By Stephen Cooke
The rebirth of the cool is happening this week in Howie Centre, with the return of the Cape Breton Jazz Festival to the Red Farm.
If you love swing, bebop, songbook standards, modal madness or just a good ol’ fashioned 12-bar blues, the rustic venue just outside Sydney is the place to be for the next five days, Sept. 24 to 28.
I mention the five-day part because if you act fast, you can snag a festival pass for $100, which essentially gets you one free night, since admission is $25 each night, and if I remember my junior high school math correctly … well, I don’t, so let’s just say that’s a pretty good deal. Just go to red-farm.ca to get yours.
Now that that’s out of the way, let’s look at the lineup: four nights and one Sunday afternoon/evening of live music played by some of the region’s most undersung talents, with 12 ensembles spread out through the week.
The theme of the week is a tribute to veteran Cape Breton jazzman Red Mike MacDonald, who’s been taking his big double bass all over the Island for nearly 70 years, dating back to when he took over from his late father in local jazz and country & western bands at the age of 14.
If someone’s playing live jazz in Cape Breton, there’s an even chance that MacDonald is laying down the groove, and this week he has his work cut out for him since he’s playing every other night, starting tonight (Wednesday) with the Daniels Bar Friday Night Group and the Michele Stephens Trio.
On Friday night, MacDonald joins his good friends in the Joe Waye Trio, with the titular guitarist and drummer Johnny Hawkins, and on Sunday he joins pianist and Cape Breton Jazz Festival founder Carl Getto as part of an all-star ensemble that also includes trombonist and Halifax Jazz Festival artistic director, drummer Danny Lockwood (great name for a drummer), guitarist Chris McDonald and favourite local singers Linda Muise and Janet Bickerton.
It’s also worth noting festival headliner Nathalie Renault, who has the stage all to herself and her ensemble on Saturday night. Hailing from Campbellton, N.B., the Acadian pianist and singer-songwriter has travelled all over Europe with her heartfelt songs and intimate vocal style, along with her trusty rhythm section of bassist Julien Breau and drummer Clinton Fernandes, and Leo Raphael on tenor and alto sax.
Renault’s first began appearing on record in 1994, and this year marks the 25th anniversary of her breakthrough live album recorded at Germany’s Jazzhaus Freiburg, and her performing skills have only deepened and matured in the years since, with a love of playing and singing matched only by the thrill of connecting with an audience through her songs.
So, I suppose if you were only going to do one night of the Cape Breton Jazz Festival, Renault would be the performer to see, but why limit yourself when you’ve also got premier modern jazz group the Back Pack on Friday night, or the searing blues sound of the Jon Hines Trio on Sunday?
At this point, it’s time to put away the grease gun and let you decide for yourselves by visiting capebretonjazzfestival.com and having a listen to this week’s performers. Although you can’t really go wrong with any of these nights in the relaxed, jazz-friendly setting of the Red Farm which, as far as I know, isn’t named after Red Mike MacDonald.
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Last week’s column tried to cram in as many upcoming December holiday tours as possible but still ran out of room before mentioning that tickets are also on sale for the Irish Descendants Christmas shows, which take the hardy Newfoundland & Labrador folk group across the mainland, and are sure to be favourite shows of the festive season.
After stopping at Halifax’s Bella Rose Arts Centre on Dec. 13 and the Oak Island Inn & Resort on Dec. 14, the group led by founding member Con O’Brien plays Truro’s Marigold Cultural Centre on Dec. 15 and Pictou’s deCoste Performing Arts Centre on Dec. 16.
This year, the Irish Desendants celebrated a 35th anniversary with a new box set, and this month released a new album Those Were the Days, including the original number Blowing Snow, which will likely be a new highlight of their Christmas set.
And while we’ve got the deCoste Centre on our radar, this week the Pictou landmark hosts a remarkable event for a worthy cause with songwriters and storytellers coming together to raise money for the United Way on Thursday, Sept. 25.
United by Song includes musicians Eliza Rhinelander, Terra Spencer and Dave Carroll, along with storytellers Sara Mae Carpenter, Michael Dunkerley and Ian Capstick, and the evening will include new songs inspired by the personal journeys of Nova Scotians for whom the United Way’s efforts have made a huge difference.
Tickets are only $20 (plus fees & taxes) and can be purchased at decostecentre.ca or through the centre’s box office at (902) 485-8848.