kind of music performed live very
often anymore and I for one look
forward to the November 9 concert.
PJ Perry
The House Concert
The old model of the salon concert has been revived in recent
years, as an alternative to bigger clubs which can be crowded, noisy
and expensive. Increasingly, dedicated fans are staging intimate
concerts in their own homes, offering a unique up-close jazz experience.
By necessity the audience size is small and the concerts are
sporadic, which only makes them more special. Perhaps the greatest
success story of these is the Jazz in the Kitchen series presented
by John and Patti Loach in their spacious Beaches home, which is
uniquely equipped for musical presentation. Opposite their large
open kitchen is a music room sporting a wonderful Steinway grand
and perfect natural sound that encourages the non-amplified jazz on
offer. The audience is generally limited to 35 or 40 paying guests who
sit very close to the band – Mark Eisenman’s trio plus shifting guests
including John Loach on trumpet – and simply listen, enjoying both a
real jazz experience and the verbal byplay between the musicians. The
series started about four years ago and is always sold out. October 22
will be the 40th concert in what looked at first to be a risky proposition.
I’m sure there are others run along the same lines, such as
JazzNHouse in the Ottawa area, which I’ll experience for the first time
when Mike Murley’s trio plays there on October 28 (also sold out).
A New Jazz Festival
The Kensington Market Jazz Festival made its debut in September
of 2016, the brainchild of star singer Molly Johnson – long a neighbourhood
resident – ably abetted by her organizational partners in
crime, performers Ori Dagan and Genevieve (Gigi) Marenette, plus
an army of volunteers. This year’s festival, a weekend affair held
September 15 to 17, significantly built on the promise and success
of the first one. Well over 300 local musicians performed in various
small venues in the tight streets of Kensington in a dizzying array of
one-hour concerts running from solo piano and guitar to trios and
larger groups in various styles, all well- and enthusiastically attended.
The recipe is simple, inclusive and refreshingly non-corporate – keep
it small, because small is good, present “all jazz as we know it” played
by local musicians of many generations, and use the vibe of the ’hood,
its unique food, local businesses and “streetness” as a feel-good backdrop.
As to the finances, I have no idea how they make it work, but
there are ticketed events and free events; it’s cash only and all of it
goes to the musicians save for a small percentage to cover costs. I
played one concert in the first festival and two this year, enjoying
each immensely while being paid very fairly. It was a pleasure to walk
the streets and see so many musical friends all packed together so
happily; this is an event which puts “festive” back into the jazz festival.
Congratulations to Molly and company for their leap-of-faith vision
in bringing this unique festival to Toronto at a time when the city
desperately needed it.
24 | November 2017 thewholenote.com