Canadian Tour Recap
By Michelle Grégoire
When Dig! Magazine asked me to keep a tour journal of my Canadian tour, I thought it was a really terrific idea....and then I started the tour and realized every spare moment would be spent catching flights, taking interviews, teaching clinics, attending soundchecks, checking in and out of hotels, dealing with airlines and trying to remember to eat something. Many people have been asking how this exciting cross Canada adventure went, and a good part of me struggles to remember anything but the actual performances; the other memories are vague from lack of sleep!
And how were these performances? Well, it was a true musical adventure. Imagine sitting one foot from the incredible Kirk MacDonald every night for two weeks as he explores new harmonic and melodic frontiers. My ears have broadened one hundred fold from interacting with this musical genius. Trumpeter Kevin Turcotte brought some seriously sublime and melodic playing to the group, and hearing stretch in his solos was truly amazing. I had a terrific time playing with the rhythm section featuring Jim Vivian on bass and the thunderous Ted Warren on drums. As Jim said, we certainly have developed as perhaps one the most interactive groups in Canada. Certainly the last two years and these two weeks performing together helped to solidify how we choose to respond to each other, and it's a "lovely" thing as Jim would say. It was a real treat hearing my music taken to such heights.
All music aside, they say it's a good idea to travel and tour with people who are easy to deal with, and lucky me, these guys were the most professional group of musicians I could hope to work with.....and each with a massive sense of humor! We certainly weren't short on laughs. There was no tension to speak of, just seasoned pros who could deal with all the travel and crazy schedules with patience, kindness and humor. And while the entire tour went by very smoothly, (which included a scenic helicopter ride from Victoria to Vancouver harbor) we were not immune to airline difficulties. Our flight from Halifax to Ottawa was cancelled due to bad weather, and as such, we had to cancel the last two dates on the tour. It was of course very disappointing, not so much because we missed very important concerts in Ottawa and Montréal, but because we just weren't ready to end the tour just yet. We were enjoying working together and were sounding truly amazing. We will nonetheless have a chance to perform in the area this summer.
We had many interesting stops on the tour, including a very nice response to our clinics and concerts in Calgary, Victoria and Vancouver. The concert at the famous Cellar in Vancouver was recorded by Radio-Canada to be aired eventually on Espace Musique (89.9 FM in Wpg).
Our favorite stop on the tour was without a doubt Edmonton's Yardbird Suite. This jazz club is a non-for-profit run by the Edmonton Jazz Society. They handle everything with complete professionalism, they pay well, they treat you well, and the crowds are amazing, the venue sounds amazing, you cannot help but have a truly incredible musical experience at a club like that. Check my website for terrific pictures of that memorable night. The place was packed and it was great seeing my old friend saxophonist Kent Sangster. I also met the legendary PJ Perry among other great players. Our clinic at Grant MacEwan college in Edmonton was very special, lots of attentive and enthused students, and I was touched by interesting questions by young women embarking on careers in music.
Saskatoon was also terrific for us, another jazz club run by a local jazz society, a full house and responsive crowd. Toronto was very interesting as we found ourselves surrounded by former Manitobans including former Winnipeg mayor Glenn Murray! I am developing a very nice fan base in Toronto, some returning faces and many Toronto based musicians who have become very dear friends.
Our stint in the Maritimes was also very special as we made our way to my alma-mater St.F.X.U. It was incredible to be able to look into the faces of those students and let them know what is possible for them once they come out of what I believe is still among North America's finest Jazz Studies programs. My former teachers were incredibly supportive. I performed "December 1st" at that concert which was composed in 1989 while at St.F.X.U, and my former piano teacher and composer Tony Genge said he could not believe I wrote that back then and said "we should have given you a medal for it!". Pretty nice comment. My time at X was too short, we made our way to Halifax for what would be our finest performance on the tour in my opinion. Faced with a brand new Yamaha C-7 piano, I could only expect great things. Again a full house and very appreciative crowd, a truly memorable concert.
We finished our tour (early) in the lovely city of Charlottetown where things really began to peak for the quintet. After performing "Reaching" for the enthused audience filled with many young people, I could not help but express how amazing it felt to play that tune with the band that night: like riding a horse in full gallop, or driving a NASCAR at full speed. Maybe I was just delirious from lack of sleep and nourishment but it was an amazing ride. Our tour ended at the Halifax airport, but we made the best of our time stranded at a local hotel and caught up on some sleep! All part of the ups and downs of touring, but all worthwhile of course.
I did manage to make it to an interview scheduled in Montréal on my way home for SOCAN's Parole et Musique Spring/Summer issue. The amount of press was very strong, and with good reason - great people working for me (Moe Hogue) as well as strong support from the label's distributor Fusion III and some of the promoters. And the tour could not have happened without financial assistance from the Canada Council for the Arts touring program and Manitoba Film and Sound as well as support in the form of a Manitoba Arts Council's Commission and Development grant for the new music performed on the tour. It's a big country, so accomplishing a tour of this magnitude is nearly impossible without their generous support.
Certainly it's a terrific experience and I'm already feeling the benefit of this national exposure. CD sales are up and I am getting the occasional call to play concerts in other parts Canada, rather than making the calls...and that's a very good thing. I can't wait to play with the guys again and I am busy writing new music for the next adventure.
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In Edmonton at the Yardbird Suite. Pic by Tracy Kolenchuk.
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