The Edmonton Jazz Orchestra

50YEARSOFTHE
YARDBIRD
SUITE
• • Issue 2, March 2007
Edmonton Jazz Society’s
Board of Directors
2006•2007
Jasiek Poznanski • President
Adrian Albert • Vice-President
Shelley Chebry • Secretary
Barry Hull • Treasurer
Board Members
Dave Babcock • Chris Brown
Norma Davis • Pam Josey
Craig Magill
YARDBIRD
SUITE
11 Tommy Banks Way
(Corner of 102 St & 86 Ave)
Edmonton, Alberta
T6E 2M2 CANADA
Phone • (780) 432-0428
Fax • (780) 433-3773
Yardbird Suite
Programming • Adrian Albert, Craig
Magill, Jasiek Poznanski
Production • Jasiek Poznanski,
Alan Spence
Jam Sessions • Don Berner,
Raymond Baril
Littlebirds Director • Joel Gray
Finance • Suzanne Morter
Press Releases • Paul Wilde
Transportation • Alan Spence
House Manager & Volunteer
Coordinator • Pam Josey
The 50th Anniversary
Committee
Craig Magill • Chairperson
Wendy Magill • Secretary
Committee Members
Dave Babcock • Monique Bielech
Glen Buick • Jean Greenough
Bill Harper • Leslie Shragge
Phil Shragge
theyardbirdcrew
Our Volunteer House Managers
Coordinator • Pam Josey
Tracy Kolenchuk • Rhonda Netterfield
Mary Richards • Suzanne Slade
Collette Slevinsky • Gail Wozny
Rosalynn Ruptash • Karina Wrobel
Yardbird Suite
Newsletter
The Yardbird Newsletter is published five
times per year by the Edmonton
Jazz Society.
Editor • Jasiek Poznanski
Advertising • Shelley Chebry
Graphic Design • Vikki Wiercinski
THE EJS BOARD6 Standing • Adrian Albert, Shelley
Chebry, Chris Brown, Dave Babcock, Jasiek Poznanski, Craig
Magill, Barry Hull. Sitting • Pam Josey, Norma Davis
Distribution • Monique Bielech,
Shelley Chebry, Bill Harper
MessagefromthE
Governor
6General
I am delighted to send greetings to all those celebrating the 50th an-
niversary of the Yardbird Suite.
An inspired beat, the resonance of a particular instrument, the new
twist on an old favourite, a piece of music that echoes in your soul, a willingness to share, a gift of self, an unquenchable thirst for the undiscovered—that’s
jazz! Edmonton has been home to some of the world’s best jazz musicians,
with many of them choosing the Yardbird Suite to share their music with
their delighted fans. My husband Jean-Daniel Lafond and I were privileged to
spend an evening there last year and feel the atmosphere of the crowd. It was a
stimulating and exciting way to begin our first visit to Edmonton.
With an opportunity to sample some of the best of Edmonton’s lo-
cal talent in an informal setting, it is no wonder that Yardbird Suite is now
celebrating 50 years of bringing fresh and innovative jazz to the community. I
wish everyone a wonderful anniversary celebration.
MichaëlleJEAN
March 2007
thehousethatbopbuilt
A Brief History of the Yardbird Suite
BY EJS Board Member Craig Magill
It is hard to believe that the Edmonton Jazz
Society has owned our own not-for-profit jazz club, the
Yardbird Suite, since 1984, which makes us unique on
the North American jazz front, if not the world. Let’s
take a short trip through our illustrious past so that we
can celebrate not only our present location, but also
the flourishing jazz scene that has existed in Edmonton since the first Yardbird Suite.
“At 11.00 P.M. on the night of March 23, 1957, the
proverbial door swung open (the club will swing forever) on definitely the most seraphic happening that
has occurred to jazz in this area.” - quoted from the
September, 1957 issue of the Edmonton Jazz Society’s
newsletter. (The society was then in its sixth year).
It was referring of course to the opening of the Yardbird Suite in the basement rear at 10444 - 82 Avenue.
The Suite was the inspiration of drummer Terry
Hawkeye, and opened with the help of the new wave
of young Edmonton musicians: saxophonists Ray and
Zen Magus, bassist Garry Nelson, bassist Ron Repka
and jazz enthusiast Neil Gunn. This was a dream
come true - a place to play jazz the way you wanted
after coming off the bandstand of a commercial gig.
Heaven! Musicians like Tommy Banks, Bobby Cairns,
Phil Shragge, Ken Chaney, and Dale Hillary were
responsible for many wonderful evenings of jazz. The
Sunday night concerts were always a sell-out. Tommy
was as now, a human dynamo of energy and creativity.
He had a large ensemble that included a frontline of
five trumpet players, a jazz trio of piano, bass and guitar, a small Latin group and a group of singers called
The Bank Notes.
I first heard trumpeter Don Cherry with the Dave
Quarran Quintet at the Suite. Don went on to prominence with the now famous Ornette Coleman Quartet.
One of the most memorable musicians to play the
Suite was bassist extraordinaire George Grant, who decided to put down roots in the city. He was to Edmonton and the bass what Clarence “Big” Miller became to
Edmonton and jazz vocals. It was around this time too
that this writer started hearing about a young prodigy
(he still is to me) named P.J. Perry, who played alto
sax in his father Paul’s orchestra at the Sylvan Lake
Varsity Dance Hall.
The Yardbird Suite briefly moved to The Club Anton
on 106th Ave. and 101st St. and then moved back to
the original premises, before moving to 9810 Jasper
Avenue (the old Steak Loft) at the beginning of the sixties, thanks to Tommy and Phil. The space continued
to be operated by musicians and their lady friends.
Here we were privileged to hear alto saxophonist
Dale Hillary, who had returned from playing with
“Philly Joe” Jones. That group included fellow Philly
Joe sideman trumpeter Mike Downes, Ken Chaney
on piano, Terry Hawkeye on drums and the unforgettable Lennie Breau, not on guitar, but on the first
electric bass I had heard in a jazz context. The band
played live to air on CKUA with CBC announcer
Glenn Buick emceeing: two air shots still exist from
these performances!
There were a number of fine evenings of music at this
venue. Elmer Gill, a vibes player from Seattle, performed here as well as a great bass player also from
Seattle, Freddie Schreiber. By that time Judy Singh,
beautiful in both stature and voice, was singing professionally and knocking everybody out. P J. Perry
was making regular appearances with drummer Jerry
Fuller, who had taken up residence in town and was
living up to the good things we had heard about him
earlier when he too played as a member of the Paul
Perry orchestra. He was in town playing Tommy
and Phil’s night club, The Embers. Jerry went on to
become one of Canada’s most sought-after drummers
when he moved to Toronto.
