Monday Roundup #289

Community notes:

• Shout out to Chris Banks, who is taking over as the booker at The Rex. One of the friendliest folks around, Chris can be found in all kinds of jazz scenarios, from the more straight-up trad stuff, to kickin' it with the weirdos — which should bode well for his new role.

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Concert announcements:

Justin Orok presents (feat. Simone Hope with Anna Atkinson/Tiffany Wu/Audrey Mae/Ryan Dugre/Justin Orok) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-04 (Tuesday – early). [more info]

Blank Hellscape (CUTE / not a band / Greydini) / Osler Records 2026-08-04 (Tuesday). $15.37, all ages. [tickets + more info]

Peripheral Vision (The Adjacence [Karen Ng/Lina Allemano/Nick Fraser plus special guest Brodie West]) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-04 (Tuesday). [more info]

Free Improvisation Thursdays (feat. Brent Tanemura/Max Stover/Andrew Frost/Nick Fraser) / Water to Wine 2026-08-06 (Thursday). $PWYC. [more info]

More Noise Please x Coward Patrol present: A Fundraiser for Severe Exposure (feat. Secrétaire Particulière / Fossils / Twin Mask / Iradiated Sac / Harmpit / Miracle Blade) / BSMT254 2026-08-06 (Thursday). $17.31. [tickets + more info]

Batuki Music presents: Habari Africa Festival (feat. Sounds of the Maghreb [Maryem Tollar/Hassan El Hadi/Fethi Nadjem/Naghmeh Farahmand] / Lorraine Klaasen / Indanga Dance / Rhythm Section) / Harbourfront Centre 2026-08-07 (Friday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]

Oval Window Records: Dual Album Release Celebration (feat. Steve Sladkowski & Joe Sorbara / NOPE [Richard Marsella & Joe Sorbara] / The Lollipop People) / The Rex 2026-08-07 (Friday – 11 p.m.)

Batuki Music presents: Habari Africa Festival (feat. Aron Nitunga / Girma Woldemichael feat. Melat Mengesha / Boblée Cirque Danse / Jonathan Nvita / ILAM / ZahraMoves / Keïla) / Harbourfront Centre 2026-08-08 (Saturday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]

Toronto Improvisers Orchestra / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-09 (Sunday – noon). [more info]

Ayal Senior & Friends (feat. Ayal Senior & Kurt Newman / Nick Flanagan / Del Stephen / Jessie Ecklerlin / Harold's Snack Shack) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-09 (Sunday – 2:30 p.m.). [FB event]

Batuki Music presents: Habari Africa Festival (feat. Toronto Burundi Drummers / Boblée Danse Cirque / Soul, Folk & Sun feat. Kunle, Ṣẹwà, Dipo / Zale Seck) / Harbourfront Centre 2026-08-09 (Sunday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]

Diane Roblin’s Life Force [Diane Roblin/George Koller/Tim Shia/John Johnson/Alex Dean/John MacLeod] / The Rex 2026-08-15 (Saturday – 2 p.m.). $pwyc. [more info]

Is your show missing from this list? Submit it via this form!

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Shows this week:

Jazz Rat Mondays (feat. Patrick Smith/Anthony D'Allesandro/Max Simpson/Ernesto Cervini) / Dina's Tavern 2026-07-27 (Monday). $pwyc

Colin Fisher/George Koller/Jeff Luciani/Diane Roblin / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-27 (Monday). [FB event]

Solitary Shrew Presents: A fundraiser for Toronto Indigenous Harm Reduction (feat. Ever Since We Met / Public Library) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-28 (Tuesday – early). $20/pwyc. [more info]

Agnes [live studio recording!] [Rob Clutton/Bea Labikova/Mira Martin-Gray/Doug Tielli/Kevin Turcotte/Mark Zurawinski] / Annette Studios 2026-07-28 (Tuesday). $20 or pwyc

Zevon (Blunderspublik / Dorky & Best [Germaine Liu feat. Karen Ng/Heather Saumer/Mark Zurawinski]) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-29 (Wednesday – early). $pwyc. [more info]

