Mike Redfern
The onset of September heralds the end of summer and the start of fall, with all that that mellow season promises. Not least of the mellow autumnal gifts we can look forward to is the Live at Studio 64 fall jazz/blues series, this year sandwiching a layer of jazz between two slices of blues. To add to this tasty menu there is also the possibility of a side order of British art rock/folk/pop in a concert in the Centre 64 theatre.
OK, enough of the food metaphors, let’s get down to some facts. The fall series kicks off with blues singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Tim Williams taking the stage in Studio 64 on Saturday, September 30. Williams, 1st place solo blues guitarist in the 2014 International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tennessee, has played in folk, blues, and jazz concerts and festivals from coast to coast in Canada.
The following month an old favourite returns to Studio 64 when the Melody Diachun Quartet appears on Saturday, October 28. Many will remember this Nelson-based jazz singer/songwriter from her 2014 swinging performance of jazz standards that had the audience on its feet demanding encores. Now, as then, Melody will be backed by other Studio 64 favourites, including her husband Doug Stephenson on guitar, Mark Spielman on bass, and Tony Ferraro on drums. And, this fall, she has the saxophone of Clinton Swanson enriching the line-up.
November sees a return to the blues on Friday, November 17, with a performance by The Roosters Blues Band, a quintet from Calgary. This band has performed at festivals, universities, and blues clubs across Canada and the USA and toured regularly with the late Chicago blues and R&B singer, Lou Pride. The band includes some highly qualified musical academics in its line-up. Guitarist and lute player Victor Coehlo, a professor at U of C, is the author of books on Italian lute music and Rennaisance culture. Guitarist Dave Morton is a graduate of U of C in voice, music theory and composition, and is on the artistic staff of the Youth Singers of Calgary. Bass guitarist Tom Knowles was the 2010 bass player of the year at the Calgary Blues Music Association awards and previously performed at Studio 64 in 2015 with A Little Voodoo. Drummer Kenton McDonald made his name backing rock vocalist Marija of ShadowsTalk for several years. And saxophone player Pat Belliveau, who performed at Studio 64 with Verismo in 2014 and has toured internationally with many bands including the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra and Mel Torme, teaches jazz at Ambrose University in Calgary.
And if that isn’t enough high caliber musical entertainment for you this fall, and you fancy a little rock/pop/folk thrown in, Kimberley Arts Council is currently at contract stage with the British touring art rock band, the Moulettes, led by the versatile cellist/guitarist/vocalist Hannah Miller, who was received with great enthusiasm in the theatre at Centre 64 with touring British musicians Anja McCloskey and Dan Whitehead back in 2014. The Moulettes, from Glastonbury, England, are expected to perform here on Tuesday, October 17.
Season passes for the three concerts in the Live at Studio 64 fall jazz/blues series are $66 ($60 for KAC members). Individual concert tickets are $24 ($22 for KAC members) in advance, $26 at the door. They can be purchased online at EstKootenaysnapd.com or at Centre 64 (kimberleyarts@gmail.com or 250-427-4919). Ticket information about the Moulettes concert will be published once the contract is signed.