5 George Grant on bass at the first Yardbird Suite location
In 1965, Leo Schotte and Bud Damur opened the
next version of the Yardbird Suite in an old Volkswagen garage on the corner of 102nd Street and
81st Avenue, across the tracks from the Southside
train station. The building also housed Leo’s printing business. This performance space provided the
opportunity for jazz musicians, poets and actors
to apply their talents. Notables such as Zoot Sims
and Phil Woods played there. As well we enjoyed
evenings with Leonard Cohen and Wilfred Watson. It
was here that Dale Hillary’s “The Vincent Van Gogh
Suite” was first performed and subsequently recorded
at the CKUA studios - Dale on alto, Bill Somers on
trombone, Bernie Senensky on piano, Bill Fawcett on
bass, and Terry Hawkeye on drums. 4
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
• THEHOUSETHATBOPBUILT •
3The doors closed on this version of the Suite in
the spring of 1967, and ushered in the longest period
Edmonton was to be without a Yardbird Suite.
As luck would have it, in the late 60’s a young
trumpet player, Marc Vasey, arrived from the west
coast. His passion for the music was unrivalled and
fortunately for us, this passion was accompanied
by vision. In 1973 Marc approached a few of us to
invest $500.00 each to start The Edmonton Jazz
Society (1973). For our very first concert we booked
the Charles Tolliver Quartet into the Captain’s Cabin.
I had never heard jazz played with such incredible intensity, swinging at even the most ferocious
tempos. Other gigs followed. At the Captain’s Cabin
we heard Phil Woods, Julian Priester, Pepper Adams,
Hadley Caliman, John Hicks and Steve Lacy. At the
Museum Theatre we were entertained by the Wynton
Marsalis Quintet and the John Scofield Trio. We
remember The Hovel with groups led by Sonny Stitt,
Gary Bartz, and Roland Kirk; Room at the Top on
campus with Sam Rivers, Barry Altschul and Dave
Holland; the Palms Café where the E.J.S. presented
groups that included the likes of Al Cohn, Zoot Sims,
Shelley Manne, Johnny Griffin, Betty Carter, Woody
Shaw; and the Hot Box where Art Blakey’s Quintet
performed for two nights. Our history is a “Who’s
Who” of jazz musicians, too many to list here. Marc
can’t remember when exactly he decided to make jazz
his life’s work, but we’re glad he did, because in 1980,
under the auspices of the Edmonton Jazz Society, he
staged the first Jazz City Festival, which continued
for twenty-five years.
5 Terry Hawkeye, Ron Repka, Dale Hillary, Ken Chaney and Bill Sommers play
The Yardbird in 1957
In 1984 we purchased the old Malone Warehouse,
which houses the present-day Yardbird Suite. The
club opened as a result of the efforts of Marc Vasey,
Fraser Gibson, Barry Zalmanowitz, Leo Dunnigan,
Marilyn Forrester and Denise Spitzer. The fact that
we are still operating - flourishing even - is the result
of many dedicated volunteers who have put in countless hours.
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
We have survived poor attendance. This writer
remembers one opening night with Red Holloway
when there was just himself and the reviewer in the
audience. On another minus 40 evening there were
15 people in attendance for Lew Tabackin, and 20
people for Pierre Jorge and the New Jungle Orchestra (a top band from Europe)!
Then there was the decision to hire staff, in particular
a house manager. At one point we had a salary budget of almost $60,000 a year. This proved disastrous,
as resentment from the volunteer contingent created
much dissension. This, coupled with decreasing grant
monies, necessitated a complete reorganization of
the E.J.S. in 1992, back to an all-volunteer organization. The reorganization was successful thanks to
the efforts of Paul Wilde, Fraser Gibson, Monique
Bielech (Monique’s influence turns up throughout
the history of the Suite, right down to the décor), and
Craig Magill.
We continue to be amazed that we have survived
the ups, downs, twists and turns of operating a jazz
concert space and proud that we continue to provide
top quality jazz to the citizens of Edmonton.
Society accomplishments of which we are most
proud, besides our great programming, include
the Tuesday night jam sessions, our Littlebirds’
Big Band, the inauguration of Jazz Works, (a non
competitive jazz workshop for Jr. and Sr. High school
students which has now been taken over by The Edmonton Jazz Festival Society), and our involvement
in the first four years of the Jazz City Festival. We
were also pleased to be asked to present the Yardbird
Jazz Festival for the 2005 and 2006 seasons, following the demise of the Jazz City International Music
Festival Society.
On May 3, 2006 we were honoured by the presence
of the Governor General of Canada Michaelle Jean
and her husband Jean-Daniel Lafond, at a special
evening arranged for her by the E.J.S. “An Evening with the Senator: Tommy Banks and Friends”
showcased a marvelous line up of talent that included
P.J. Perry on saxophone, Chris Andrew on piano,
Bob Tildesley on trumpet, Mike Lent on bass, Bobby
Cairns on guitar and Sandro Dominelli on drums.
What made the evening even more special was that
we were able to make the performance much like
any other evening at the Suite - little or no hype. The
Governor General and her husband, obvious jazz
fans, were very gracious, and took the opportunity to
talk to musicians on the break and to provide photo
opportunities with the board and the volunteers. It
was a very successful event, enjoyed by everyone in
attendance.
Spearheaded by our president, Jasiek Poznanski, the
Suite is currently undergoing renovations that we
hope to have completed next year. <
The Edmonton Jazz Society would like to invite you to help us
celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the original Yardbird Suite
which opened its doors on March 23, 1957.
THE YARDBIRD SUITE FOUNDERS, LEFT TO RIGHT 4TERRY HAWKEYE • Roman (Ray) Magus • ZEN MAGUS • GARY NELSON • Ron Repka
Come and join us for 5 weekends of great jazz. We
will enjoy performances by many of Edmonton’s finest
musicians who have provided our community with great
music over the past 50 years. As well, we will be joined by
some special guests. From New York, we have invited tenor
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Edmonton Jazz Society and the 50th Anniversary
Committee would like to thank the following contributors for
their generous support:
saxophonist Lew Tabackin and the great jazz vocalist Mark
• The City of Edmonton
Murphy. From Chicago, we have Ken Chaney, who played
• The Edmonton Community Foundation
in the original Yardbird Suite and shared the piano duties
• The Edmonton Arts Council
with the pride of Edmonton, Senator Tommy Banks. From
• The Alberta Foundation for the Arts
Prince Edward Island, Canada’s best Hammond B3 player,
• C.B.C. Radio Canada
Doug Riley, will be performing original music which he and
• Magic 99
Edmonton drummer, Sandro Dominelli, composed. This
• Cristall’s Wine Market
music was commissioned especially for the 50th anniver-
• Big Rock Breweries
sary by the CBC.
Special Thanks to Del Dilke of Del’s on 9th and Cathryn
Heslep for their support in the memory of their husbands
We are particularly proud to be presenting two performances by the Edmonton Jazz Orchestra, led by Kent Sangster.
The orchestra will be playing Dale Hillary’s Van Gogh Suite,
which has been arranged for large orchestra by Bill Jamieson, as a result of a grant from the Edmonton Community
Cecil “CR” Dilke and Rick Garn.
Cecil Robert Dilke (1926-1999)
Affectionately know as “CR”, his passion for his wife Del
of 47 years, only slightly rivaled that of his love of Music.
Foundation.
He not only gave openly to support the community but also
Ten nights of terrific music for your enjoyment - if there was
Rick Garn (1946-2004)
ever a time to become an Edmonton Jazz Society member,
this is it!
See you at the Suite,
Craig Magill
Chairperson, The 50th Anniversary Committee
privately to agencies that supported the youth of Edmonton.
