Kate Wyatt (pianist/composer and bandleader)
Originally from Victoria BC, pianist and composer Kate Wyatt is now considered one of the top tier jazz musicians in the city of Montreal. She has been praised as having “musical ideas and a style of playing and writing that is on par with the current jazz piano elite: Mehldau, Yaron Herman, Shai Maestro, Fred Hersch.”, and has been hailed as “one of the top artists of Montreal, Quebec, or even Canadian jazz.” (Cardin/Brunet, PANM360).
In July 2022 Wyatt released her debut album Artifact to excellent critical reviews. Joined by Lex French (trumpet), Adrian Vedady (bass) and Jim Doxas (drums) she leads a quartet whose effortless chemistry fosters deep interaction and high intensity. As one reviewer described, “Artifact is filled with melody, spirit, and a joy for playing together that brings the listener hope. This album is a gem. Highly recommended!!” (Richard Kamins, Step Tempest) Kate Wyatt has performed with many recognized and respected musicians, including Kenny Wheeler, Jay Clayton, Ira Coleman, Yannick Rieu, Christine Jensen, Itamar Borochov, Ranee Lee, Don Thompson, Barry Elmes, Kelly Jefferson, and the Orchestre national de jazz de Montreal (ONJ). She has a passion for improvisation and innovation, and strives for a high level of sensitivity and interaction in her performances. Her music has been recognized with awards from the Canada Council for the Arts, FACTOR, and the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec.
Adrian Vedady (bass)
Adrian Vedady is one of Montreal’s finest jazz bassists, known for his beautiful sound, his creativity, his ability to connect with a broad array of musicians, and his soulfulness. He has performed and recorded with international artists such as Marc Copland, Dan Weiss, Peter Bernstein, Ingrid Jensen, Jean-Michel Pilc, Sheila Jordan, Chet Doxas, David Liebman, Ariel Pocock, Ravi Coltrane and George Colligan. Besides being a first-call bassist on the Montreal scene, Vedady has also worked with jazz greats across Canada, such as Lorne Lofsky, Kirk MacDonald, Brad Turner, Laila Biali, Florian Hoefner, Kevin Turcotte and Roddy Ellias.
Vedady has won two Juno awards for best jazz album (with Mike Rud’s Notes on Montreal and Jacques Seguin’s Migrations), and the East Coast Music award for best jazz album (Montreal Jazz Trio). He has been awarded composition grants from the Quebec Council for the Arts and a FACTOR recording grant which led to the recording of his first album as a leader: In Three Acts (2007).
“What a ridiculously fine bass player Adrian Vedady is. His impeccable ear for tuning and level/balance, his agility around the instrument and his fluency as an improviser are just jaw-dropping. A player who ‘must be counted among Montreal’s finest double bassists’ might also happen to be one of the best in the world.”-Sebastian Scotney, London Jazz News 2022.