Hear the music

In a bar on Saint-Laurent Boulevard, the atmosphere is there. A fervent audience comes alive on the dance floor, while the others listen attentively, glass in hand. While the night is young, so is the audience that heats up the room. Valérie Lacombe and Sam Kirmayer, jazz musicians, describe the scene as they experienced it last fall, while playing.

“The bar was full of young people, in their early 20s, who were having sex,” says the drummer. “For years, every time we played in one of the city's jazz clubs, the audience consisted of 60-year-old white people. And, for a reason, when the bars reopened, there were a lot of different people.

‍

It is a new audience that is coming out, and that was not there before. It's different, as if something were happening,” adds her spouse, who is a guitarist and teacher.

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

Between youth and tradition

‍

‍

It is not only in Montreal that jazz seems to be popular with Generation Z and the millennials who follow them. According to The Guardian, nearly 40% of jazz listeners on Spotify are under the age of 30, a proportion that is increasing year by year — and the number of listens to Playlists is increasing, as are their popularity. The Japanese fashion giant Uniqlo has made a T-shirt collection inspired by album covers from the 1950s from the illustrious label Blue Note. And that's not to mention pop and hip hop artists who associate with jazz musicians or who, influenced by this style, have been making musical turns in recent years.

‍

Valérie Lacombe has noticed this renewed interest. “I think it has to do with music itself, and that's what we are experiencing now,” she says of the last few years, marked by COVID-19 and social tensions. “Wynton Marsalis said that jazz is a celebration of life, its good times and its bad moments.

‍

It's such a communal music. It's good for a lot of people because it's so difficult, what we're going through right now,” she said. If young people are there, maybe it's because jazz has a cathartic dimension. “They also want to have an experience,” recalls Sam Kirmayer. “Jazz is music that can be played. Live. Even if you listen to a band play the same piece twice, it's never the same,” explains the guitarist, who adds that this music, more than others, is lived in the present moment and is based on spontaneity and expression. “Maybe it's something that people perceive,” he says.

‍

The two musicians are also very interested in the history of jazz and the culture that saw it emerge.

‍

“Younger generations are more demanding and activist, and that's part of the history of jazz too,” adds Valérie. “One of the effects of the Black Lives Matter movement has been to create interest in black culture, and jazz is one of them,” says Sam. Both play a jazz style called” Straight-Ahead ”, a term that refers to a way of playing that is very close to the jazz tradition and associated with black American culture. The style, which some call “purist”, is rarely taught in schools and, according to musicians, is neglected in the world of jazz.

‍

And they think it's a shame. “In Montreal, there are different scenes, and many are going to do compositions in a more contemporary style. However, the Straight-Ahead, it changed my life, and Sam's too! exclaims Valérie. That's the kind of music we want to share.”

‍

‍

Montreal, city of jazz?

‍

‍

The reputation as a city of festive jazz precedes Montreal. This reputation is reinforced by the Montreal International Jazz Festival, the largest in the world. The city also owes its fame to the Roaring Twenties. At the time when Prohibition came into force, Montreal quickly became the perfect destination for partying. As early as the 1920s, the city was a must for jazz musicians, and big names came to perform in local clubs.

‍

The neighborhood that is now called Little Burgundy is the bastion of jazz in Montreal, as illustrated by the murals created in honor of Oscar Peterson, Daisy Peterson Sweeney, and Oliver Jones, which light up the neighborhood's walls. Apart from these images, there are few traces left today of that time and of the community that lived there. The place has several names. For the black population who live in the multi-ethnic neighborhood, we talk about the “West End”. A large part was employed by railway companies, whose premises bordered the neighborhood — this was one of the few employers for Black people, in the climate of racism that prevailed at the time. Around them, a community and businesses were built, especially jazz clubs, whose influence became particularly great.

‍

“The clubs were part of a circuit. The big names in jazz, like Miles Davis, were in town all the time, says Sam Kirmayer. Because they were coming, people established relationships, and musicians were able to play with them and learn from them. We were part of a culture.” The end of the 1960s was marked by an “urban rehabilitation” project in the neighborhood. A project undertaken by the City of Montreal under the leadership of Mayor Jean Drapeau. It was at this point that the place was renamed Little Burgundy. From 1967 to 1973, the construction of the Ville-Marie Expressway, which passed in the middle of the neighborhood, led to a massive expropriation that affected many middle class black families. These continue while a large part of the rest of the neighborhood is demolished to be transformed into social housing, so that today, these are the majority in the neighborhood. From 1966 to 1973, the neighborhood's population grew from 14,710 to just 7,000.

