JAZZ WITH A TWIST OF CANADIANA
Local pianist’s trio plays everything from Oscar Peterson to Feist, writes Peter Hum
Ottawa pianist Steve Boudreau cast his net widely when it came to pulling together a jazz concert with Canada as its theme. At Southminster United Church tonight, Boudreau, joined by bassist John Geggie and drummer Michel Delage, will play arrangements of music by everyone from Oscar Peterson to the more contemporary composer Kenny Wheeler to Feist, adding some original compositions to break things up.
Below, Boudreau discuss his trio’s most recent and upcoming exploits:
Q The range from Oscar Peterson to Kenny Wheeler to Feist is pretty broad. How do you keep the whole program coherent, beyond invoking “Canada?”
A I think that the sound of our three instrumental voices and my own preference for highly melodic material is what holds the program together. We recently had a first run at a small house party for the Almonte JazzNHouse series and it flowed together so well that I think we will be playing very similar sets this Saturday. I don’t get to do that very often, so I’m excited to see where the music goes this time, in this hall. Q Do you have any favourites on the program?
A When I started putting together the trio arrangements, I got together with John Geggie to play through some songs I had in mind. John had a stack of great Canadian music to try, songs by Renee Rosnes, Hugh Marsh, Roddy Ellias and some originals. For those songs it wasn’t just the material being “by a Canadian,” but also titles and material that invoke Canada. John has a beautiful piece about going to matinees at the ByTowne Cinema and I have a piece based on walking through the Experimental Farm in the fall.
Q What is the history of your trio with John Geggie and Michel Delage?
A I have played with John and Michel separately for a while. John played for a demo that I recorded for my application to the New England Conservatory in 2008, so technically I think we have been playing together for over 10 years! Michel and I met after I moved back to Ottawa in 2011 when he approached me to form a group that performed the lesser-known music of great pianists Andrew Hill and Herbie Nichols. In January 2016, (at) a night of all-original music at GigSpace, everything really felt great (with the trio) and since then I have been constantly looking for opportunities to play with them both. When I’m writing and arranging for trio, I try to make space in the music tailored for their sound. When other people have filled in, everything still fits and makes music I enjoy, but when I have both John and Michel there is a connection I can’t explain. Maybe it’s an Ottawa thing.
Q You’ve just made an album with this trio, but it’s focused on the music and influence of George Gershwin. Given this new Canadian project, is the Gershwin project a thing of the past, or will you be promoting it and playing its music down the road?
A That’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. Initially I wanted to record an album of original music, and I planned a concert for that. Things got busy and I didn’t get to work my original material up to the level I was happy with, but I had a few Gershwin songs I was dying to play, especially his three piano preludes. Before I knew it I had a whole night of Gershwin music and at the concert Brian Browne came up to me and said “You have to record this music.” The album is now finished, you can buy the digital version online. The plan is to have a CD release show in the fall. Depending on finances and scheduling, I’d love to record the Canadian material as well as my original material, but I often find that I’m looking too many steps ahead and just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other.