A truly gifted musician and educator, Rick will be remembered by musicians for his talent and professionalism and
by his students for his dedication to the education of young
musicians through his years in the music program at Grant
MacEwan College.
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
• events •
FRIDAY•MARCH 2
Opening Act • Chris Andrew
Chris Andrew • piano
The Yardbird Suite
Allstars
Senator Tommy Banks • piano
Ken Chaney • piano
Kent Sangster • alto, tenor saxophone
Bob Tildesley • trumpet
Bobby Cairns • guitar
Mike Lent • bass
Blaine Wikjord • drums
SATURDAY•MARCH 3
Opening Act • George Blondheim
George Blondheim • piano
The Yardbird Suite
Allstars
Senator Tommy Banks • piano
Ken Chaney • piano
Judy Singh • vocals
Mike Lent • bass
Blaine Wikjord • drums
Special Guests from the Foggy Manor, Calgary
(circa 1958)
Eric Friedenberg • tenor saxophone
Al Muirhead • trumpet
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
ALLSHOWS •
doors 7PM
show 8PM
•
TICKETS $20 (EJS members)
$24 (guests)
advancetickets • Ticketmaster.cA
• FOR MORE INFO •
YARDBIRDSUITE.COM
FRIDAY•MARCH 9
Opening Act • Big Ideas
with Special Guest Doug Organ
Doug Organ • Hammond B3 organ
Mo Lefever • guitar
Don Bradshaw • bass
Dan Skakun • drums
Doug Riley/Sandro
Dominelli Group
featuring P.J. Perry
and Jim Head
Doug Riley • Hammond B3 organ
P.J. Perry • alto saxophone
Jim Head • guitar
Sandro Dominelli • drums
SATURDAY•MARCH 10
This weekend returns us to our roots. Senator
Tommy Banks has become a Canadian icon as a musician, arranger, and band leader, a talk show host and
for last few years, a member of the Senate. Tommy performed at the original Yardbird Suite as well as Calgary’s
Foggy Manor, our sister venue in the late 50’s.Both pianist Ken Chaney from Chicago, and Edmonton’s premier
guitarist and jazz educator Bobby Cairns, began their
musical careers at the Suite. These gentlemen will be
joined by some of Edmonton’s finest jazz musicians on
the scene today: saxophonist Kent Sangster, trumpeter
Bob Tildesley, and bassist Mike Lent. We have a special
guest from Vancouver, drummer Blaine “Wacker” Wikjord, who played in Tommy’s band in the 60’s.
On Saturday night, we will be joined by two of Calgary’s
best known musicians, saxophonist Eric Friedenberg,
and trumpeter Al Muirhead, representing the roots of
jazz music in that city.
Friday night’s opening act features pianist Chris Andrew,
and on Saturday night we welcome back to the Edmonton jazz scene pianist, George Blondheim.
Opening Act • Mike Gillespie Quintet
Jerrold Dubyk • tenor saxophone
Mike Gillespie • drums
Stewart Crosley • guita
Jordan Mann • bass
Wayne Feschuk • piano
Doug Riley/Sandro
Dominelli Group
featuring P.J. Perry
and Jim Head
Doug Riley • Hammond B3 organ
P.J. Perry • alto saxophone
Jim Head • guitar
Sandro Dominelli • drums
These performances will present original music commissioned by the C.B.C., composed by Doug Riley and Sandro
Dominelli for the 50th Anniversary. This event will be
recorded by the C.B.C.
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
• events •
FRIDAY & SATURDAY MARCH 16-17
Opening Act • The Lew Tabackin Trio
Lew Tabackin • tenor saxophone, flute
Mike Lent • bass
Sandro Dominelli • drums
The Edmonton Jazz
Orchestra
Special Guest • Lew Tabackin
Lew Tabackin • tenor saxophone, flute
Kent Sangster • musical director
Don Berner, Bill Jamieson, Kent Sangster,
Jerrold Dubyk, David Babcock • saxophone
Joel Gray, Bob Tildesley, Dave Morgan,
Ashley Clelland • trumpet
Marty Majorawicz, Craig Brenan, Audrey
Ochoa, Dan Keels • trombone
Wayne Feschuk • piano
Jim Head • guitar
Mike Lent • bass
Sandro Dominelli • drums
These two evenings will premiere an expanded work for large jazz ensemble of the “Van
Gogh Suite” written for jazz quintet by the late
Edmonton musician Dale Hillary and arranged
by Bill Jamieson, thanks to a grant from The
Edmonton Community Foundation.
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
FRIDAY•MARCH 23
Opening Act • Rhonda Withnell
Rhonda Withnell • vocals
Andrew Glover • piano
Don Bradshaw • bass
Thom Bennett • drums
An Evening with Jazz
Singer Extraordinaire
Mark Murphy
Mark Murphy • vocals
Misha Piatigorsky • piano
Mike Lent • bass
Sandro Dominelli • drums
SATURDAY•MARCH 24
Opening Act • Anna Beaumont
Anna Beaumont • vocals
Charlie Austin • piano
Glenn Durksen • bass
Thom Bennett • drums
An Evening with Jazz
Singer Extraordinaire
Mark Murphy
Mark Murphy • vocals
Misha Piatigorsky • piano
Mike Lent • bass
Sandro Dominelli • drums
FRIDAY•MARCH 30
SATURDAY•MARCH 31
Opening Act •
Dino Dominelli Quintet
Dino Dominelli • tenor, soprano saxophones
Wayne Feschuk • piano
Ben Bishop • guitar
Joseph Lubinsky•Mast • bass
Darryl Meyer • drums
Opening Act • The Brenan
Brothers Band
Jim Brenan • tenor saxophone
Craig Brenan • trombone
Tom King • piano
Dave Babcock’s
Jump Orchestra
featuring guest singer
Johanna Sillanpaa
Dave Babcock • saxophones
Bob Tildesley • trumpet
Chris Andrew • piano
Jim Head • guitar
Joseph Lubinsky•Mast • bass
Sandro Dominelli • drums
Tilo Paiz Latin
Jazz Party
Tilo Paiz • timbales, drums, vocals
Sergio Gonzales • lead vocals
Adelfo Fito Cerezo • keyboards, vocals
Jonny McCormack • tenor, flute
Audrey Ochoa • trombone
Dave Herrick • trumpet
Troy Nowaselski • trombone
Rene Abaunza • congas, bongos
TOMJAMES
Yardbird Suite member
for the past 50 years
by Karen Howell
Tom James has been a fixture at the
Yardbird Suite for many years - since 1957, to
be exact - and has bought an annual
membership for every one of those fifty years.
“I first heard about the Yardbird on CKUA,” he says.
“Every Saturday they had a show ...thank God my mom
liked jazz. She’d always have the radio on (while) doing
the dishes and beating up the kids,” he jokes.
He heard a lot of different music, but was first impressed
by Charlie Parker, the Modern Jazz Quartet, and Thelonious Monk. He says that when he first heard Charlie
Parker, “I thought well, I should give him a chance -- he
sounds like a good player. At that time he was hard to
absorb ... I thought to myself you gotta keep listening and
listening, and then you’ll catch on, and I did that with
every player.”
