The Collective of Cool Cats: Jazz-Classical from Beyond the Iron Curtain

It's likely that the former Soviet Union is not what comes to mind when you think of American Jazz, this concert will change that. Jazz had a rocky relationship with the powers that were, often denounced as counter-revolutionary American bourgeoise decadence. It was even effectively banned alongside saxophones between 1949 to 1953, with several key figures in the scene jailed or exiled. Despite it all, the syncopated rhythms, flashy improvised solos, and nasty chords of jazz managed to inspire musicians and listeners all over Eastern Europe and West, Central and East Asia. Featuring Nikolai Kapustin's Viola Sonata & the Canadian premiere of Yuri Chugunov's Suite of Moods for Alto Sax and Piano; as well as groovy pieces by Alexander Tsfasman, Arno Babajanian, Vagif Mustafazadeh, Andrei Eshpai and more. Performers include: Wallace Halladay (Saxophone) Ivan Estey Jovanovic (Piano) and The Ezra Duo - Jacob Clewell (viola/violin) and Sasha Bult-Ito (piano) Friday, April 17th 7:00pm Heliconian Hall, Toronto Tickets: $20/$30 Selected Works, Including: Tsfasman: Concert Fantasy on Themes by Matvey Blanter Kapustin: Sonata for viola and piano, Op. 69 Chugunov: Suite of Moods for Alto Sax and Piano (Canadian Premiere) Plus works by Arno Babajanian, Vagif Mustafazadeh, Isaak Dunaevsky, Andrei Eshpai, Vaja Azarashvili, Yevhen Lenko & Evgeny Zharkovsky