Madeleine Ertel/Dan Fortin/Juliuss Jahn/Nick Fraser / The Emmet Ray 2025-07-29 (Wednesday)

Kathryn Merriam with Bea Labikova/Raphael Roter/Heather Saumer) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-29 (Wednesday). [more info]

Summer Music in the Garden ["a program of 16th and 17th century music"] (feat. Arparla and Elixir Baroque Ensemble) / Toronto Music Garden 2025-07-30 (Thursday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]

Ghost Quartet [Brent Tanemura/Brodie West/Reg Schwager] / Water to Wine 2025-07-30 (Thursday). $pwyc, 19+. [more info]

lightsweetcrude presents: An Evening of Visual Music (feat. David Sait / Del Stephen / Jason Steidman) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-30 (Thursday). $pwyc. [more info]

Ian Sinclair Quartet [Ian Sinclair/Harley Card/Mark Godfrey/Nick Fraser with special guest Alex Samaras] / The Emmet Ray 2026-07-30 (Thursday). $15. [more info]

Body Help [Colin Fisher/Josh Cole/Kieran Adams with special guest Hugh Marsh] / Dina's Tavern 2026-07-30 (Thursday). $10. [more info]

Ministry of Phonic Services presents (feat. Stephen Parkinson/Allison Cameron/Karen Ng / Owen Kurtz & Callon Murphy) / United Unlimited 2026-07-30 (Thursday). $pwyc

Patrick Smith Quartet [Patrick Smith/Jen Lo/Julian Anderson Bowes/Angelica Zavala] / The Rex 2026-07-31 (Friday – 5 p.m.). $pwyc. [more info]

Imaginary Lines Quartet [Walter Gershon/Jonathan Kay/Brandon Davis/Joe Sorbara] (Walter Gershon & Reagan Mitchell) / The Emmet Ray 2026-07-31 (Friday – 7 p.m.). $15. [more info]

All-Set! Presents (feat. Tania Gill/Jake Oelrichs/Mike Smith) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-31 (Friday – early). [more info]

Exit Points #74 (feat. Ankita/Turk Himself/Adam Dilouya/Brianna Maltais / MJ C./R Grunwald/Connor Kurtz/Stefanie Proulx / "switchemups") / Array Space 2026-07-31 (Friday). $20 (advance)/$25 (door). [more info]

The Ryan Driver Sextet With Thom Gill As Ryan Driver [Thom Gill/Martin Arnold/Rob Clutton/Nick Fraser/Brodie West/Michael Davidson] / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-31 (Friday). [more info]

The Passport Sessions (feat. K2 [Kayla Milmine & Jonathan Kay] / Imaginary Lines Quartet [Walter Gershon/Joe Sorbara/Jonathan Kay/Brandon Davis) / Gerrard Art Space 2026-08-01 (Saturday). $20/pwyc (snacks included). [FB event]

C'est la fête [album release show!with special guests special guests Bill Bisset, Karen Ng and Mark Hundevad] / The Tranzac (Main Hall) 2025-08-01 (Saturday). $25/pwyw. [more info]

Dave Clark presents (feat. Eiyn Sof / Jessica Spurrell) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-02 (Sunday – early). [more info]

Adjacent Spheres (feat. Michael Davidson/Angelica Zavala/Michael Herring/Miles Cakebread-Kraus) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-02 (Sunday). [more info]

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It happened this week...

• ...on Recorded on July 27, 2023, at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge (Karen Ng's Monthly).

Karen Ng/Philippe Melanson/Joe Moffett/Sandy Ewen - [1st piece, excerpt 1]

• ... on July 30, 2023 at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge).

Jim Lewis/Jean Martin/Andrew Downing - [1st piece, excerpt]

[Do remember that you can click on the tags below to go back and find the original posts (and often, more stuff) from these artists.]

Recording: Lewis/Martin/Downing

Artist: Jim Lewis/Jean Martin/Andrew Downing

Songs: [excerpts from two pieces]

Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), July 30, 2023.

