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Oliver Jones. Photo: Alain Lefort

Oliver Jones (1934-2026)

By Wah Keung Chan on 23 July 2026 Arts Industry, Jazz, Obituaries, Piano

La Scena Musicale is sad to learn of the death of jazz pianist Oliver Jones on July 22, 2026 at the age of 91. He leaves behind a decades-long musical legacy, having appeared on stages around the world. His passing is deeply felt among Canada’s music community. In celebration of his life, we include below the cover interview conducted by Paul Serralheiro from the June 2004 issue of La Scena Musicale and The Music Scene. We offer our condolences to his family. Download the PDF of the issue Oliver Jones – Giving Something Back by Paul Serralheiro / June 5,…

Newswire | Mike Herriott Premieres Tales of Tricksters and Vagabonds Suite on Four-City Canadian Tour This Fall

By Newswire on 14 July 2026 Jazz, Mainstream Jazz, Montreal, Newswire, Scena Jazz, Toronto, Vancouver, West

TORONTO, ON — Toronto-based trumpeter, multi-instrumentalist, and composer Mike Herriott will take his most ambitious work to the stage this fall, presenting the world-premiere live performances of the Tales of Tricksters and Vagabonds Suite on a four-city tour across Canada. The tour visits Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal for six performances in total, running September 28 through October 24, 2026. Built on Herriott’s 2023 album of the same name (H&H Records), the suite is an original programmatic work for large jazz ensemble that portrays six unforgettable figures from folklore and literature: the scheming cat of Puss in Boots, the gold-spinning…

Lizz Wright & Kenny Banks Sr.

Review | Lizz Wright at Festival International de Jazz de Montréal

By Amanda Wong on 2 July 2026 Concert Reviews, Jazz, Montreal, Piano, Vocal

Lizz Wright is a woman of class and pure, pure music. She sings, and she sings well, her voice carrying the weight of legends before her. As a self-proclaimed woman from the “swamps of Georgia,” she came a fair distance to perform for the first time at Festival International de Jazz de Montréal on June 29. Along with her longtime friend and accompanist Kenny Banks Sr., Wright performed a wonderful 10-piece set of both originals and jazz standards in the intimate space at Théâtre Jean-Duceppe within the Place des Arts complex. As a lifelong member of the church, her voice…

Jens Lindemann

Review | Jens Lindemann – Brass On Fire!

By Amanda Wong on 24 June 2026 Concert Reviews, Jazz, Montreal, Piano, Strings

While Montreal anticipates its annual summer jazz festival, there are plenty of other fascinating, if lesser-known music festivals throughout the city. The Montreal Chamber Music Festival held its own lively jazz night on June 19, inviting distinguished trumpeter Jens Lindemann to Salle Bourgie for Brass on Fire!, a delicious and energetic performance of around 15 pieces celebrating not only jazz, but musical joy as a whole. Lindemann, hailing from Alberta, was as charismatic as he was virtuosic. In addition to his mastery of the seven brass instruments he brought onstage (mostly trumpets), his brilliant comedic timing tied all the pieces…

Omar Sosa. Photo: Jon Razinger

Review | Vancouver, Get Up and Dance with SUBA Trio

By Kaitlyn Chan on 17 March 2026 Concert Reviews, Jazz, Piano, Strings, Vancouver, West, World Music

“There are three things you have to do as a professional performer,” said kora-player and singer Seckou Keita during SUBA Trio’s concert at the Chan Centre (March 13). “One, make the audience smile. … Two, make the audience dance. … Three, make the audience cry. Tears of joy!” While I may not have cried, I couldn’t help smiling and dancing throughout this dynamic and cross-cultural event. SUBA Trio—Seckou Keita, Omar Sosa and Gustavo Ovalles—delivered a memorable night that left the audience buzzing and eager for more. As the lights dimmed, one’s eyes were drawn to the various instruments on stage:…

Newswire | Rémi Bolduc Launches New Album at LE STUDIO TD

By Newswire on 27 February 2026 Jazz, Montreal, Newswire

Montréal, Monday, February 2nd — Renowned jazz saxophonist Rémi Bolduc announces the release of his new and twelfth album on Thursday, April 9, titled Le Bolduc Groove Quintet. This highly anticipated release marks a new milestone in the career of one of the most influential figures on the Canadian jazz scene. To celebrate the occasion, an album launch concert will take place the same day at LE STUDIO TD, in the heart of Montréal’s Quartier des spectacles. Rémi Bolduc will be joined by Chantel de Villiers on tenor saxophone and vocals, Nick Semenykhin on guitar, Ira Coleman on double bass, and Rich Irwin on drums. Tickets are available at the regular price of $24, and $15 for students and seniors aged 65…

Calidore Quartet Photo: Marco Borggreve

Lebrecht Weekly | American Tapestry (Signum)

By Norman Lebrecht on 23 January 2026 Jazz, Lebrecht Weekly

At the end of a week of abusive American power, the last thing I wanted to hear was sentimental Americana squeezed out by a string quartet based in Delaware. There’s a reason companies list in Delaware. It has 2 percent tax, business-friendly courts and no questions asked. Unreal. Still, you never know what a recording will reveal. This one plays out four unrelated styles. Samuel Barber’s first string quartet is known for its mournful middle movement, Barber’s Adagio. The outer movements are rich in tunes. Every American composer envied Uncle Sam Barber’s gift for melody. Jazzman Wynton Marsalis raids New…

Taurey Butler & Ranee Lee

Review | A Charlie Brown Christmas at Salle Bourgie

By Amanda Wong on 18 December 2025 Concert Reviews, Jazz, Montreal, Vocal

We know “Christmas Time is Here” in Montreal when the Taurey Butler Trio comes back to play their annual Charlie Brown Christmas concert at Salle Bourgie. For the 11th time, Taurey Butler on piano, Morgan Moore on double bass, and Wali Muhammad on drums performed the classic score from A Charlie Brown Christmas, composed by Vince Guaraldi. Member of the Order of Canada and Juno winner Ranee Lee also joined the trio to serenade us with three songs. Vince Guaraldi was an American jazz pianist and composer who wrote much of the popular music associated with the Peanuts TV specials.…

André Leroux with Orchestre national de jazz de Montréal

Review | Orchestre national jazz de Montréal’s Extraordinary Charlie Parker with Strings

By Amanda Wong on 1 December 2025 Concert Reviews, Jazz, Montreal, Orchestral

Every once in a while, I’ll attend a performance that hits all the right spots and leaves me buzzing for more. Jazz evokes a sense of longing for an era I wasn’t even alive for. I’ve never been the best at differentiating between all the different jazz subgenres, but I am a sucker for orchestral jazz. Charlie Parker’s 1955 orchestral-bebop fusion album Charlie Parker with Strings gets the nostalgic orchestral jazz right just the way I like it. Superlative concerts can be the most difficult to write about. I hate to say “you just had to be there,” but some…

Newswire | 13th Edition Of 21C Music Line-Up Announced

By Newswire on 11 November 2025 Canadian Music, Chamber Music, Classical Music, Contemporary, Jazz, Newswire, Piano, Toronto

Toronto, ON, November 11, 2025 – This season the 21C Music series, now in its 13th edition, includes five concerts in late January and an additional one in May 2026. The series features music composed mostly during the 21st century, which often crosses boundaries and genres. With this newly-minted music, audiences have an opportunity to experience fresh new sounds and ideas from the greatest musical minds of today and experience works by Canadian as well as international composers, and musicians who are mining new musical territories, breaking down barriers, and introducing us to new virtuosic music creations. In total, the Festival will include more than 7 premieres: 2 world (Alison Yun-Fei…

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