Tom guesses that he started listening to jazz when he was
ten or eleven. His friends would ask him to play baseball,
and he’d give them some excuse why he couldn’t play
until about 3 o’clock (after the jazz program ended).
He remembers his mother and father taking him to see
Duke Ellington. “I wanted to talk to the trumpet players,”
he says. “My dad told me to go ahead. I was kind of shy
because they were so good, but no problem – I talked to
all the trumpet players and they gave me their autographs. I still have them here somewhere.”
Later, he tried inviting friends to jazz concerts. “It’s all
mixed up,” they’d say. “They just play any old thing they
want.” He says that in those days, his friends disowned
him, “as far as music goes. I’d go to a party and bring my
records, and they were all jazz ... a lot of people thought
I was weird ...I thought I was weird. I said, you gotta
listen.”
In the late 70s and early 80s, Tom started playing saxophone. After a couple of years of ‘messing with the sax,’
he was asked to play in a weekend band. They practiced
three nights a week for about six months, and by then, he
says, “I could play, good enough to that people who would
hear, would be dancing.”
The band was called ‘The Evening Post.’ “All the songs
(we) played, I’d heard before, so actually they were kind
of boring,” Tom says. “After seven or eight years of this
(stuff), it was too much for me, especially liking jazz and
having to play that kind of music. I talked them into playing ‘Girl from Ipanema’ and that was as close as I got.” He
recalls that one set featured country music, and says he
“disappeared when it was played. I went out the back. I
5 Tom James stands beside a photograph of himself at the
time he played with ‘The Evening Post’.
mean, they played it as it was supposed to sound ...
but it was terrible.”
Tom also tried playing trumpet for a while. “I heard
Miles Davis and Chet Baker and Louis Armstrong,
and Clifford Brown,” he says. “You can’t believe how
nice (Brown) plays – nice and smooth, and a real nice
tone. But he sounds real happy, he’s bursting with
love. Maybe his girlfriend’s there or something.”
The first time Tom went to the Yardbird Suite, it was
located on 82nd avenue, where ‘Divine Decadence’
is now. The entrance was in the alley. Tom says that
“we had to go downstairs to the basement, and all the
walls and the (ceiling) were painted black, but there
was a small light on the stage. There was no liquor;
at least that’s what the sign says,” he notes. Over the
years, Tom says that “as we walked down the steps
I’d hear Tom Banks, Ray and Zen Magus, and there
were also various caliber players. There was one guy
about 15 years old ...he was always at the jams, and
he sounded a little bit like Bird or Cannonball Adderley.”
While Tom has been to other places where jazz is
played, he says that the Yardbird Suite is unique
because “where the hell else are you gonna hear
music like that, live?” He also says that “it was quiet
when the players were playing, and it wasn’t that
loud when they stopped either, unlike other clubs.”
He figures that “just about every musician, the ones
that played at all the big clubs – all the top musicians
would pass through the (Yardbird’s) doors once in a
while. Around midnight, when the paid players were
finished, Tom says that a jam would start, “and then
a drummer would walk in, and then a bass player,
and then pretty soon it was three o’clock in the
morning. I was in heaven. I couldn’t wait for another
Friday or Saturday night.” <
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
• PERFORMERBIOS •
Chris Andrew
Recognized as a mainstay of the Alberta music scene
and one of Canada’s finest pianists, Chris Andrew
is an Edmonton-based performer, recording artist,
composer, teacher and musical director. He’s admired
for his ingenuity, acclaimed for
his technical abilities, and his
fearless, passionate playing resonates with audiences.
He has performed across Canada
and around the world with renowned artists such as Joshua
Redman, Sonny Fortune, Bud
Shank, Pete Christlieb, P.J. Perry, Thomas Chapin,
Hadley Caliman, Joe LaBarbera, Kirk MacDonald,
Sandro Dominelli, Big Miller, Paquito D’Rivera, and
Jim Brenan.
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
served as a guest conductor with symphony orchestras
throughout Canada and the United States.
In 1979, Mr. Banks received an Honourary Diploma
of Music from Grant MacEwan College. That same
year, he received the Juno Award and the Grand Prix
du Disque-Canada. In 1987, he received an Honourary
Doctor of Laws from the University of Alberta. In
1990, he received the Sir Frederick Haultain Prize.
In 1991, Mr. Banks was made an Officer of the Order
of Canada, and in 1993 he was awarded the Alberta
Order of Excellence.
Anna Beaumont
Anna has been performing for
over two decades and has three
CDs to her credit, along with
three theme songs. She has performed widely in Canada and
in such places such as China,
Germany, Finland, the British
Isles and the United States.
Dave Babcock
Edmonton’s Jump Orchestra, a hard swinging sevenpiece jazz group led by saxophonist Dave Babcock, was
formed back in 1990 and went on to become the city’s
best loved jazz band of the ‘90s.
With their big sound and an
energetic performance style,
it was easy to see why. Their
unique blend of original and
vintage jazz proved irresistible
to both fan and musician alike,
winning them the 1992 ARIA
award for “best jazz artist”.
Dave Babcock, the driving force behind The Jump
Orchestra from its
inception, has brought the group back together
once more. Joining him are former band mates Bob
Tildesley on trumpet, Chris Andrew on keyboards
and Rubim deToledo on bass. Guitarist Jim Head and
drummer Sandro Dominelli round out this new lineup.
Tommy Banks
Tommy Banks is well-known to Canadians as one of
our most accomplished and versatile entertainers, and
an international standard-bearer for Canadian culture.
From 1968-83, he was the host of The Tommy Banks
Show. A Gemini Award-winning variety television
performer, he is today the owner of Tommy Banks
Music Ltd.
A Juno Award-winning musician, Mr. Banks has achieved
national and international
renown as Conductor or Music
Director for such signature
events as The Royal Command
Performance (1978), The Commonwealth Games (1978), the
World University Games (1983),
and the Opening Ceremonies for EXPO ‘86 and the
XVth Olympic Winter Games (1988). He has also
She was chosen to perform “Alberta Strong and Free”
for the Alberta Centennial on September 1, 2005, supported by the Calgary Symphony Orchestra and the
Calgary Philharmonic 100 voice choir.
George Blondheim
George Blondheim is an internationally recognized
pianist, composer, conductor, music director, and producer. George’s honours include two Gemini awards, a
Genie and three Leo Awards for such films as the Canadian classic “Bye Bye Blues”
and “The War Between Us”;
American blockbusters “The
Jewel of the Nile” and “9 1/2
Weeks” and the hit Canadian
television series “Da Vinci’s
Inquest”.
George spent his teens studying and performing
throughout Canada and the USA and by the age of
twenty was a sought after studio musician and composer performing with hundreds of artists including
Bob Hope, Nana Mouskouri, David Foster, Ronnie
Hawkins, Chubby Checker, Freddie Hubbard, Cheech
& Chong and Henry Mancini. He also represented
Alberta as pianist for the late Clarence “Big” Miller’s
Alberta Art and Cultural Tour of Japan”.
Craig Brenan
Trombonist, composer and educator Craig Brenan
has been an active performer
throughout Canada. A graduate
of the New England Conservatory where he received
his Master’s degree in Jazz
Performance, Craig has had
the opportunity to work and
study with George Russell,
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
• PERFORMERBIOS •
Jim Brenan
While studying in the tri-state area of New York,
Philadelphia and New Jersey,
Jim performed with Ralph
Bowen, Kenny Barron, Slide
Hampton, Kenny Wheeler, Ravi
Coltrane, and Kenny Drew Jr.
Jim also performed with Phil
Woods, Illinois Jacquet and
Flip Philips for the New Jersey
Jazz Hall of Fame concerts, and
was a member of Maynard Ferguson’s now legendary
touring big band.
Currently on faculty at Mount Royal College, Jim
continues to be an active Canadian performer, and
has a current CD under his name called The Spectre”.
Kenny Barron describes Jim Brenan as “a thoroughly
modern tenor saxophonist with a deep understanding
of jazz tradition.
Bobby Cairns
For more than forty years,
Bobby Cairns has been busy
teaching, performing and
adjudicating music. Bobby
began his professional career as
the guitarist for Tommy Banks
at the age of sixteen. This
opportunity and long association enabled Bobby to develop
skills as an arranger and composer, and molded his
capabilities as a musician. He also studied with Jim
Hall, Barney Kessel and Joe Pass.
Ken Chaney
Ken Chaney began his music career in his teens, playing with bands in his hometown of Edmonton. After
a short stay in Detroit where
he met and played with many
fine musicians, Ken moved
to Chicago where he studied
composition at Roosevelt University and worked with jazz
greats such as Milt Jackson,
Donald Byrd, Slide Hampton,
Harold Land, Bobby Hutchison, Max Roach, Randy Crawford Chet Baker, Clark
Terry and many others. While touring with YoungHolt Unlimited, “Soulful Strut” became a hit which
led to performances at Carnegie Hall, Madison Square
Gardens, Apollo Theatre, Montreaux Jazz Festival in
Switzerland and major clubs and concerts throughout
USA and Canada.
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
3In Canada he has performed with Don Thompson,
P.J Perry, Bernie Senenski, Jake Langley, Greg Pilo,
Earl Seymour, and Bob Mover. Dino also performs
regularly with many prominent Alberta artists.
Sandro Dominelli
Sandro has toured, performed, and recorded with
many prominent members of the Canadian jazz scene,
including Mike Murley, Rob McConnell, Guido Basso,
Dave Restivo, Kirk MacDonald, Mike Rudd, Phil
Dwyer, Hugh Fraser, Ian McDougall, Campbell Ryga,
Doug Riley, Don Thompson, Ranee Lee, D. D. Jackson,
Chris Tarry, Bill Coon, Jack de Keyzer, Brad Turner,
and Jake Langley. He’s also
performed and recorded with
local luminaries Tommy Banks,
P.J. Perry and Kent Sangster.
He’s shared the stage south of
the border with Mose Allison,
Joe Lovano, Ben Monder, Ernie
Watts, Dave Stryker, Sonny
Fortune, Kenny Werner, Tim
Hagans, Roswell Rudd, Steve Slagle, Mark Murphy,
Julian Priester and Pete Christlieb.
Edmonton Jazz Orchestra
The EJO is Edmonton’s newly formed professionally structured jazz ensemble consisting of many of
the city’s finest jazz musicians, several of whom are
nationally recognized recording artists. This premier
ensemble will explore the traditions of the jazz repertoire while also presenting existing and new works by
leading Canadian
jazz composers. The mandate of
the EJO is to create a professional
environment and
structure where
jazz musicians can conceive, compose, arrange, rehearse and perform the art form of large ensemble jazz
in a concert setting. Eric Friedenberg
An arranger, composer, conductor, and musical
director, Eric Friedenberg has
appeared with Bob Brookmeyer,
Dizzy Gillespie , Pepper Adams,
Jann Arden, Paul Horn and the
Prime Time Big Band. He has
worked on industrial films and
commercials, and was a member
of the writing and music team for
the 1988 Olympics.
Dino Dominelli
Dino holds a Bachelor of Music
from Humber College/ BCOU,
where he studied with Pat LaBarbera and Don Thompson.
His international performance
credits include Piano Seven of
Switzerland, Charles Blenzig
Trio of New York City, Roberto
Zayas, Lito Gonzales, Xiao Bai
of Taiwan, and Robbin Harris of Hong Kong. 4
Mike Gillespie
Mike began playing in 1978 with Andrew Glover and
Mark Andrews. In 1981 he
played in a trio with Brian Sim
and Cliff Minchau, and in Judy
Singh’s Quartet with Bill Emes
and George Koller. The highlight
of his career is the 2005 album
with 4
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
• PERFORMERBIOS •
3the trio nuSteps. It includes Stuart Crosley on guitar,
John Taylor on bass. All but one of the compositions are
originals, with Stuart and Mike sharing the writing.
Dale Hillary
(b. March 17, 1940 - d. July 3, 1992)
(composer of Van Gogh Suite performed by
the Edmonton Jazz Orchestra)
Having developed an interest in jazz during high school,
Dale Hillary honed his considerable jazz/blues chops jamming
and performing at the Yardbird
Suite in the company of musical
stalwarts Terry Hawkeye drums,
Ron Repka bass and Ken Chaney
piano.
During the late 50’s, Dale won
two scholarships to study at the
Lennox School of Jazz in the U.S. under the tutelage of
such giants as Oscar Peterson and Dizzy Gillespie. He
went on to perform with the Philly Joe Jones Band and
with Otis Redding, returning to Edmonton on occasion to
play concerts.
In the mid sixties Dale returned to Edmonton for an extended stay, and at this time he formed a band with Bill
Summers on valve trombone, Bernie Senensky on piano,
Bill Fawcett on bass and Terry Hawkeye on drums. It was
during this time that Dale composed an ambitious tribute
to Vincent Van Gogh for jazz quintet. The Van Gogh Suite
was recorded in March 1965 by CKUA and was broadcast
by the station, with a public performance at the Yardbird
Suite.
Dale went on to join the famous Canadian rock group
Lighthouse and then returned to Edmonton where he
continued to perform with Big Miller and his own groups
through the early eighties.
Edmonton saxophonist/arranger Bill Jamieson transcribed the original recording and expanded the original
score for performance by a 16 piece band, to be presented
as part of the 50th Anniversary of the Yardbird Suite.
How fortuitous that the last performance falls on his
birthday.
Bill Jamieson
(arranger of Van Gogh Suite performed by
the Edmonton Jazz
Orchestra)
Bill started out in garage bands
playing guitar and bass in the
mid-sixties. By 1970 he was fully
immersed in mastering saxophone, flute and clarinet. New
York City beckoned and in 1975 he
moved there to study with such notables as Jack Dejohnette, Dave Holland, Lee Konitz, Karl Berger, Anthony
Braxton and others.
Bill’s earliest attempts at writing for larger ensembles
were arrangements of standards for various performers. Later his interests led him to the immense challenge
of reducing a standard big band arrangement to a 4
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
3nonet format. As a result of those efforts, he formed
the Ubiquitous Orchestra.