Jim Lewis/Jean Martin/Andrew Downing - [1st piece, excerpt]

Jim Lewis/Jean Martin/Andrew Downing - [2nd piece, excerpt]

This was not your grandfather's Martin and Lewis — especially with percussionist Jean Martin and trumpeter Jim Lewis being joined by bassist Andrew Downing. It's a delight to see any of these musicians in action, and all the more so to hear them together — there was a level of veteran canniness here that made this set feel like it could have been a vintage Barnyard release. And beyond that, it was a special treat to see studio whiz Martin showing what can be done, effects-wise, with just a simple microphone — when it's in the hands of someone who knows how to handle gain and control the sound-field. Some instant In a Silent Way-esque zones were definitely being conjured from thin air.

You can check out some more from this set over on youtube:

Recording: A Josh Cole Quintet

Artist: A Josh Cole Quintet

Songs: [three excerpts]

Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), April 20, 2022.

A Josh Cole Quintet - [set 1, 2nd piece excerpt]

A Josh Cole Quintet - [set 2, 1st piece excerpt]

A Josh Cole Quintet - [set 2, 2nd piece excerpt]

I like it when musicians present a group with the indefinite article at the start of the name — an implication that the audience is witnessing just one of many possibilities that could have emerged on this occasion. This particular ad hoc quintet, convened for some improvisations while Kind Mind takes a month off in its usual slot in Josh Cole's Tranzac residency, took the rarely-seen step of inviting another bassist (Rob Clutton) along for the ride, and surrounded them with sounds from Jim Lewis (trumpet), Ryan Driver (analog synth) and Blake Howard (blanket filled with cymbals). Those ingredients combined for some fine squeak-clomp as sounds waxed and waned, those two basses working together underneath it all.

Recording: The Lady and The Tramp

Artist: The Lady and The Tramp

Songs: Down by the Riverside + Medley: Tea for Two/Fly Me to The Moon/Chicago (That Toddlin' Town)/I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face

Recorded at Wenona Lodge (Furniture Music), May 28, 2019.

The Lady and The Tramp - Down by the Riverside

The Lady and The Tramp - Medley: Tea for Two/Fly Me to The Moon/Chicago (That Toddlin' Town)/I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face

This group, with Christine Duncan singing and a rhythm section of Jake Oelrichs and Alex Fournier, was originally put together and booked for this show by Justin Haynes; after his passing, the musicians decided to honour his artistic intention by going ahead with it, drafting in Jim Lewis to complete the group. As is perhaps a good way to proceed in the face of sad thoughts, the band played with fiercely-absurd joy. Taking a decidedly non-standard approach to some standards, Duncan would lurch into a song, the group catching the vibe and clattering and moaning behind her — an improvised hit parade filled with detours and asides.

This was also an appropriate night to formally unveil a commemorative plaque and painting on the piano that Justin Haynes donated to the space. Kudos to Ashley Urquhart and Alex Fournier for doing the legwork to make this happen — hopefully Justin's spirit will be remembered by all who get to play this piano.

[Furniture Music will be back in the basement at Wenona on Tuesday, August 27th.]

Recording: Bristles Trio

Artist: Bristles Trio

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at The Tranzac's Main Hall (Somewhere There Creative Music Festival – Show 5), February 26, 2017.

Bristles Trio - unknown

This trio from Andrew Downing (double bass), Jim Lewis (trumpet) and David Occhipinti (electric guitar) is arguably more bristling with ideas than filled with bristling textures. In fact, as the opening of this piece suggests, the sounds would more often be closer to shimmering.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Mark Segger Sextet

Artist: Mark Segger Sextet

Song: P.F.D.

Recorded at Array Space, January 12, 2015.

Mark Segger Sextet - P.F.D.

Before heading out west for a tour with the Kyle Brenders Quartet, Mark Segger took a few days to gather many of his T.O.-based projects together for a series of shows. I could only make this one, an hour-long set of compositions for his sextet, on which he drums and is joined by Rob Clutton (bass), Tania Gill (piano), Jim Lewis (trumpet), Peter Lutek (woodwinds) and Heather Segger (trombone). There was a bunch of newer material here, much of which (including "Wallpaper Music II" and "Only One Note") felt more "game"-based, executing a series of rules more than focusing on a tune (I could glimpse the score for the latter, and it looked like a page from someone's geometry homework). This one cuts the difference a little, going back and forth with darting little stabs (some of which came from Lutek alternating blats on clarinet and sax) before opening up a little toward the end.

Recording: Mark Segger Sextet

Artist: Mark Segger Sextet

Song: My Dog Has Fleas

Recorded at The Tranzac - Main Hall ("The Second Annual Somewhere There Creative Music Festival" - Show 4), February 23, 2014.

Mark Segger Sextet - My Dog Has Fleas

Full review to follow. Interesting compositions from drummer Mark Segger ranged from stabby to jazzy to skronky, nicely fleshed-out by Rob Clutton (bass), Tania Gill (piano). Jim Lewis (trumpet). Peter Lutek (woodwinds) and Heather Segger (trombone). And a fine end to a very well-executed festival, which should be noted for its community-building, history-respecting yet still right-in-the-moment vibe.

Recording: Spectrum's "Interface"

Artist: Spectrum's "Interface"

Songs: Touch (composed by Dave Wall / Featured Improviser Matthew Roberts) + Looking Back (composed by Heather Segger / Featured Improviser Jim Lewis)

Recorded at Measure ("2013/2014 Season Launch Party"), September 13, 2013.

Spectrum's "Interface" - Touch [edited excerpt]

Spectrum's "Interface" - Looking Back [edited excerpt]

Full review to follow. Taking their musical ideas out of the concert hall and into the bar on a Friday night, local "chamber jazz" composers' collective Spectrum also pushed into some new technological/musical territory with Matt Roberts' "Interface". This audience-participatory system involves an improvising musician in the centre of a ring of eight speakers, each with a contact switch. The circuit is switched on and a pre-recorded loop will play whenever anyone touches the switch and the musician at the same time. As more people take part, impromptu collaborations are possible as longer chains of human contact can be used to set off multiple samples at once. This creates an ever-shifting tableau for the player to react to.

These field recordings give just a taste of The Interface in the wild, with some crowd murmurings audible in the background. The best spot to hear this is right inside that circle of speakers, and as an audience member, you're welcome to do just that. A successful experiment with hugely flexible potential, this definitely calls for a re-mount. In the meantime, you can check out a few more photos at the MFS facebook page.

This night also served as the launch of Spectrum's third season of programming, with three concerts of new, local compositions on the horizon. If you want to support fresh musical thinking from a decidedly non-fusty ensemble, this is for you. And they're keeping things affordable, with tickets running a reasonable $15 each — another reason to show your support.

Recording: Radiant Brass Ensemble

Artist: Radiant Brass Ensemble

Song: AGOrienteering [excerpt]

Recorded at the Art Gallery of Ontario, December 7, 2011.

Radiant Brass Ensemble - AGOrienteering [excerpt]

Full review to follow. Scott Thomson's "cartographic composition" defined a physical route through the second floor galleries of the AGO for eight musicians, who would occasionally stop and play a dialogue when their paths crossed. If my map-reading and time-keeping skills are right, this snippet is a meeting between Nicole Rampersaud and Jim Lewis. The Galleria Italia turns out to have great sonic qualities — can we get more music there?

Recording: Lewis, Downing & Martin

Artist: Lewis, Downing & Martin

Song: an improvisation

Recorded at Christ Church Deer Park, March 2, 2010.

Lewis, Downing & Martin - an improvisation

My notes for this set can be found here.

Gig: The Element Choir

The Element Choir (William Parker / Lewis, Downing & Martin)

Christ Church Deer Park. Tuesday, March 2, 2010.

I know I've strolled by Christ Church Deer Park, just north of St. Clair on Yonge, no few times. But like many houses of worship, it would be a secular concert that would draw me inside. Heading down to this show — a triple-disc release celebration for Barnyard Records — was a last-minute kind of decision for me. Ticketless, I got there in pretty good time, and ended up with a spot nearly right up front. Which turned out to be not only a good spot to hear the music, but to see "music witness" Jeff Schlanger, who has creating action paintings of the artists in real time. His vivid watercolours conveyed the excitement and the movement of these improving musicians.

