Lauren Baron
BRANT NEWS

Trio Jazz is back and gearing up for its next big show.

Armed with guest musicians and vocalists, the self-professed “mathematically-challenged” quartet will perform a show in the Sanderson Centre for the Performing Arts lobby on Nov. 23 at 8 p.m.

“We have done the Arts Block and played at different clubs, but this is our classier show,” said trumpet and flugelhorn player Kevin Williams. “The guests are going to be a bit of a highlight.”

Williams, guitarist Nick Bastian, acoustic and electric bassist Joel Banks and drummer Jonathan “Jono” Blaak will be joined on stage by keyboardist Mary Ann Gorcsi, saxophonist Kevin Martin, as well as vocalists Valerie Hawkins, Lauren Roy and Dan Anderson.

“We like having a variety of people so people don’t get sick of looking at us,” Williams said. “Plus, it offers a variety of tunes, a variety of faces and they are just good musicians.”

Roy, who has recently moved back to the Brantford-area from Toronto, has a history with Trio Jazz, playing with its members since she was 16.

The 26-year-old said she is excited to get back on stage with the band and showcase something “new and a little unexpected.”

“We’ve got some really, really exciting stuff in store,” Roy said. “Some of the old favourites for sure, but we have been working on a lot of really cool material, stuff that I’m really proud of that will make a really big impact.”

The concert gives Hawkins, who just landed two roles in the Stratford productions of Fiddler on the Roof and Romeo and Juliet, the chance to perform locally before she heads off for rehearsals in February.

“I feel like I’m giving back a little,” Hawkins said. “It gives some variety to an evening when there are multiple musicians being featured. Rarely these days, for your entertainment dollar are 
you getting this kind of quality.

“If you love music, if you love the spontaneity, the excitement and just really good sound, you can’t go wrong.”

The show will include jazz, fusion, funk, Latin, ballads and Trio Jazz’s take on pop tunes.

“It’s really everything, literally everything,” Williams said. “But we put our spin on it. There is always a bit of improvisation and just sort of a jam-out sort of thing. It’s fun. We get people tapping their toes, smiling, participating and some people get up and dance.”

Tickets to see Trio Jazz and Friends cost $15 and can be purchased at www.sandersoncentre.ca.