Mike Lent
Michael is an exceptionally
talented bassist who has played
professionally for over 20 years.
From touring with jazz greats
like Lee Konitz and Sheila
Jordan, to recording with kd
lang and Jann Arden, Michael’s
versatility has kept him in high
demand.
Al Muirhead
Al has been a fixture of Calgary’s musical scene since
1966. In the 70’s Al was Music Director for the CBC
television show “On Stage”
and he toured Japan with the
Frank Mills Orchestra. He performed with the 1988 Olympic
Orchestra under Tommy Banks
and toured Hungary, Germany,
and Switzerland with the “New
Orleans Connection” Dixieland
Band. He has also performed in
many orchestras backing such touring celebrities as
Manhattan Transfer, Dizzie Gillespie, Pattie Page, Red
Skelton, Paul Anka and Cleo Laine.
He remains active as a performer, clinician and adjudicator. Al has been the Music Director for the Calgary
Stampede Youth Talent Show since it began in 1980.
Mark Murphy
“Mark has devoted a long career to singing the hippest
music with the best musicians,” states Leonard Feather. “Consider the company he has kept on records.
In the ‘60s, Clark Terry, Dick
Hyman, Roger Kellaway. In the
‘70s, David Sanborn and the
Brecker Brothers. In the ‘80s,
Frank Morgan, Richie Cole and
the Azymuth Trio. Consider the
jazzmen to whose instrumental
works he has composed and
sung lyrics: Miles Davis, Sonny
Rollins, Pat Metheny, Charlie Parker, McCoy Tyner,
Charles Mingus, Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter.”
It was Sammy Davis, Jr. who first discovered the
young Mark Murphy in 1953 at a jam session in Murphy’s hometown of Syracuse, New York. Impressed
with Murphy’s talent, Davis invited him to his show
that night, where he asked Mark to join him on stage.
In the early ‘60s Mark worked on the now classic
jazz recording Rah on the Riverside label, featuring
legendary jazz players Bill Evans, Clark Terry, Urbie
Green, Blue Mitchell and Wynton Kelly.
Mark Murphy’s coterie of fans also includes tap dancer
Gregory Hines, who jumped up on stage at Mark’s 4
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
• PERFORMERBIOS •
3 Las Vegas engagement in 1995 to join him for an impromptu duet. Vocal greats Betty Carter, Peggy Lee, Cleo
Laine and Shirley Horn all sing or sang Murphy’s praises
as one of the best in he business.
Doug Organ
Doug Organ is a producer, engineer and freelance musician who
runs a downtown project studio,
Rancho Relaxo. He plays keys,
drums and other instruments, in
the bands Roger, The SuperBand,
Toque, and reClaim.
Tilo Paiz
This percussion dynamo started playing marimbas in the
family band at the age of seven. By the age of fourteen
he was already a full-fledged
professional drummer in the big
band scene in San Salvador, and
went on to become one of Central
America’s premier musicians,
not only as a performer but as a
bandleader, recording artist, composer/arranger and teacher.
Since coming to Edmonton in 1990, he has established
himself as a major force in the Alberta music scene,
playing with such musicians as Tommy Banks, P.J. Perry,
Bob Stroup, Sandro Dominelli, Gaye Delorme, Tacoy
Ryde, and Toronto recording artist Pavlo.
P.J. Perry
P.J. Perry has become recognized by critics, colleagues
and listeners as being one of North America’s premier
saxophonists.
P.J. has shared the stage with countless jazz greats such
as Dizzy Gillespie, Woody Shaw,
Michel LeGrand, Pepper Adams,
Kenny Wheeler, Tom Harrell, and
The Boss Brass among others.
P.J. has recently been performing
his own show “The Joy of Sax”
with orchestras across the country.
He has also performed with the
Edmonton Symphony, Winnipeg Symphony, Saskatoon
Symphony, Kamloops Symphony, Hamilton Philharmonic, Montreal Symphony, Kitchener-Waterloo, and
the Vancouver Island Symphony.
Doug Riley
Doug Riley has been a pillar of the Canadian musical
community since the early 1960’s. He is universally recognized for composing, arranging
and performing with some of the
most prolific artists in the classical,
jazz and commercial genres.
Doug has received international
awards for recording, performing
and commercial endeavours. He 4
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
3 has worked on recordings with Ray Charles, Natalie
McMaster, David Clayton Thomas, The Brecker Brothers, Bob Seger, Ringo Starr, Gordon Lightfoot, Anne
Murray, Moe Koffman, and many more including numerous solo and group recordings under his own name.
Doug Riley has served as music director for many television and radio shows, appeared at many jazz festivals,
and collaborated with symphonies around the world
that performed his compositions with Placido Domingo,
Ofra Harnoy, the National Ballet, and Michael Burgess.
Kent Sangster
Kent Sangster, one of Canada’s top jazz saxophonists, is
truly a multi-faceted musician of the highest regard. An
accomplished composer and arranger that is involved
in a broad range of the music industry; locally, nationally and in Europe.
Kent’s latest CD release Obsession(2006) with a new ensemble
The Obsessions Octet, received
a 2007 JUNO Award nomination in the Contemporary Jazz
Category. In addition to his new
CD, Kent also has three other
releases, A Matter Of Time ( 2003 ), Keeping the Spirit
(1998) and Adventures (1995).
Judi Singh
Judi Singh started singing when she was 17 at the
Yardbird Suite in its original location on Whyte Avenue
and 104 Street. She went on to perform on many locally
produced radio and television.
Through almost 40 years of
association with Senator Tom
Banks, Judi has recorded
and performed in most of the
concert halls in Alberta. She is
currently involved in various
projects with the Black Heritage
Singers of Alberta, who were
part of the Command Performance for Queen Elizabeth
and Prince Phillip celebrating Alberta’a 100th birthday.
Returning to the Yardbird Suite for the annual reunion
celebration is a special event for Judi as she looks
forward to performing with pianist Ken Chaney (who
is also her first cousin). In Judi’s words, “singing at the
Suite is like coming home, and it is an honor to be part
of its history”.
Lew Tabackin
Lew Tabackin is an artist of astonishing vision. His
electrifying flute playing is at once virtuosic, primordial,
cross-cultural and passionate. His distinctive tenor sax
style includes the use of wide
intervals, abrupt changes of
mood and tempo and purposeful
fervor, all in the service of his
instrument - melodically, rhythmically and dynamically. 4
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
• PERFORMERBIOS •
Bob Tildesley
Bob Tildesley is a masterful muted trumpet and
flugelhorn player. He has performed with Eddie Harris, Kenny Wheeler, P.J. Perry,
Tommy Banks, Duke Robillard
and others. His musical interests span a broad range. He has
played on recordings with Lester
Quitzau, Lin Elder, Jay McShann,
Jann Arden and many others.
Bob leads his own adventurous
group, “Indigenous Aliens”.
Blaine Wikjord
A leading Canadian exponent of jazz drumming, Blaine
Wikjord has accumulated an impressive list of credits
over his notable professional career. He has performed
with many internationally renowned artists including
Freddy Hubbard, Carl Fontana,
Lockjaw Davis, Barney Kessel,
Tommy Banks, Shorty Rogers,
Kenny Wheeler, Scott Hamilton,
Oliver Gannon, P.J. Perry, Fraser
MacPherson and Benny Golson.
