May 2009 Newsletter

Special-guest saxophonists are the theme of 2009, thus far. First, it was Evan Parker’s February Interface Series; check out Alan Stanbridge’s thorough review in the latest Signal to Noise. The next Interface is with an only slightly less renowned European improviser from Switzerland, Urs Leimgruber (pictured), 5-7 June (programming details to be announced). In the interim, Somewhere There has hosted excellent saxophonists and good friends from three other Canadian creative music scenes: Paul Cram from Halifax, Jean Derome from Montréal, and Coat Cooke from Vancouver. The night with Jean Derome, 25 April, was particularly fun, with a garrulous mid-sized throw-together band including Justin Haynes, Allison Cameron, Jean Martin, and Christine Duncan.

May marks the second month of trumpeter Nicole Rampersaud’s residency, featuring a set of solo trumpet followed by a set with (usually) a single guest (Evan Shaw, Germaine Liu, Kyle Brenders, Parmela Attariwala, and Matt Miller, for example). Nicole’s playing continues to mature at an incredible rate, and her solos demonstrate not only a keen moment-to-moment imagination and (of course) remarkable instrumental facility, but also a sense of formal development that is rare among solo improvisers. As austere as a set of solo trumpet may sound, it would be a shame to miss this string of shows that constitute a laboratory for someone who is quickly becoming one of Toronto’s leading musical voices.

New this month is bassist Aaron Lumley’s residency, also with a program of solo improvisation and small-group playing that will no doubt feature Aaron’s characteristically physical, gut-stringy style. Aaron has been playing a ton lately, in countless contexts – I just heard him play beautifully with David Prentice at Ron Gaskin’s VTO Festival at the Tranzac – and, like Nicole, he is honing his massive vocabulary of technical extensions toward becoming one of the more distinctive improvisers in the city. Finally, speaking of Ron Gaskin, Somewhere There once again wishes him a happy sixtieth birthday, and thanks Tim Posgate for organizing a small but festive party for Ron in conjunction with a Cluttertones date as part of Rob Clutton’s residency.

Somewhere There March 2009 Newsletter

February was simply the busiest and best month Somewhere There has seen. Odradek completed their two-month residency with tremendously creative programming that culminated with their live soundtrack to the extraordinary 1920s animated classic, The Adventures of Prince Achmed. The Element Choir also completed its residency with massive turnouts and tremendous collective music-making, with momentum and spirit generated through their Barnyard Records recording project, mid-month – we look forward to the record (and to the record release party!) A related project heard a vocal ensemble comprised primarily of choir members working with visiting composer and conductor, Sarah Weaver. And, last but not least, the Evan Parker Interface Series, February 13-15, was a wonderful musical and social exchange, by all accounts. Rumour has it that an extensive review is in the works for Signal to Noise, so keep eyes open for that. Thanks to the AIMToronto Board of Directors for running to joint so smoothly during the Interface weekend.

This month’s residencies have more to do with jazz music in general than they have pretty much at any point in Somewhere There’s history. Thursdays in March will continue to feature Drumheller drawing on the wonderful material from their expansive book of tunes by all five members. Wednesdays host a new residency by Drumhellerite, Rob Clutton, primarily with his newish band, The Cluttertones (with Lina Allemano, Tim Posgate, Anthony Michelli, Brodie West, and Ryan Driver), though other weeks will feature guests like Marilyn Lerner and Paul Cram in small groups featuring Rob. The Sunday 6pm slot has been taken on by Jeremy Strachan, and features similarly newish bands, Canaille (with Mike Smith, Nick Buligan, and Colin Fisher, and Dan Gaucher) and a duet with Mike Smith on guitars and banjos. With a record twenty-nine shows booked in March, there’s still certainly no shortage of live music at Somewhere There. We hope to see you around!

February 2009 Newsletter

January was unquestionably the busiest month that Somewhere There has seen. This fact is attributable not only to the increase to six active nights each week, but also to the surprisingly large crowds we’ve had this past month (in relative terms, of course). CoexisDance, which has been presented at Somewhere There bi-monthly for about a year, drew a record audience, for instance, and Christine Duncan’s Element Choir drew record numbers of performers during the choir’s Sunday residency with choir size at close to forty nearly every week.

February will be busy as well, with the key event being AIMToronto’s Interface Series with British saxophonist, Evan Parker, on 13, 14, and 15 February (bring your Valentine!) Nilan Perera has done curator work on this one, and has placed Parker in six thematically related groups of Toronto players that will challenge and provoke him. Simply put, it’s a great honour to have Evan at Somewhere There.

The Wednesday-night residency by Odradek continues until the end of February, and has already featured two CD release concerts. Andy Yue, Jim Bailey, and Michelangelo Iaffaldano have put together some fine programs that go from strength to strength (and, sometimes, from strange to strange), a trend that will no doubt continue this month. The Element Choir also continues their Sunday-evening romps, and I have to say that it would be a real shame if listeners miss the astonishing sound of forty voices in Somewhere There’s intimate confines!

Thursday nights in February and March feature the wonderful drummer and all-around charmer, Nick Fraser. Originally, Nick had hoped that Drumheller, the wonderful jazz quintet that he convenes, would be on hand every week but he has since intimated that schedules are making that plan next to impossible to execute. As I’m writing, I don’t know exactly what’s on tap, but hope that at least some of Nick’s Thursdays will feature the full band (with Eric Chenaux, Rob Clutton, Doug Tielli, and Brodie West).

Click here to see the entire month's programming.