Cuban-Canadian singer-songwriter Alex Cuba is bringing his Latin vibes to Koerner Hall on April 26.Christina Woerns
Toronto has a long history of welcoming some of the top jazz musicians in the world, a tradition that happily continues this spring at multiple venues across town.
Playing Koerner Hall on April 26 is Cuban-Canadian singer-songwriter Alex Cuba. His melodic brand of Latin pop is an infectious “musical stew of influences I had growing up in Cuba,” he says, “and of the American music I grew to love when I was a teenager – artists like Michael Jackson and [jazz bassist] Jaco Pastorius.”
The multi-instrumentalist – with not one but two albums coming out this year – is famous for numerous collaborations, working with the likes of Nellie Furtado and Ron Sexsmith, to name a few. “Sometimes, when I’m writing a song, I am hearing another singer, which tells me maybe this person should do the song or perform it with me,” he says.
This sound scenario has been realized numerous times, with artists like Mexican singer Lila Downs and with his upcoming stage-mate, acoustic guitarist and singer Raul Midón. Both duets appear on Cuba’s Grammy-winning album Mendó.
Koerner Hall’s spring lineup includes Toronto jazz sax queen Alison Young, playing on May 4.Supplied
World-renowned jazz guitarist and vocalist John Pizzarelli (Koerner Hall, Apr. 19) is also excited to be visiting Toronto again. “My wife and I have our radio show Radio Deluxe on JAZZ-FM, which has its home base in Toronto,” he says, “so playing Koerner Hall is always like a home game. She and I often talk about the acoustics there – the sound is so amazing and sound checks are over in a flash. It’s such a great room.”
Pizzarelli’s most recent album Stage & Screen, a collection of Broadway and movie musicals, owes at least part of its curation to social media. “I do a Thursday night show on Facebook, where I take requests on Monday and play them on Facebook on Thursday,” he says. “A lot of the requests became the songs featured on the album.” Expect to hear the same musicians at the Koerner as on the album – Michael Karn on bass and Isaiah Thompson on piano.
I grew to love [American music] when I was a teenager – artists like Michael Jackson and [jazz bassist] Jaco Pastorius
— Alex Cuba, singer-songwriter
American vocalist Lizz Wright, who Toronto audiences may remember from her appearance at Luminato Festival’s celebration of Joni Mitchell, is also gracing the Koerner stage this spring (Apr. 27). She will be showcasing songs from her eighth album, Shadow, which she says takes inspiration from “life’s kaleidoscope of scars and notes – I have all kinds of experiences to draw from, changes in my life that have given me a lot of new information to play with.”
U.S. vocalist Lizz Wright plays Koerner Hall in April: “I have all kinds of experiences to draw from, changes in my life that have given me a lot of new information to play with,” she says.Supplied
Koerner Hall is also presenting one of Africa’s most dynamic female voices, Oumou Sangaré from Mali (Apr. 20). Other big names on the slate include the John Cowherd Trio, with Toronto drummer Larnell Lewis and steelpan artist Joy Lapps (May 11), double Juno-winning vocalist Caity Gyorgy (Apr. 19), Lebanese-Canadian drummer Sanah Kadoura (Apr. 27) and Toronto jazz sax queen Alison Young (May 4).
Elsewhere in town, British multi-instrumentalist Jacob Collier hits the Coca-Cola Coliseum (Apr. 22) and French-Lebanese trumpeter Ibrahim Maalouf plays the Opera House (Apr. 27), part of a big tour for him this year of Canada, the U.S. and Europe. The Toronto Symphony Orchestra backs iconic saxophonist Joe Lovano at Meridian Hall for a John Coltrane tribute (May 15).
The spring lineup of Brampton on Stage includes the effervescent Liberty Silver at the Rose (Apr. 14), who is joined by Jazz Mechanics and the Brampton Concert Band, the oldest community concert band in Canada. The Rose stage also sees B-Jazzed: Salsa in the Spring, a curation of the 10 best salseros in the GTA.
And of course, the beloved annual TD Toronto Jazz Festival at the end of June always has something for everyone. Highlights include guitar legend Al Di Meola, funk-forward multi-instrumentalist Cory Henry and the sonic language of London drummer Yussef Dayes.
Advertising feature produced by Globe Content Studio. The Globe’s editorial department was not involved.