For International Women’s Day, a Nanaimo jazz group will present Canada’s ‘first lady of the jazz ballad.’
Joani Taylor will perform at the opening of the Nanaimo International Jazz Festival Association’s four-part series, Women in Jazz, that celebrates “the richness that female artists bring to the music scene.”
According to a release, the series will feature six band leaders who portray “the many flavours of jazz music thriving in the country.”
The last time the Juno-nominee performed for a central Island audience was last May with multi-instrumentalist Phil Dwyer at the Old School House in Qualicum Beach.
“Singing is my way of joy,” she said. “And I’m joyful when there’s a feature of women anywhere.”
Taylor will be joined by Graeme Coleman on keyboard and Miles Hill on bass for the show.
“We’re going to have a great time,” she said, adding the three of them have played together off-and-on for about 30 years. “There will definitely be some turned-around rhythm and blues, and they’ll definitely be some beautiful ballads … And the hardest part will be getting me to shut up so that I can fit a lot of songs into one set.”
The release noted the singer has worked on thousands of film scores and recordings, alongside the likes of Bryan Adams, Jon Bon Jovi, Stevie Wonder, Tom Jones, Little Richard, James Galway, David Foster and Miles Davis in her 50 career. She was inducted into the B.C. Entertainment Hall of Fame in 2019.
The second part of the opening show will shine the spotlight on some of Nanaimo’s up-and-coming musicians. The Cayleigh Borsboom Trio features Borsboom on woodwinds, Natasha Adams on vocals, and Natasha Scott on drums.
Tickets for the Friday, March 8, show at the Vancouver Island Conference Centre’s Shaw Auditorium can be purchased at www.porttheatre.com.
The Women in Jazz series will continue on Fridays – March 22, April 12 and April 26.
READ MORE: Internationally recognized jazz musician plays first gig on Vancouver Island