Volume 28 Issue 5 | April & May 2023

IN THE CLUBS
Familiar Venues
and a Brand
New Festival
COLIN STORY
The Rex: On April 12, guitarist/
vocalist Jocelyn Gould plays The
Rex in a four-night run with her
quintet. Originally from Winnipeg,
Gould came to Toronto by way
of the University of Manitoba,
where she did her undergraduate
studies in jazz, and Michigan State
University, where she earned a
Master’s of Music. A Benedetto
endorsee, Gould plays in a traditionalist
style, with the athletic
bebop lines, octaves and bluesy
flourishes of her cited influences
(Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, Kenny Burrell, Grant Green) on
full display. An accomplished vocalist as well as guitarist, Gould has
a penchant for swinging, nuanced arrangements of both august jazz
standards and her own original compositions. Gould’s debut album,
Elegant Traveler, won the 2021 JUNO Award for Jazz Album of the
Year: Solo, and she has maintained a busy post-pandemic schedule,
with tours of the US, Canadian jazz festivals, and, most recently, a twomonth
tour of North America as one of four guitarists participating
in International Guitar Night, which features four different guitarists
in both solo and group format. Joining Gould at the Rex are vocalist
Micaela Rae, pianist Emmet Hodgins, bassist Dan Fortin, drummer
Ethan Ardelli.
At Jazz Bistro on April 28 and 29,
legendary saxophonist George
Coleman takes the stage, in concert
with New York-based saxophonist
Eric Alexander and a Torontobased
rhythm section composed
of pianist Bernie Senensky, bassist
Neil Swainson, and drummer Terry
Clarke. (Coleman and Alexander
have been touring in this format
for years; as a teenager in the
late 2000s, I remember seeing
them play in Vancouver with a
local rhythm section at the nowdefunct
Cellar Jazz club.) Coleman should be a familiar name to any
WholeNote reader, most notably because of his involvement in Miles
Davis’ quintet, with Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter and Tony Williams,
with whom Coleman recorded Seven Steps to Heaven, My Funny
Valentine, Four and Miles Davis in Europe, before leaving the group
to pursue other projects (after which the late Wayne Shorter took over
his seat). As a performer, educator, and bandleader, Coleman has had
a storied career; at the age of 88, his approach to melodic treatment
and linear invention remains as progressive and rich as ever.
College Street Jazz: New this
year, the College Street Jazz
Festival (CSJF) brings three days
of programming to six different
College Street venues from Friday,
April 21 through Sunday, April 23.
The CSJF is a Canada Councilbacked
venture from JazzInToronto,
a group that runs a website (and
connected social media accounts)
that publishes and promotes local
jazz listings, run by Lina Welch,
Ori Dagan, Mark Lemieux, and
Camille Neirynck-Guerrero. The
CSJF’s stated goal is “to produce highly engaging events which bring
musicians, venues, and audiences closer together after the challenging
times we’ve faced.” Last year, of course, was the first year since
the beginning of the pandemic in which major Canadian festivals
returned in person; though something akin to real life does indeed
seem to be reliably back, the very idea of a large-scale gathering of
patrons and musicians still seems somewhat novel. Revival Bar, The
Emmet Ray, Free Times Cafe, Bar Pompette, College St. United Church,
and bookstore-cum-club Sellers & Newel are the festival venues.
College Street Jazz Festival continues on page 52
JIMMY KATZ / JAZZ TIMES ANDREW LOUIS / TORONTOIST
12TH ANNUAL
MAY 29 - JUNE 4 2023
NATURALLY 7
COUNTERMEASURE
MEZZOTONO
CELEBRATES THE MUSICAL
ALL-VOCAL VERSIONS OF FAMOUS BROADWAY SONGS
FOR INFO AND TICKETS AND MORE, VISIT:
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32 | April & May, 2023 thewholenote.com