Guitar Player Magazine calls guitarist Ralf Buschmeyer ‘as smooth and sophisticated as James Bond taking a holiday in Monte Carlo’ and Blues Review Magazine hails him as an ‘inventive musician’. Ralf has been playing professionally since the 1980’s where he grew up playing clubs in Southern Ontario. Jazz studies with Lorne Lofsky at Hamilton’s Mohawk College led to touring Canada for three years and settling in Canada’s Western Provinces where Ralf directed Jazz Guitar studies for Mount Royal University, Ambrose University(Calgary), Selkirk College(BC) as well as being a faculty member for Grant MacEwan University(Edmonton), Nazarene University and University of Calgary. Ralf is currently active as a free-lance performer and private teacher in Southern Ontario as well as faculty for Heritage College Music Department in Cambridge, Ontario. Ralf is a Godin Guitars endorsed artist.

Personnel:

Ralf Buschmeyer-guitar
Kelly Jefferson-saxophone
Morgan Childs-drums
Jeff McLeod-piano and B3

Check out: “All the Things You Are” and “How Deep Is The Ocean“. “At Drum Mania”  “Falling Grace”

“Lofsky’s imagination is fertile (and) his technique it’s match” – Toronto Globe and Mail

Lorne Lofsky started as a typical teenage rock ’n roll guitar player, playing in basement bands and at high school dances. In his late teens, a friend turned him onto Miles Davis’ Classic disk “Kind of Blue” which dramatically altered his approach to playing music. During a week’s gig at the legendary George’s Spaghetti House in Toronto, he met Oscar Peterson, which lead to an enduring relationship, including three years as a member of the Oscar Peterson Quartet, performing at Carnegie Hall, the Montreal Jazz Festival, and around the world.  Lorne was featured on 3 of Oscar Peterson’s recordings, including “live in Paris”.  He has played/toured or recorded with a who’s who of the jazz world, including not only Oscar Peterson, but Ed Bickert, Rob McConnell, Chet Baker, Joey DeFrancesco, Pepper Adams, Ray Brown, Neils Henning Orsted  Pederson, Rosemary Clooney, Kirk MacDonald, Dave Holland, and many other respected members of the international jazz community.

Lorne is unquestionably one of the finest jazz guitarists in the world today. He is a master improviser, manipulating time and melody and taking chances on original compositions and standard tunes. Expect  tunes from the great American Songbook and jazz standards.

Personnel:

Lorne Lofsky-guitar
Neil Swainson-bass
Barry Romberg-drums

Hear Lorne with “Dolphin Dance”

The Natural Women Show hails from Toronto, and presents classic R&B with a focus on the music of Gladys Knight, Chaka Khan, Aretha Franklin and other influential women in Black music of the 60s, 70s and 80s. The show celebrates some of the seminal recordings in American music history, by Black women in the industry. The band was founded by lead singer Jillian Mendez (Juno Award nominee and former recording artist with Island Records) and drummer Bryan Humphreys (Jeff Healey, Lou Pomanti, Emile d’Eon, Scott McCord). Joining them are keyboardist Jason Larmond (Glenn Lewis, Melanie Fiona), guitarist Tony Barrett (Rita Marley, Black Uhuru), saxophonist John Pagnotta (Liberty Silver ,George Olliver) and bassist Roger Williams (Shakura S’Aida, Ivana Santilli, Quisha Wint).

Jillian Mendez is a Toronto-based vocalist and songwriter who began singing when she was two years old. Jillian’s key musical influences include Chaka Khan, Aretha Franklin, and Patti LaBelle. Her early work including being the opening act for R&B band Midnight Star and a vocalist with Juno-nominated R&B band Something Extra. Jillian co-wrote the Juno nominated R&B dance single “Destiny”, and released a remake of Roberta Flack’s, “Feel Like Making Love” on a compilation album along with such artists as Dream Warriors and Boo-Yaa Tribe. Her current work and live performance includes multiple genres including jazz, R&B, soul and classical.

Personnel:

Jillian Mendez – voice
Bryan Humphreys – drums
Jason Larmond – keys
Tony Barrett – guitar
John Pagnotta – saxophone
Roger Williams – bass

Check out:  “Chain of Fools”    “Respect”

• Michael Sarian is a trumpeter, composer, and bandleader known for his unique voice in contemporary jazz. Praised for his “endlessly renewable strain of lyric improvisation” (Peter Margasak, DownBeat), his playing “literally speaks” (Karl Ackermann, All About Jazz), engaging listeners with a deeply emotional and expressive sound. Born in Toronto and raised in Buenos Aires, Sarian moved to New York City in 2012, where he quickly established himself in the city’s vibrant jazz scene. His diverse background and global influences inform a versatile career that spans genres and continents.
  Sarian has performed at prestigious venues such as the Montreux Jazz Festival, the Kennedy Center, Teatro Colón, and Lollapalooza. He has toured the world with the Jonas Brothers and shared the stage with Michael Bublé, Jon Bellion, and Kirk Franklin. He has also performed at iconic New York venues, including the Blue Note, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Barclays Center, Yankee Stadium, and Central Park SummerStage, and has appeared on WNYC’s Soundcheck and NPR’s World Cafe. His work has earned him multiple recognitions, including a 2024 Art Omi: Music Residency and three-time semi-finalist placements in the DCJazzPrix.
• As a recording artist, Sarian’s output is as diverse as his career. He has released three albums with the Michael Sarian Quartet, praised for their “telepathic” interplay and intricate balance of melody and improvisation. The quartet—featuring pianist Santiago Leibson, bassist Marty Kenney, and drummer Nathan Ellman-Bell—has drawn comparisons to late ’70s/early ’80s jazz greats like V.S.O.P. and Milestone-era McCoy Tyner. Their studio albums have garnered praise and significant airplay, including on BBC Radio. Their album Live at Cliff Bell’s (Shifting Paradigm Records, 2024), which captures the group’s dynamic energy in performance and showcases the subtle beauty and intricate spontaneity that define their sound, was named one of the year’s best live albums by The New York City Jazz Record.

