Musicians Gallery
Neil Swainson
Neil Swainson (bassist) was born on November 15, 1955 in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. He began playing professionally there, backing visiting musicians including Herb Ellis, Sonny Stitt, and Barney Kessell. He started working with Paul Horn in 1975 and led his own band for a two-year period before relocating to Vancouver in 1976. He has lived and worked in Toronto since 1977. Swainson has been a leading player on the Toronto jazz scene ever since, playing with local and visiting luminaries including Moe Koffman, Rob McConnell, Ed...
read moreClaude Ranger
Claude Ranger (drummer, composer, arranger, teacher) was born on Feb 3, 1941 in Montreal, Canada. He studied drums briefly with several teachers and arranging with Frank Mella. Beginning his career with Montréal show bands, he was a leading figure among the city’s jazz musicians by the mid-1960s. He was a sideman to Lee Gagnon (at La Jazztek 1967-9), Pierre Leduc, Ron Proby among others, and the leader of bands heard on the CBC’s “Jazz en liberté.” He was a member 1969-71 of Aquarius Rising with Brian Barley, Michel...
read moreSam Noto
SAM NOTO (trumpeter, flugelhornist) was born on April 17, 1930 in Buffalo, New York, U.S.A. Reputed as an excellent bop soloist, Noto has worked throughout North America with some of the biggest names and best bands in jazz, including Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Buddy Rich, Red Rodney, Don Menza, Joe Romano, Larry Cavelli, Louie Bellson, Kenny Shroyer, Frank Rossolino, Ed Leddy, Archie LeCoQue, Kent Larsen, Joe “Red” Kelly, Phil Gilbert, Pearl Bailey, Bob Fitzpatrick, Bill Catalano, Jim Amlotte, Anita O’Day, Lennie...
read moreLorne Lofsky
Lorne Lofsky (guitarist) started off playing rock music but took an interest in jazz upon hearing the Miles Davis album “Kind of Blue”. Hearing this record was, for Lofsky, a musical revelation that led to a dramatic change in his approach to playing music. Lofsky began a more formal study of music while attending York University, in the mid 70’s (’74/75), focusing on jazz theory and performance. He spent two years under the guidance of John Gittins and Bob Witmer. At a gig in Toronto Lofsky met jazz pianist Oscar...
read moreCarol Welsman
Carol Welsman (singer, pianist) was born into a musical family on September 29, 1960 in Toronto, Ontario. (Her grandfather, Frank S. Welsman, was the founder and first conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.) Her passion for jazz led her to studies at the the Berklee College of Music in Boston in the 1980s. She later traveled to Europe where she studied voice with Christiane Legrand (sister of Michel) and in Paris, met Romano Musumarra, producer/songwriter for Celine Dion and Pavarotti, soon becoming the English lyricist for...
read moreArchie Alleyne
ARCHIE ALLEYNE (drummer, bandleader) was born Archibald Alexander Alleyne on January 7, 1933 and passed away on June 8, 2015 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. From largely self-taught beginnings, he soared to future and current legendary status during the years after launching his playing career in the early ‘50s. A familiar sight – and sound – as the resident drummer at the famous Town Tavern for more than a decade from 1955 to 1966. Alleyne became the drummer-of-choice for visiting jazz stars including Sonnie Stitt, Billie Holiday, Stan Getz,...
read moreMichael Bublé
Michael Bublé (singer, songwriter) was born in the city of Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada to Lewis Bublé, a salmon fisherman, and Amber (née Santagà). He has two younger sisters, Crystal (an actress) and Brandee. He attended Seaforth Elementary School and Cariboo Hill Secondary School. According to an Oprah interview on 9 October 2009, Bublé dreamed of becoming a famous singer since age two. When he was a teenager, he slept with his Bible and prayed to become a singer. Bublé’s interest in jazz music began around age five when his...
read moreSteve Wallace
Steve Wallace (bassist) was born in 1956, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and is today regarded by many as the most powerful bass player that Canada has produced. He is almost cetainly the most experienced, having begun working with visiting jazz greats in Toronto clubs such as Bourbon street, Lytes, and George’s Spaghetti House while he was still in his twenties, backing some of the music’s most famous names including Clark Terry, Harry “sweets” Edison, Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis, George Coleman, Zoot Sims, and...
read moreBernie Senensky
Bernie Senensky (pianist, composer) was born December 31, 1944 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Recognized as one of Canada’s premier jazz artists and one of the foremost jazz accompanists in the world, Senensky’s playing and his music have been featured in jazz festivals internationally. Since 1975, he has released eight albums, two of which were nominated for Juno Awards. Senensky began playing piano at the age of eight, settling into his interest in jazz when he was 14, studying with Winnipeg jazz eminence Bob Erlendson. He began sitting in...
read moreNorman Marshall Villeneuve
Norman Marshall Villeneuve (drummer) was born May 29, 1938 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Villeneuve grew up in the St. Henri District, home to Oscar Peterson, Oliver Jones (Norm’s cousin), Joe Sealy and his good friend, Claude Ranger. He studied piano with Daisy Peterson Sweeney. His natural talent and flair for rhythm led his brother, Charles Griffith, to teach Norm to tap dance at age 8. Charles bought Norm his first drum kit as a surprise for his 16th birthday. With a voracious appetite for jazz he avidly listened to and copied Elvin Jones,...
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