Meanwhile, there was a big crowd filling in around me.¹ The church was larger than I was expecting, and there was room for more than a couple hundred people underneath the high, arched roof, looking like the hull of an overturned ship protecting the congregation. With a large stage and the giant pipe organ, both of which would be put to use later on, this was a particularly suitable venue for this show.

To start, however, the stage looked relatively barren as Lewis, Downing & Martin took the stage, playing a short jazz set. Their improvisation was "free" and played with each of the instruments — trumpet, double bass, drums — as equals. Starting with a fanfare from Jim Lewis's trumpet, and a response from Andrew Downing on bass, they explored a groove for a few minutes before things settled down to Downing's bowing and again the others responded, Lewis playing in the higher register. The music was unforced, allowing as much sonic space between their parts as there was physical space between them on the stage. Their first piece proceeded for about fifteen minutes and was followed by a second, shorter one of about five minutes, proceeding along a slower, more meditative line. To my surprise, that was the end of their set — enjoyable stuff that could have gone on longer.

Listen to an excerpt from this set here.

I cannot say I knew of William Parker before reading up on this concert, but some quick browsing showed some impressive connections — associated with Cecil Taylor, a member of David S. Ware and Peter Brötzmann's groups — so I was intrigued, though somewhat unsure at the thought of a solo bass set. It turned out to be well worth seeing, though Parker's work in this vein might be more suited to witnessing in person than home listening. To hear his music in a rich acoustic space and to witness the physicality with which he played surely made this a notable experience.

To my ears, his métier was closer to avant-garde classical music than, say, bop — which is to say that it was underlaid with, if not atonality, then something outside an easy harmonic tunefulness.² Parker played with bow for most of the set, but given his tremendous dexterity, he would also sometimes be plucking strings with his upper hand even while bowing. With a continuous internal logic, he played for about twenty-five minutes, and it was pretty gripping throughout. The energy that was flowing through him was well-captured by Jeff Schlanger's painting, shown at the top of this post.

Having seen The Element Choir a couple times before, I had a good idea of what the basic shape of the performance would be like going in. But this was different by a whole order of magnitude. There was a larger complement of choir members, for one thing — around sixty on the stage, although I didn't get an exact count. Plus, the evening's earlier performers were joined by Eric Robertson, playing the church's giant pipe organ. As always, the Choir was under the gifted direction of Christine Duncan, conducting the wholly improvised set with a series of gestures. It started with a small number of voices, Duncan selecting a few people to create an almost chatter-like background. Then the pipe organ kicked in, and William Parker's bass as well after a bit. The choir slowly increased in sound in what I always think of as that 2001 journey-through-the-monolith effect. Jim Lewis and Jean Martin kicked in with a groove which seemed to pull us to the other side, and the choir faded as Parker and Andrew Downing played a brief duet.

And onwards, each — ahem — element on stage playing off the others, all of it making glorious use of the space, which allowed for a wide dynamic range of quiet interludes and explosive outbursts. There was even a delightful moment of contingency when a fire truck raced up Yonge street outside, and as the noise faded, Duncan made a whirling gesture that the choir took up with their own siren noise in response. Ebbing and flowing for about forty-five minutes, the set ended with a cloud of ambient voices hovering over a theme on the organ — the most "church" sounding part of the night, although if we were going to compare theologies this would be more like the grand church of nature than some book-bound dogma. Whatever it was, it was uplifting.

This show was recorded for broadcast by CBC radio. If you dig around their archives, you might be able to find it online. In the meantime, I have a couple excerpts for you to listen to — one more "chattery" and one more "ethereal".

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¹ During the break, I overheard one noteworthy member of the local improvised music scene wryly comment to a friend that if this is what the crowds are like "up here", maybe Somewhere There should move north of St. Clair.

² Though, I guess, one should really file this under "just music" — beyond categories — anyway. Surely that's how Parker would see it — in his brief comments to the crowd after playing he passed along the old joke about what happens when you listen to the blues backwards, which arguably says something about his notion of where the music is coming from.