Personnel: 

Michael Sarian: trumpet
Santiago Leibson: piano
Marty Kenney: bass
Nathan Ellman-Bell: drums

Check out: “Primo”          “The Pilgrim”           “Subtitles preview”

The Waleed Kush Afro-Jazz ensemble  combines ancient rhythms from Africa with modern jazz harmonies. These two worlds – from different places and eras – meet in our creative expression. Like Toronto, our meeting place, this music is a meeting place. The ensemble was first established in 2002, formerly known as Radio Nomad which was created in 1993 by Waleed Abdulhamid. During the band’s Radio Nomad days, the band toured throughout the world, performing in many high-profile events such as for the United Nations Day and for UNICEF. In 2002, Waleed decided to focus more heavily on using ancient African Rhythms that he had learned in his youth in Sudan. Due to this shift in focus, the band renamed itself as Waleed Kush Afro-Jazz. The band has changed iterations many times since its inception, with multiple award-winning musicians performing with the band. The band currently consists of a core unit performing together since January 2023: Waleed Abdulhamid on electric bass and vocals, Sarah Lounsbury on keyboards and vocals, Cory Sitek on saxophones, Neil Brathwaite on saxophones, and Simon Miminis on drums.

Waleed Kush has toured extensively throughout Ontario, playing all major Jazz Festivals as well as playing throughout Canada at different times. The band was chosen to perform for the Amnesty International Human Rights Day as well as honoured with an award by the Sudanese American Public Affairs Association; performing as the headlining act in Virginia for the duration of the weekend before being presented an award for the generous contributions from Waleed and the band for the betterment of Sudanese culture. Waleed sings in over 15 African and Western languages, celebrating the African diaspora in Toronto’s Black community. As the band leader, Waleed has received numerous awards for different solo and group projects, being awarded several JUNO’s, GRAMMY’s, Pioneer and DORA awards. The newest iteration of the group has recently been awarded the Toronto Art Council Black Artist Grant and the Ontario Art Council Recording Grant, completing a workshop/concert series in the 2023 year with a full-length album to be released in October 2024. The group has always focused on live performances in Toronto and festivals throughout Canada, as well as releasing singles and live music videos.

Personnel:

Waleed Abdul-Hamid-bass and vocals
Simon Miminis-drums
Sarah Lounsbury- keyboards and vocals
Cory Sitek-saxophones
Rudy Ray Kwaku -trumpet

Check out: “Rafiki Yangu”   “Suspect”    “BORA”

“Summer Camargo is truly a talented trumpeter whose sound is rooted in the tradition of jazz trumpet, yet is reaching forward and carving out a new sonic identity within her generation”

— Ulysses Owens Jr.

Summer Camargo, 23, is a native of Hollywood, Florida. She is a Jerome Greene Fellowship recipient at The Juilliard School, where she received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Not only is Summer a regular performer at notable NYC jazz clubs like Dizzy’s, Birdland, and at the Drom with the Mingus Big Band, but she also became the newest and youngest member of the Saturday Night Live house band in 2022.

​Steadily collecting a list of competition wins, grants, and awards, Summer was the recipient of the Laurie Frink Grant, was awarded the Ella Fitzgerald Outstanding Soloist Award, the Dr. J. Douglas White Student Composition Contest, the International Trumpet Guild’s Ryan Anthony Trumpet Memorial Competition, and the Outstanding Trumpet Soloist Awards at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s 2017, 2018, and 2019 Essentially Ellington Festivals.

In her young career, Summer has toured with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra on the Big Band Holidays tour, served as a panelist for Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Jazz Congress, was featured in the FENDI Renaissance – Anima Mundi project in New York City, performed with Jon Batiste at the Newport Jazz Festival, was a guest artist at Wynton at 60, participated in Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead at The Kennedy Center, performed her original composition “Alalazoo” at the 2022 Jazz at Lincoln Center Gala.

Summer released her debut album “To Whom I Love”  in March of 2024, which received a notable review in DownBeat magazine and was featured in their Hot Box.  DownBeat also included her in their 2024 list of “25 for the Future” rising stars of jazz.

Anthony D’Alessandro is a pianist, composer, arranger, and bandleader based in Toronto, Ontario. His own bands have been showcased in many notable venues and festivals across Canada including the Jazz Bistro, the Toronto Summer Music Festival, the Jazz Sudbury Festival, and the Rex Hotel Jazz and Blues Bar, among others. He regularly performs alongside a who’s who of Canada’s great jazz musicians including Neil Swainson, Reg Schwager, Caity Gyorgy, Kevin Turcotte, and Ernesto Cervini, and has worked with NYC based musicians such as Benny Benack III, Alexander Claffy and Joe Farnsworth.

Personnel:

Anthony D’Alessandro-piano
Summer Camargo-trumpet
Jonathan Chapman-bass
Jacob Chung-saxophone
Ernesto Cervini-drums

Check out:  “JP Shuffle”     “Grateful for the Good Times”      “Spotlight”

This performance is part of the WOMEN IN JAZZ series, sponsored by DIVA INTERNATIONAL, makers of the Diva Cup.

                                           photo is credited to Alex Kelly

Caleb Khuu – Guitar
Sarah Nairne – Vocals
Kevin Mak – Keys
Cameron Watson – Bass
Matt Bruzzese – Drums

“Come Together solo”      “Stompin’ at the Savoy”

“Solo on Funk 49 at The Jazz Room”    “Solo on Kiss Me Like the World is Ending”