Volume 27 Issue 4 - February 2022

MAINLY CLUBS, MOSTLY JAZZ
Fingers crossed
Towards full capacity
COLIN STORY
Fragile Glim
’Tis the season, it would seem, for piano-and-weather-related art
works. One particular event, currently slated for February 4 ahead of
the festival’s official start, caught my eye too – a composition, Fragile
Glim, by neo-speculative artist Stanford Cheung and poet Alvin Wong.
Described as a multi-form soundscape composition, it derives its
sound materials from an upright piano that has been exposed to the
weather elements over many months, becoming a “degenerative piano
that pushes against our human-centric ideas of what is considered
beautiful.” The performance will also include free improvisation on
found objects such as stones, sand and tuning forks, field recordings,
electronics and spoken word.
QUICK PICKS
FEB 17, 8PM: New Music Concerts continues its series of
commissions for distanced ensembles in celebration of their 50th
anniversary with a performance of John Oswald’s re-Refuse.
ONLINE: www.newmusicconcerts.com
FEB 25 to 27: Continuum and Jumblies Theatre + Arts. Small
Arms Inspection Building, Mississaugua. The Grounds for
Goodness collaboration brings together Continuum’s contemporary
music practice and professional ensemble with Jumblies
interdisciplinary and community-arts practices, including many
diverse and mixed-ability community participants. Two newly
commissioned works by Robert Fleitz (NYC) and Christina Volpini
(CA) will be performed. The event is part of a Jumblies multiyear
interdisciplinary project “which presents works that artfully
explore and express why and how people sometimes behave in
good ways towards each other.” Check www.groundsforgoodness.ca
for space updates and times.
MAR 6, 7PM: INNERchamber Ensemble. Revival House,
Stratford. This concert, titled Flow, will feature two contemporary
works: String Quartet No.3 by Kevin Lau and Strum by
Jessie Montgomery. Ravel’s String Quartet in F will round out the
program. Performers: Julie Baumgartel, violin; Andrew Chung,
violin; Jody Davenport, viola; and Ben Bolt-Martin, cello. LIVE &
LIVESTREAM. www.innerchamber.ca
AND AT YOUR LEISURE: The Music Gallery has put together
a series of music documentaries to watch to get you through
February. Included will be favourites drawn from the Music
Gallery archives. Sign up to have their recommendations sent to
your inbox: Sign Up for Film Fridays
Wendalyn Bartley is a Toronto-based composer and electro-vocal
sound artist. sounddreaming@gmail.com
And so, here we are again, again.
If you’re interested in the usual subject matter of this column,
you already know that as of January 31, musical venues in
Ontario will be permitted to operate at 50 percent seated capacity
or 500 people, whichever is less, then move to 50 percent on
February 21, and full capacity March 15 – just in advance of the twoyear
anniversary of Canada’s lockdown restrictions.
It is impossible to say whether or not the province will end up
sticking to this schedule. It’s also impossible to know for sure, at this
point, how quickly individual clubs will respond to what’s allowed,
stage by stage. By the way, for most of the venues that I write about
here, “clubs” is a useful misnomer: the majority are restaurants/bars,
with diverse staffing needs that include kitchen staff, bartenders,
hosts, managers, music bookers, and more. As has been the case
throughout the pandemic, the hiring/rehiring process in this industry
is not simple, and takes time, training and money. The booking
process is also complicated: there are a number of decisions that have
to be made about artists whose shows have been postponed, artists
who are currently scheduled but who may not be ready to return to
the stage, and a number of other COVID-era scenarios.
All this being said, it is a good time to be cautiously optimistic,
to get out of the cold, and to enjoy some live music once again.
Here’s a taste.
The Tranzac
At this point in the pandemic, most everyone – ages nine to 90 –
is familiar with Zoom, and has developed some kind of relationship
with it, for better or worse. Zoom has been a popular platform for
musical artists hosting conventional virtual performances, but it has
also had real utility as a vehicle for virtual recitals. Though any kind of
performance has the potential to be a nerve-wracking experience for
those new to the practice, a Zoom performance allows one to play in
the same place where one practices, to avoid the necessity of uncomfortable,
formal footwear, and – crucially – to know that one can
simply press command-Q if things really go south.
At The Tranzac, a new weekly series has emerged: Tranzac Open
Stage Mondays on Zoom. A virtual adaptation of their traditional
Monday-night open mic, the Zoom session typically goes for about an
hour, and guests are invited to join any time after 7:45pm, with two
songs per performer being the standard. While participation is 100
percent free, performers and audience members alike are encouraged
to “support the club by buying a virtual beer,” “becoming a member
or renewing your membership online,” or by “donating to the club.”
(The Tranzac, as a member-run club, has a low-cost membership
option for those interested.) Whether you’re an experienced musician
looking to try out new material, a casual musician who wants a
new goal to work towards, or an audience member looking to check
out some fun, community-based performances, Monday night is
your night.
The Jazz Room
In Waterloo, the Jazz Room at the Huether Hotel has a wealth of
impressive shows booked for February. On February 12, vocalist Eliana
Cuevas performs with her quintet, including drummer Mark Kelso,
pianist Jeremy Ledbetter, bassist Ross MacIntyre, and percussionist
Juan-Carlos Medrano. Originally from Caracas, Venezuela, Cuevas
26 | February 2022 thewholenote.com
26 | February 2022 thewholenote.com