Over the years I've had opportunities to play with some great players and in great venues. Of course many Canadian musicians have these types of chances, but every time one of these great gigs comes up, I feel grateful, and I remember how badly I wanted to do these things, back when I was just starting to play.
Here in Ottawa, I have the opportunity to play pretty regularly. You can often find me playing at the Café Paradiso on a Friday night, with pianist Gerry Shatford; other gigs often come up at places like Vineyards Wine Bar & Bistro, the 107 Fourth Avenue Wine Bar (with drummer Dave Eaton), and over in Hull's cool jazz club 'Le Petit Chicago'.
However, since I've been back in school again (taking psychology at the University of Ottawa) and raising the kids, keeping the website up to date has proven impossible to stay on top of, as frequent visitors to the site have noticed. Still, I thought some recent and upcoming highlights might be nice.
In the last couple of years, I had the good fortune to be hired on to play with the vocalist Sophie Milman a few times, to play with her marvelous band. Sophie's a great singer, and the crowds eat her up with a spoon. Of particular interest to me was that her gigs were often in fantastic venues, giving me the opportunity to perform in the Toronto's Glenn Gould Theater and the famous, but now defunct, Montreal Bistro. In Ottawa we got to play the National Arts Centre, and in Montréal, a great rock show venue, Club Soda. Other highlights of the last few years have included playing in Regina with saxophonist Pat LaBarbera, and recording a live album at Toronto's vaunted Rex Hotel with organist Vanessa Rodrigues' band.
Being so close to Montreal has also allowed me to return there frequently to play with lots of old friends like Tilden Webb, Joel Haynes, Jodi Proznick, Kevin Dean, Sienna Dahlen, Isabelle Wolfmann, Diane Nalini and others.
Coming up this winter I'm hanging mostly here in O-town, teaching a bit for Carleton University's music program. I will be sneaking off to Saskatoon in February and March, however, to play with my old friends Dean McNeill and John Neelin at the University of Saskatchewan.
If you want to know where I will be any given week, please check local listings and/or get in touch with me via the email link at the top of this page.