April 04 2011
From an Asian-based jazz fan's recent email to the Pianobabbler:
"What is the jazz scene in Canada like? From my understanding, it's fragmented and falling apart."
The Pianobabbler's hedgehog quills bristled in response. He leapt to the defence of his home and native jazzland.
Well, not leapt. In good Canadian fashion, he thought about it impassively. Then he got down to the job of quietly dismantling his faraway friend's misconception.
Canada is a jazz heaven. We have jazz talent, ability, interest, passion, education, audiences, buzz, vibe, yin, yang and rebop.
Whatever jazz may be (a big whatever- I explored it in Pianobabbler 35; for my views on what jazz should be, see Pianobabbler 87), it has a vital and growing home in Canada.
True, jazz here has some fragmentation. Some sectors do not or will not connect with others. But one can account for this in part by the geographic enormity of this country, and its relatively small population. Nothing feeds communal fragmentation like communal distance.
True, jazz does face problems: (1) venue turnover and (2) player saturation. But (1) venues come and go. As one goes, another one comes. (2) Saturation, as in 1000 graduates from jazz programs across the country every year. 1000 new players annually in a country our size, which represents only 3% of the music market worldwide, add a lot of mass to the player population. But this saturation also points to the scene's living dynamism.
And true, the IAJE went bankrupt in part from the low turnout to its 2008 Toronto conference.
Jazz sailing in Canada is not all smooth. But overall, jazz in Canada is way happening. Points of proof:
- Jazz programs in Canadian universities and colleges are packing in the students. Sold out. McGill, U of T, Humber, York and others are producing world-level musicians consistently, annually.
- An active club scene lives on in Canada, although it does not resemble the scene of yore when clubs defined jazz. You can browse a list of some, but by no means all, of the clubs here.
- Toronto serves as home to Jazz.FM91. This 24 hour, donor supported jazz radio station has earned a dedicated following, and international admiration. CBC and campus radio add to the broadcasting heft.
- Canada is producing jazz stars faster than a supernova in heat produces new planets: Bublé, Krall, Matt Dusk, Kellylee Evans, Sophie Milman, Jane Bunnett.
- The festival scene thrives.
- A new institution to give jazz a solid footing has arisen: The Jazz Performance and Education Centre. (The Pianobabbler sits on its advisory board.)
- Some jazz recording labels are enjoying good health: Alma, Justin Time, Effendi.
Certainly, money and opportunities do not fall plentifully and easily from the jazz trees in Canada. But not only is jazz in Canada not "fragmented and falling apart," it's falling together very nicely, thank you very much.
The Pianobabbler has babbled.
The Pianobabbler is a RonDavisMusic production. The Pianobabbler's blog posts appear weekly at pianobabbler.com. Please remember to leave your comments and thoughts below. Subscribe to the RSS feed. And subscribe to RonDavisNews by clicking on the Mailing List link, above right. And follow us on Twitter.
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