‍

Citizens are moving to other neighborhoods, and black businesses and institutions are suffering, as are culture and music. Nearby, Saint-Henri, a neighborhood bordering Little Burgundy at a time when borders were more blurred, saw the birth of Oscar Peterson in 1925. The latter will also pay tribute to the neighborhood with his play St. Henri Square, of the Canadiana Suite, about which he would say this: “It's supposed to represent the small French Quarter of Montreal where I was born: Saint-Henri.”

‍

Everywhere, Oscar Peterson is considered to be one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time. “Oscar Peterson, you go anywhere in the world, and you know that he is one of the most famous Montrealers of all time,” says Sam Kirmayer. “Why doesn't Quebec jazz revolve around Oscar Peterson? ” added Valérie Lacombe.

‍

She offers an answer. “He is a black Anglophone, and many feel that he does not represent Quebec,” she believes. In the minds of white French-speaking Quebecers, we cannot associate him, like Oliver Jones, with Quebecers. We don't consider it to be part of Quebec culture. If we start talking about the heritage of the black community in Little Burgundy, maybe we have to admit that maybe Jean Drapeau's plan was to clean up and destroy an entire community.”

‍

“Now, there's this idea of Quebec jazz, our jazz — they're trying to use jazz from a nationalist perspective in Quebec. But first it was the art of black, English-speaking people from a community that lived along the railroad lines on the East Coast,” Sam says.

‍

A local story

‍

‍” There are a lot of people from black communities who are at the origin of different styles of music,” notes Vladimir Delva, a historian specializing in hip hop. “And at the beginning, a lot of music developed in the community, whether it's jazz or hip hop,” he says, then talking about a form of appropriation and recovery that erases black contributions. “Jazz is a very cultural and local thing,” he says. For his part, says Rito Joseph, entrepreneur and educator. Through the Black Montreal Experiences, Mr. Joseph offers educational walks that focus on the history of Black people in the city, especially in Little Burgundy.

‍

It echoes the words of Sam Kirmayer and Valérie Lacombe. ” Beyond music, there was a culture, where several layers of society were involved. It is an entire part of society that is forgotten and put aside,” he says. With Black History Month just over, it was an opportunity to talk about it. “I think Montreal doesn't care much about the history of black people in Montreal, except in February. To omit to talk about black history is to omit to talk about history in general, judges Mr. Joseph. We forget that, when we talk about history, we are also talking about local history. This is a serious omission, because it prevents a lot of things, a form of social cohesion, a sense of belonging, a sense of belonging, a sense of belonging.”

‍

“I think that Montreal “tokenizes” jazz. Is it a cultural identity? Are we interested in this part of the culture to form an identity? ” asks Mr. Joseph. He wants us to recognize the role of musical pioneers, who are often overshadowed. He names the late Doudou Boicel, founder of the city's first jazz festival, and Rufus Rockhead, producer of shows entirely presented by black artists. There is also the illustrious bass player Charlie Biddles, a great actor and staunch defender of the Montreal jazz scene, who lived in Montreal from the age of 22, from 1948 until his death in 2003.

‍

“Government authorities must understand that, without these people, an entire piece of Montreal's history would be missing,” says Rito Joseph.

‍

“The young people who are arriving must know who these people are. We talk a lot about the past when we talk about jazz, very rarely about the future, about the present,” he adds, wishing for more support and a better showcase for today's talents.

‍

‍

Choose music, and its city

‍

‍

Montreal is also the city where Modibo Keïta, a jazz musician, grew up and where he chose to pursue a career. Pandemic or not, work takes him all over the world, but what matters most to him is how successful he is here. “In general, our industry is beginning to understand that music needs to evolve in the interests of everyone.

‍

It makes for interesting projects, and interesting collaborations,” he observes.

‍

In addition to his talents as a trombonist, he is also a producer. The Shed, the concert he is currently working on should have been presented in 2020, it will take place two years later, on April 1 and 2. All tickets have been sold out for an evening of improvisational jazz that will bring together local and New York musicians on stage. “The pandemic is giving more value to concerts. Live ”, believes Modibo, who will not be on stage this time.

‍

300 tickets were sold in advance, and the event is so popular that a second date was added — and all the tickets sold out. “In a city like Montreal, where the practice of [jazz] is marginalized, where the art I make is not Mainstream At all, it's something I'm proud of,” he admits.A professional musician for 15 years, Modibo describes jazz, his jazz, as being “instrumental music that comes from the African-American tradition, or that considers the African-American tradition to be a central point of the music we play.” Definitions and music evolve, that's how he sees it. “For me, it's how I play, it's what I've learned and what my mentors do.” In Montreal, it's a style that's not often heard of.

