February 12, 2012 2:00pm & 7:30pm
Winnipeg Art Gallery - www.wag.mb.ca
L'amour, Toujours L'amour
With saxophonist CHRISTINE JENSEN, vocalist LIANNE FOURNIER
Saxophonist and composer CHRISTINE JENSEN brings with her a little Parisian-style romance and Old World charm from her hometown of Montreal. Recognized as one of Canada's premiere big band writers, “Christine Jensen’s music is full of surprises that can grab the heart of the listener,” (Mike Chamberlain, Hour). A Valentine’s Day concert with the Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra and featured vocalist LIANNE FOURNIER - a critically acclaimed composer in her own right - serves as the perfect backdrop to showcase her formidable talents.
March 18, 2012 2:00pm & 7:30pm
Winnipeg Art Gallery - www.wag.mb.ca
Late Night at the Village Vanguard
With Village Vanguard Orchestra members JOHN RILEY and DICK OATTS
Through a small red door, and down a narrow flight of stairs off of 7th Avenue in NYC lies the famous Village Vanguard. From its hallowed stage countless legends have performed, and recorded. And every Monday night for the last 40 years, the Village Vanguard Orchestra has been featured. Two staples of that group – drummer JOHN RILEY and saxophonist DICK OATTS – will join the WJO in a concert featuring the music and celebrating the spirit of the famous New York jazz club.
May 13, 2012 2:00pm & 7:30pm
Winnipeg Art Gallery - www.wag.mb.ca
Pictures at an Exhibition
With pianist BRENT FISCHER
Modest Mussorgsky wrote Pictures at an Exhibition in a moment of inspiration after seeing a friend’s artwork on display at a museum. Each of the ten movements musically depicts a specific painting and its instantly recognizable themes brilliantly take the listener on a stroll through a virtual art museum. Pianist, composer and arranger BRENT FISCHER, who learned the craft from his Grammy Award winning father Clare Fischer, has given one of the best known compositions from the classical lexicon a big band makeover. With Fischer’s arrangement as the centerpiece, WJO performs works by Duke Ellington, Wayne Shorter and others to paint pictures on musical canvas in our must-see season finale. One of the best known compositions from the classical lexicon, Modest Mussorgsky’s Pictures at and Exhibition, has been given a big band makeover by BRENT FISCHER, son of Grammy award winning musician, arranger and composer Clare Fischer. Mussorgsky intended each of the ten movements to tell the story connected to a painting and Fischer’s arrangement, while firmly grounded in the jazz realm, brilliantly takes the listener on a stroll through a virtual art museum. Composers have long used music to clearly and effectively tell a story. Duke Ellington wrote A Tone Parallel to Harlem to musically depict his home. Hector Berlioz wrote Symphonie Fantastique, Rismsky-Korsakov wrote Scheherazade, and Modest Mussorgsky wrote the instantly recognizable Pictures at an Exhibition. Pianist, composer and arranger BRENT FISCHER, who learned the craft from his Grammy Award winning father Clare Fischer, has given Mussorgsky’s masterpiece a big band makeover, managing to stay true to the composer’s original intent while firmly taking the piece into the jazz realm. With Fischer’s arrangement as the centerpiece, WJO performs works by Ellington, Wayne Shorter and others to paint pictures on a musical canvass in our must-see season finale.