No jazz performance seems complete without a little bit of brass, and there’s just something about the long notes of a trombone that’s sure to get your toes tapping at this weekend’s jazz vespers.
Trombonist Nick La Riviere and his trio are taking the stage May 3, bringing a wealth of musical experience and a unique flavour to the evening with a variety of songs from early jazz to upbeat originals.
A multi-instrumentalist, La Riviere also plays bass and conch shells, and is just as comfortable in classical, pop and reggae as he is in jazz.
A member of the Juno Award-winning group The Paperboys, he also works as an arranger, writing music for a number of local groups as well as for himself.
His latest album, Too Much To Do, has a handful of original tracks, complemented by a string section.
Backing up La Riviere with some serious jazz chops is Aidan Miller on piano. A graduate of the Fine Arts program at York University, Miller majored in jazz piano and improv, performs regularly in Victoria on his own and with The Riverside, leads Jazz Alive! and is on the faculty of the Victoria Conservatory of Music.
And providing the rhythm and beat to keep the whole thing on track is Matt Pease on drums.
Pease has been a professional drummer for more than 20 years and has played with a myriad of talented artists, including the Michael Kaeshammer Trio, Rick Kilburn and Ross Taggart, as well as Juno winners Lee Aaron, Kenny ‘Blues Boss’ Wayne and Hugh Fraser.
Jazz Vespers services begin at 7 p.m. Sunday, May 3 at St. John’s United Church, 10990 West Saanich Road. There is no admission, though an offering will be taken to cover the cost of the musicians and the Vespers program.
Jazz Vespers continues on June 7 with Coretette, a quartet of talented students graduating from the Mt. Douglas jazz program.
For more information, call Bernadette Greene at 250-656-0875 or email at bernadettegreene@shaw.ca.