2 jazz accordionists walk into a strip club
Our own man on that rare jazz instrument came down to Tyrant after his gig at Zameen and sat in with the Nebula Project
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Pianist-accordionist Ben Rosenblum's Nebula Project, from New York on a tour I just wrote about in the free weekly, filled Tyrant Studios last Friday. I was delighted to see that after worrying about the draw of some recent Tyrant tour stops, as you might remember. Even more delightful was that Taras Luka, our resident jazz accordionist, came down right after his own gig at Zameen Art House and sat in for a tune. He borrowed Rosenblum's accordion instead of unboxing his own and launching into an accordion duet. Oh well! They jammed on "Bluesette", despite the horn players admitting to not really knowing it.
The Nebula Project – a sextet with trumpet, tenor, guitar, bass drums, and the leader – was a fun band and covered pan-Latin to reggae and New Orleans styles. Rosenblum flashed a beaming smile often at various moments of groove and checkpoints. I'm bound to appreciate that.
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Infidels Jazz sold out Jeff Chen's band Chen Baker at the Fox last Saturday. The band played city pop, the Japanese post-disco pop of decades past. The two vocalists, Mia Wang and Xirui Wang, were both strong. As for the band, including Chen on guitar, smooth saxophonist Neal Wang, keyboardist Justin Juan, and drummer Dario Acosta? Wholesome and awkward, which made for a lighthearted, enjoyable show. The band members expanded the range from strictly city-pop hits to a bit of anime music (Neon Genesis Evangelion's "A Cruel Angel's Thesis") and Taiwanese pop; their next Infidels show features Mandopop music at Hero's Welcome in June.
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Bassist Isaac Story brought his chordless trio with saxophonist Connor Lum and drummer Jordy McIntosh to Frankie's After Dark last Friday. Two weeks before that, they had played Tyrant to celebrate their brand-new album Wabbit Hunting.
I missed both shows, but we can listen to the album. It's a raw live recording that you need to turn up your volume to hear, but the three musicians carve out clean spaces for their sounds. As the title suggests, we get cartoon-related themes, juxtaposed against standards (and a tune called "Rosalina in the Observatory" from the game Super Mario Galaxy). I asked Isaac for more information about the album, because no details appear anywhere I could find. Here's what he wrote me back:
"We set up in the studio room at cap university mid February of last year [i.e. 2024]. I had my brother record it while he was visiting town with an old Sony 2 track reel to reel and an 8 channel mixer. There's just one original by Connor called "Millmans Mimic" in dedication to [their friend the pianist] Ben Millman, all the other tunes we just sorta picked in the moment to do."
I enjoy the informal, down-to-earth approach.
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In Surrey, "Programs that may be on the chopping block include Grade 7 band," wrote Sarah Grochowski of the Vancouver Sun on March 1.
"The Surrey Board of Education says it is facing a $16-million budget shortfall for the 2025-26 school year. It has already reduced bus services and has been closing down learning centres," CBC News reported.
Concerned members of the Semiahmoo Secondary music community started a petition, "Prevent Surrey School District from Cutting Grade 7 Band", on February 26:
In a March 1 update, the petitioners claimed 1,300 signatures. Now, they have around 4,000. Members of our scene who teach school in Surrey, including Mackenzie Tran whose posts about it caught my attention, have been sharing this petition for a few weeks.
The petition includes information about providing feedback on the budget by April 6. According to CBC News, "The board has a legal obligation to pass a balanced budget by June 30, 2025."
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Lisa Buck's jazz presentation initative BuckingJam Palace, run in Calgary as the BJP Music Foundation non-profit, released its 2023-24 impact report last month.
Some points to my personal interest are:
