A twist of fate brought Braid and Brubeck together to create a Traditional Jazz Album of the Year contender. |
Matt Brubeck and David Braid create a unique jazz album that’s anything but traditionalby Nadine Silverthorne What do you get when you pair up a JUNO Award-winning pianist and the cello-playing son of a jazz legend? The phenomenal "Brubeck Braid: Twotet/Deuxtet" and a JUNO nomination for Traditional Jazz Album of the Year. Matt Brubeck is an accomplished jazz cellist and composer. And yes, he happens to be the son of the legendary Dave Brubeck, founder of the Cool Jazz/West Coast sound, and creator of hits such as “Take Five” and “Blue Rondo a la Turk.” But other than sharing a last name and the fact that they both play jazz, the comparisons stop there. The junior Brubeck has a distinctive sound of his own. “I don’t think of the music I’m involved in as genre driven at all. I don’t know. I’m just, like, an eccentric artist.” Coincidence?Growing up in a house full of musicians has obviously influenced the classically-trained cellist. “No one said, ‘hey, don’t play the cello.’ Maybe they should have,” laughs Brubeck. “I was just allowed as a kid to explore. The funny thing is I ended up playing the cello because I played piano first, and I could read the bass clef already, and the school orchestra needed a cello. But sometimes there’s serendipity and coincidences that will kind of get mixed up in your life story.”Happenstance factored heavily in the making of this unique album. In 2004, Brubeck happened to meet rising Canadian jazz pianist and composer, David Braid, at a Herbie Hancock concert in Toronto. The 32-year-old Braid has become something of a jazz sensation, winning a JUNO in 2005 for " Vivid: The David Braid Sextet" Live. The two musicians hit it off and soon found themselves recording "Brubeck Braid: Twotet/Deuxtet.". The nomination sensation“I think it’s great that a cello/piano duo was nominated in the Traditional Jazz category. I’m very happy about that,” says Brubeck. “We do play jazz music, but there are probably some people who might argue that it’s not jazz. It is jazz. Mostly improvised, but it’s jazz.” The JUNO-rookie looks to co-nominee Braid for advice. (Braid has been nominated three times before.) “This is my first nomination, so I’m thrilled,” smiles Brubeck. “David is counselling me on all the implications.” “We all work really hard at what we do. The best way to put it is that it’s just a nice gift of encouragement,” says Braid about the JUNO Awards. “You get the stamp of approval for something you worked really hard for.” Official Sites |