In 1998 he was a recipient of Canada’s prestigious
Juno Award for Best mainstream Jazz Recording
on the High Fraser Quintet Album entitled “In the
Meantime”.
Blaine has also recorded with Oliver Gannon, Campbell Ryga, Ross Taggart, Dee Daniels and Charles
MacPherson.
Rhonda Withnell
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
Some of the pAST
PERFORMERS at the
YARDBIRDSUITE
andedmontonjazzsociety 6
Canadian
Performers 6
Alain Caron
Francois Carrier
Eugene Chadbourne
Bobby Cairns
Ken Chaney
Ken Aldcroft
Dawn Chubai
Lina Allemano
Cindy Church
Mike Allen
Bill Coon
Steve Amirault
Paul Cram
Chris Andrew
Laura Crema
Lane Arndt
Stuart Crosley
Beth Arrison
Jeari Czapla
Charlie Austin
Tara Davidson
Dave Babcock
Kevin Dean
Randy Bachman
Rubim deToledo
Tommy Banks
Melody Diachun
Michael Bates
Dino Dominelli
Jean Beaudet
Sandro Dominelli
Marc Beaudin
Michel Donato
Don Berner
Dianne Donovan
Ed Bickert
Opening
Act • Rhonda Withnell
Wrey Downs
Remi Bolduc
Chet Doxas
Francois
Bourassa
Rhonda
Withnell
• vocals
Jim Doxas
Gail Bowen
Andrew
Glover
• piano
Jerrold Dubyk
David
Braid
Kevin Elaschuk
Craig Brenan
Don Bradshaw
• bass
Barry Elmes
Jim
Brenan
Thom Bennett • drums
Bill Emes
Jeri Brown
Jane Fair
Brian Buchanan
Bernard Falaise
Ralf Buschmeyer
Wayne Feschuk
An Evening
Glenn Buhrwith Jazz Singer
Vivianne Cardinal
Cheryl Fisher 4
FRIDAY•MARCH 23
Extraordinaire Mark Murphy
A Grant MacEwan College graduate, Rhonda joined
the popular band Better Days and began performing
a wide variety of music from jazz and rock to country
and traditional music, but jazz
music is Rhonda’s first love. She
has appeared at Edmonton’s
Winspear Centre, accompanied
by the Tommy Banks Orchestra
and P.J. Perry.
Mark Murphy • vocals
Misha Piatigorsky • piano
Mike Lent • bass
Sandro Dominelli • drums
While jazz remains close to her
heart, Rhonda has always strived
to expand her musical horizons and, as lead vocalist
and vocal arranger for the ten piece funk band “The
Craft”, she found new inspiration in funk and rhythm
and blues. <
Opening Act • Anna Beaumont
Anna Beaumont • vocals
Charlie Austin • piano
Glenn Durksen • bass
Thom Bennett • drums
SATURDAY•MARCH 24
An Evening with Jazz Singer
Extraordinaire Mark Murphy
Mark Murphy • vocals
Misha Piatigorsky • piano
Mike Lent • bass
Sandro Dominelli • drums
Some of thepAST
PERFORMERS
at the
YARDBIRDSUITE
andedmontonjazzsociety 6
3Simon Fisk
Tom Foster
Hugh Fraser
Rosemary Galloway
James Gelfand
Mike Gillespie
Tom Gilroy
Andrew Glover
Thom Golub
John Gray
Michelle Gregoire
Gary Guthman
Bobby Hales
Glen Halls
Kate HammetVaughan
Bartha Hartman
Knut Haugsoen
Joel Haynes
Jim Head
Mike Herriott
Ken Hoffman
Tyler Hornby
D.D. Jackson
Bill Jamieson
Christine Jensen
Michael
Kaeshammer
Eyvind Kang
Aaron Keyes
George Koller
Diana Krall
Jake Langley
Ranee Lee
Rollanda Lee
Mo Lefever
Peter Leitch
Marilyn Lerner
Lorne Lofsky
Mathias Lupri
Earl MacDonald
Kirk MacDonald
Zen Magus
Julie Mahendran
Peter Manley
Marty Majorowicz
Jon McCaslin
Jeremiah McDade
George
McFetridge
Cindy McLeod
Dean McNeill
Brett Miles
Joel Miller
Mike Murley
Bruce Nielsen
David Occhipinti
Michael Occhipinti
Roberto Occhipinti
Maxwell Roach
Audrey Ochoa
Elsie Osborne
Tilo Paiz
David Parker
P.J. Perry
Jim Pinchin
Karin Plato
Bernard Primeau
Bill Prouten
Joshua Rager
Min Rager
Claude Ranger
Dave Restivo
Bill Richards
Doug Riley
Chandelle Rimmer
Bryn Roberts
Barry Romberg
Renee Rosnes
Mike Rud
Campbell Ryga
Ian Sadler
Ron Samsom
Ron Samworth
Kent Sangster
Daniel Schnee
Joe Sealy
Bernie Senensky
Earl Seymour
Darren Sigesmund
Judy Singh
Johanna Sillanpaa
Bill Smith
John Stetch
Ben Sures
Harley Symington
Pierre Tanguay
Rick Tait
Chris Tarry
Don Thompson
Rob Thompson
Bob Tildesley
Paul Tobey
Brad Turner
Ross Ulmer
Richard Underhill
Dylan van der Schyff
Brodie West
Nancy Walker
Martin Walters
Flora Ware
Kenny Wheeler
Tony Wilson
Rhonda Withnell
Brent Wright
Dave Young
Mike Zilber
Canadian
6
groups
Actual Jazz
Quartet
Alberta Jazz
Ensemble
Alberta Jazz
Repertory Orchestra
Bomba
Canadian Hot Stars
Carn-Allemano Quintet
Chamber Graffiti
Dixieland Express
Double Duo
Edmonton Big Band
Fern
GMCC Outreach Big
Band
Jazz Birds
Jefferson-Grant
Quintet
Junction
Mad Satie Trio
Manic Thematic Trio
Merlin Factor
Mobius Quartet
Modo Trio
Next Day Hill
NOJO
nuSteps
Pacific Salt
Peters Drury Trio
Primal Orbit
River City Big Band
Saturday Pro Band
Shucker
Strangeness Beauty
Terrain
Time Warp
TIN Naked Band
Toque
U.R.J.E.
