ROBERTO ROSENMAN QUARTET

THE
ROBERTO ROSENMAN QUARTET
GYPSY JAZZ
T
he Roberto Rosenman Quartet plays a modern
version of Gypsy Jazz: a style of music originating in 1930’s Paris with famed gypsy guitarist
Django Reinhardt and the Hot Club of France.
Composer and lead guitarist Roberto Rosenman mixes the sounds of swing Paris infusing them with
modern jazz influences from the Be-bop era.
The Quartet consists of Roberto Rosenman on lead guitar,
Chris Bezant on rhythm guitar, Drew Jurecka on violin,
and Jon Meyer on upright bass. Their debut C.D Piccadilly Swing was funded in part by an Ontario Arts Council
composition grant and the title track Picadilly Swing was
chosen by BRAVO!Canada for a music video. Throughout
the years, Roberto has performed extensively at such
music festivals such as Djangofest in Seattle, The Toronto
Jazz Festival, Chamberfest Ottawa , Festival of the Sound
in Parry Sound, and the Small World music Festival in
Toronto.
Their latest album Upstream was released in October
2014 and funded by the Ontario Arts Council and Toronto
Arts Council. It features special guest vocalist Barbra Lica,
(selected by the CBC as one of Canada’s Top 5 Female
Jazz Singers) and trumpeter Jake Wilkinson playing on
Rosenman’s original compositions. Roberto also collaborated with poet and lyricist Jack Mitchell who penned lyrics
to three compositions.
Far from a traditional gypsy jazz ensemble, the Roberto
Rosenman Quartet proves itself a versatile modern jazz
group, with a unique acoustic sound that surges past expectations and genre boundaries.
ROBERTO ROSENMAN
Roberto Rosenman was born in Caracas, Venezuela and moved to Canada at
the age of 5. He began studying classical guitar at age 13 with Eli Kassner and
then switched to playing jazz guitar after discovering the music of Django Reinhardt. Throughout the years, Roberto has travelled to Paris to study Gypsy Jazz
guitar, while also attending numerous Gypsy Jazz festivals. In addition to music,
he is also a visual artist and exhibits his work regularly in Toronto.
DREW JURECKA
Drew Jurecka is a crossover jazz and classical violinist. He completed his
Bachelor’s of Violin Performance at the esteemed Cleveland Institute of Music
in Ohio. Drew has had the opportunity to play with Diana Krall, Dianne Reeves,
and Shirley Horn and Dave Brubeck. He currently resides in Toronto, where
he plays with Jill Barber and The Hog Town Syncopators . Drew also holds the
principal second violinist chair in the Oshawa-Durham symphony Orchestra.
CHIRS BEZANT
Chris Bezant was born in Thornhill, Ontario. He fell in love with jazz guitar after
first hearing the great Django Reinhardt. He has performed throughout Canada,
America and Europe, and has enjoyed connecting with the masters of the style
throughout the world. In addition to leading his own group, Chris has played
lead in a quintet shared with Montreal violinist Mark Fewer, and has supported
Montreal’s Denis Chang Quartet, as well as Toronto’s Hot Jazz String Quartet.
Currently, Chris lives in Toronto as a performer and composer.
JON MEYER
A fixture in the Toronto Jazz scene, Jon is a graduate of Humber College’s Jazz
program. He performs regularely in Toronto and has toured throughout Canada
and Europe.