‍

“There is little point in creating a connection with this tradition because the majority of people in the Montreal jazz scene have no connection to the black African-American tradition in general,” he believes. “Many people who consider themselves to be the elders of the jazz scene here are too disconnected from the tradition and the main players in the tradition,” believes the musician, who wants there to be a greater attachment to this story. It is thanks to a mandatory music course that Modibo discovered music in high school. At CEGEP, he studied jazz in a dual program.

‍

Afterwards, he obtained a scholarship and left Montreal to study at the University of Toronto. He then returned to his hometown. “In Toronto, I found it more difficult to integrate diversity into the jazz scene. I decided not to fight against it and to come back,” he said. However, he notes that the Montreal scene, which is more welcoming, is itself quite homogeneous. “It's super white, we're not a lot of black people. Those who are part of the professional jazz scene can be counted on one hand,” he adds.

‍

Like her colleagues Valérie Lacombe and Sam Kirmayer, Modibo Keïta lives in Oscar Peterson's former neighborhood.

‍

“He is probably the most important pianist after Art Tatum in the history of Stride, jazz. But a lot of people don't know that he's from Montreal.” He draws a parallel with the career of Kaytranada, a Montreal producer who, last year, won several Grammy awards for his latest album. “Kaytranada, who is one of the hottest producers in the world right now, complained that he had no recognition in Quebec, even though he is from Quebec. Quebecers feel detached from all this,” he says, regretting what he describes as “selective nationalism.”

‍

“The people who follow are Quebecers with an immigration background, or English speakers, or people who are immersed in the culture of immigration,” he says. Based on his experience, he considers that it is all the more difficult for a Quebec artist to find his audience. “If you are able to break through in Quebec by being black, you are able to break through anywhere,” he says, adding that it is a question of numbers, since other regions have more potential fans because of their higher population, but also because of social dynamics. It is well known that musicians are not rolling in gold, especially not jazz musicians.

‍

“People don't know how difficult it is to be a musician in Montreal, especially a jazz or world music musician,” Modibo explains, citing the cost of living, which has increased dramatically since its inception, and the low remuneration of musicians. According to him, Montreal lacks places where they can perform and the promotion of jazz is insufficient in the city.

‍

‍

The new generation

‍

‍

Céline Peterson has jazz in her DNA, as she herself says with a laugh from her home in Toronto. “There's nothing like watching jazz musicians communicate with each other. Nothing is more musically satisfying than being in the audience and watching the musicians have fun, challenge each other creatively, and trust each other,” says the artist agent and producer.

‍

This is what makes jazz beautiful and makes shows unique. She is grateful to have been exposed to this musical style, having grown up surrounded by musicians, including her father, Oscar Peterson. “When the musicians are on stage, the whole room vibrates, you can feel it. It's really one of the most magical things about this music.” Making local talent blossom is Céline's mission, and passion.

‍

She also notices this new audience, the arrival of young people, who want to hear the music, and their palpable excitement. “Jazz is not One Size Fits All. There are other genres that people like that come from jazz. Many young people come to jazz thanks to an artist from a different genre who incorporates elements of jazz into his music,” she points out.

‍

She also notes that some young musicians are choosing to adopt a style that is closer to tradition. “It's very nice to see, they are learning from their elders.”

‍

‍

‍

If there's one thing she's less surprised about, it's that we don't know much that her father is from here. “It's important for me to remind people that not only was he a proud Canadian, but that he never left Canada either,” she says of the man who spent the last 30 years of his life in the Greater Toronto Area.

‍

However, what matters to him is that he is celebrated in the jazz community, just like his aunt, Daisy Sweeney Peterson, who taught piano to her brother Oscar, Oliver Jones, Joe Sealey, and so many others. “Jazz and music in Montreal are mostly from Black culture. Tributes and recognition do not necessarily spread across minority communities in the same way. So I think it's not a problem that's unique to Montreal or Quebec, I think there are versions of that everywhere.”

‍

‍

To go further:

‍

• Valerie Lacombe and Sam Kirmayer founded the Société Jazz de Saint-Henri, an initiative aimed at making jazz a community activity that honors tradition. “We want to offer a space to the community in order to return to this idea: exchange, practice an oral tradition, listen to each other in community,” explains Valérie Lacombe. Concerts and jazz-related activities are offered in the neighborhood.
• There are only two jazz clubs left in Montreal: Upstairs And Dièse Eleven. The Société Jazz de St-Henri intends to open one soon.
• To discover jazz, Modibo Keïta suggests the series” Jazz Night in America ” on YouTube, which offers a variety of concerts by various artists, well known and lesser-known.
• The show When is jazz there, hosted by Stanley Péan, is broadcast on ICI Musique from Monday to Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. and on the oHdio application.