VEJI
Vibre
Wine, Women and
Song
Workshop Six
Zebradonk
INTERNATIONAL
Performers 6
John Abercrombie
Pepper Adams
Nat Adderley
Toshiko Akiyoshi
Karrin Allyson
Ernestine Anderson
Ray Anderson
Peter Appleyard
Ab Baars
Derek Bailey
Chet Baker
Joey Baron
Gary Bartz
Han Bennink
Bob Berg
Gene Bertoncini
Jim Black
Art Blakey
Carla Bley
Anthony Braxton
Randy Brecker
Ray Brown
Gary Burton
Don Byron
Hadley Caliman
Betty Carter
Don Cherry
Pete Christlieb
Richie Cole
Ornette Coleman
Steve Coleman
Chick Corea
Stanley Cowell
Fernanda Cunha
Andrew Cyrille
Franco D’Andrea
Palle Daniellson
Eddie ‘Lockjaw’ Davis
Blossom Dearie
Tobias Delius
Jack DeJohnette
Loek Dikker
Barbara Donald
Christy Doran
Dave Douglas
Hamid Drake
Mark Dresser
Marty Ehrlich
Herb Ellis
Weimar Escobar
Robin Eubanks
Art Farmer
Joe Farrell
Sonny Fortune
Curtis Fowlkes
Erik Friedlander
Dave Friesen
Bill Frisell
Satoko Fujii
Curtis Fuller
Hal Galper
Jan Garbarek
Stan Getz
Dizzy Gillespie
Frode Gjerstad
Dexter Gordon
Benny Green
Johnny Griffin
David Grisman
Maciej Grzywacz
Charlie Haden
Tim Hagans
John Handy
Roland Hanna
Jim Hall
Billy Harper
Billy Hart
Roy Haynes
Jimmy Heath
Percy Heath
Joe Henderson
Billy Higgins
Dave Holland
Paul Horn
Wayne Horvitz
Freddie Hubbard
Steve Hudson
Bobby Hutcherson
Susi Hyldgaard
Milt Jackson
Etta James
Jan Jarczyk
Al Jarreau
Keith Jarrett
Alphonso Johnson
J.J. Johnson
Marc Johnson
Elvin Jones
Clifford Jordan
Sheila Jordan
Theo Jorgensmann
Barney Kessel
Billy Kilson
Peter Knight
Lee Konitz
Steve Kuhn
Joe LaBarbera
Pat LaBarbera
Katia & Marielle
Labeque
Steve Lacy
Oliver Lake
Pui Ming Lee
Piotr Lemanczyk
Victor Lewis
Dave Liebman
Jeanette Linstrom
Charles Lloyd
Joe Lovano
Adam Makowicz
Russell Malone
Charlie Mariano
Wynton Marsalis
Paul McCandless
John McLaughlin
Jay McShann
Myra Melford
Pat Metheny
Hendrik Meurkens
Clarence ‘Big’ Miller
Roscoe Mitchell
Ben Monder
Jemeel Moondoc
Eddie Moore
Glen Moore
Airto Moreira
George Mraz
Mark Murphy
Michael Musillami
Randy Newman
Mike Nock
Fredrik Nordstrom
Adam Nussbaum
Darek ‘Oles’
Oleszkiewicz
Makoto Ozone
Evan Parker
Kim Parker
William Parker
Joe Pass
Jaco Pastorius
Gary Peacock
Michel Petrucciani
Alberto Pinton
Jean-Luc Ponty
Chris Potter
Prasanna
Bobby Previte
Julian Priester
Dewey Redman
Rufus Reid
Steve Reid
Sam Rivers
Max Roach
Red Rodney
Wallace Roney
Sonny Rollins
Louise Rose
Roswell Rudd
Hakan Rydin
Marit Sandvik
John Scofield
Bud Shank
Woody Shaw
Bobby Shew
Maciej Sikala
Steve Slagle
Jarek Smietana
Wadada Leo Smith
Dr. Lonnie Smith
Marvin “Smitty”
Smith
Steve Smith
Chris Speed
Tomasz Stanko
Bobo Stenson
Sonny Stitt
John Stowell 4
Some of the
pAST PERFORMERS at the YARDBIRDSUITE
andedmontonjazzsociety 6
3Dave Stryker
Ira Sullivan
Steve Swallow
Harvie Swartz
Steve Swell
Lew Tabackin
Buddy Tate
John Taylor
Charles Tolliver
Ralph Towner
Sigurd Ulveseth
Nana Vasconcelos
Eddie ‘Cleanhead’
Vinson
David Virelles
Miroslav Vitous
Cuong Vu
Collin Walcott
Mal Waldron
Melissa Walker
Cedar Walton
Mitch Watkins
Ernie Watts
Trevor Watts
Eberhard Weber
Wolter Wierbos
Buster Williams
Jessica Williams
Phil Woods
Reggie Workman
Leszek Zadlo
INTERNATIONAL
GROUPS 6
A.D.D. Trio
Akiyoshi/Tabackin BB
Aros
Alive!
Art Ensemble Of Chicago
Available Jelly
Bechet-Legacy
Claudia Quintet
Codona
Concord Super Band
e.s.t.
Heath Brothers
ICP Orchestra
Jazz Messengers
Jazz Band Ball
Orchestra
Kamosc Trio
Magic Malik
Mingus Dynasty Band
Nana
New DeltaAkhri
Oregon
Quantum
Sackville Allstars
Sex Mob
Timeless Allstars
Trio 3
United Front
Urban Connection Trio
Who Trio
Zony Mash
MON
TUESDAY
WED
28
21
14
7
yardbirdsuite50thanniversary
WITH
TUESDAY • MARCH 20TH
GMCC/UofA Big Band
WITH
Tuesday Jam Sessions
TUESDAY • MARCH 13TH
Wagner Combo
WITH
Tuesday Jam Sessions
TUESDAY • MARCH 6TH
Kent Sangster
Tuesday Jam Sessions
MARCH2007
5
12
19
26
Tuesday Jam Sessions
WITH
Rhonda Withnell
TUESDAY • MARCH 27TH
Thank you to our sponsors4
THURS
FRIDAY
SUN
Publication Mail # 40047729
SATURDAY
4
Opening Act • George Blondheim
25
18
11
The Yardbird
Suite
Allstars
SATURDAY • MARCH 3RD
1
FRIDAY • MARCH 2ND
featuring P.J. Perry
and Jim Head
• Opening Act •
Mike Gillespie Quintet
Doug Riley
Sandro
Dominelli Group
featuring P.J. Perry
and Jim Head
• Opening Act •
Big Ideas
with Special Guest Doug Organ
SATURDAY • MARCH 10TH
SATURDAY • MARCH 17TH
FRIDAY • MARCH 9TH
An Evening with
Jazz Singer
Extraordinaire
Mark Murphy
The
Edmonton Jazz
Orchestra
FRIDAY • MARCH 16TH
Opening Act • Anna Beaumont
Special Guest • Lew Tabackin
An Evening with
Jazz Singer
Extraordinaire
Mark Murphy
SATURDAY • MARCH 24TH
The
Edmonton Jazz
Orchestra
FRIDAY • MARCH 23RD
SATURDAY • MARCH 31ST
Opening Act • The Brenan
Brothers Band
Tilo Paiz Latin
Jazz Party
Opening Act • Rhonda Withnell
Special Guest • Lew Tabackin
Doug Riley
Sandro
Dominelli Group
Opening Act • Chris Andrew
The Yardbird
Suite
Allstars
8
15
22
29
Dave Babcock’s
Jump Orchestra
featuring guest
singer Johanna
Sillanpaa
Opening Act • Dino Dominelli
Quintet
FRIDAY • MARCH 30TH
• EDMONTON JAZZ SOCIETY • YARDBIRD SUITE
• 11 Tommy Banks Way (Corner of 102 Street & 86 Avenue) Edmonton, Alberta T6E 2M2 CANADA