Skip to content

Saxophonist P.J. Perry steps it up

The jazz legend joins Cosmopolitan Jazz Orchestra for Saturday concert
1403 Jazz sup

PREVIEW

Cosmopolitan Jazz Orchestra With P.J. Perry

Saturday, March 14, at 7:30 p.m.

Old Strathcona Performing Arts Centre

8426 Gateway Blvd.

Tickets: $25 adults, $10 students. Visit www.tixonthesquare.ca

One of Edmonton’s great international jazz ambassadors joins the Cosmopolitan Jazz Orchestra for an intimate concert this weekend.

Jazz legend P.J. Perry adds his formidable jazz stylings to the 18-piece professional-level ensemble on Saturday at the Old Strathcona Performing Arts Centre.

“He’s 76 and still playing concerts across the country. He’s still this incredible force. Last year when he joined Ranee Lee, who is Canada’s Ella Fitzgerald, for a performance, they were a powerhouse,” said jazz orchestra leader Allen Jacobson.

One of North America’s premier saxophonists, Perry has played alongside the heavyweights – Dizzy Gillespie, Woody Shaw, Michel Legrand, Pepper Adams, Clarence “Big” Miller and who can forget the late Tommy Banks.

One of his not-too-distant achievements was performing as a featured soloist on the hit 2010 Broadway show Come Fly Away, a dance revue highlighting the songs of Frank Sinatra, noted Jacobson.

The jazz concert will feature straight-ahead standards and original compositions specifically arranged for Perry by Kent Sangster, Rick Wilkens and Curt Watts.

Expect to hear the music of jazz icons Charles Mingus, Bob Mintzer, Thelonius Monk and Abdullah Ibrahim to name a few.

“I’m really excited about Abdullah Ibrahim. He’s a pianist from South Africa and he came to the United States when he was very young. He was influenced by Duke Ellington and did you know he even filled in once for Ellington’s band when Ellington went on holidays,” Jacobson said.

Tom Van Seters, a MacEwan University music instructor and one of Edmonton’s most influential pianists, joins the cast of professionals. Perry will also be playing a Van Seters composition.

The Cosmopolitan Jazz Orchestra was founded in 2015 to showcase original and contemporary compositions and arrangements that are part of a new jazz vanguard.

A special guest was added to the jazz concerts after Jacobson found sheet music at Cosmopolitan’s archives with Tommy Banks' original notations written on it.

Banks was invited to appear as a special guest at the 2017 concert and it was so successful, the orchestra has featured jazz performers every year since then. In 2018, 6 Minute Warning, a six-piece vocal group, joined the orchestra while the following year jazz chanteuse Mallory Chipman showcased her pipes.

“P.J. is in top form and the band will certainly rise to the occasion.”

push icon
Be the first to read breaking stories. Enable push notifications on your device. Disable anytime.
No thanks