"This young Canadian may well be the Muhammed Ali of modern jazz piano -- floating, stinging and floating again, with a touch that's tender as a kiss and just as dangerous." --Joe Venderford, The Independent Weekly

Rene Rosnes

Known as a a brilliant performer, composer and bandleader, Rene Rosnes may be the most accomplished pianist from Canada since Oscar Peterson. After working primarily in small ensembles, she branched out recently with an acclaimed recording with the Danish Radio Big Band and as a founding member of the SF Jazz Collective octet. Rosnes returns to the small format with a quartet gig at the Village Vanguard, May 16-21.

A native of Vancouver, Rene Rosnes was already studying piano by age three, followed two years later by violin lessons. Her musical talents brought her to the University of Toronto to study Classical Performance. After playing the club circuit in Vancouver, she moved to New York in 1986 thanks to a grant from the Canada Council of the Arts. There she quickly became a first –call pianist, playing with J.J. Johnson, Joe Henderson, Wayne Shorter, James Moody, and more. Since her Blue Note debut in 1989, she has led recordings with Herbie Hancock, Shorter, Henderson, Branford Marsalis, Chris Potter, Nicholas Payton, Jack DeJohnette, and Christian McBride; has won three Junos (the Canadian equivalent of the Grammy Award) and two Jazz Report awards for Best Jazz Album. With husband, drummer Billy Drummond, and (unrelated) bassist Ray Drummond, Rosnes has recorded as The Drummonds and currently holds the piano chair for the much lauded octet, the SF Jazz Collective led by Joshua Redman. This spring and summer, she is touring with the James Moody Quartet and throughout Canada with theBobby Hutcherson Quartet. But her most acclaimed work primarily has come from her own small ensemble recordings, such as 2002’s Life on Earth (Blue Note). Noted critic Don Heckman, “With this recording, she makes a persuasive case for the music's capacity to interface in meaningful creative fashion with elements of other musical cultures…Rosnes brings together a surprisingly diverse collection of global elements into a rich, seamless tapestry of musical colors.”

Steve Wilson, photo by Andrea Canter

Alto/soprano sax star Steve Wilson has appeared on over100 recordings with such artists as Chick Corea, Dave Holland, Dianne Reeves, Donald Brown, Billy Childs, Don Byron, Bill Stewart, James Williams, and Mulgrew Miller. With six recordings as leader, his sidemen have included such eminent musicians as Lewis Nash, Cyrus Chestnut, Kevin Hays, Steve Nelson, Gregory Hutchinson, Dennis Irwin, James Genus, Larry Grenedier, Ray Drummond, Ben Riley, Mulgrew Miller, Nicholas Payton, and his current working quartet of Bruce Barth, Ed Howard and Adam Cruz. A native of Hampton, VA, Wilson attended Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond where he performed with Jimmy and Percy Heath, Jon Hendricks, Jaki Byard, Frank Foster, and Ellis Marsalis. After performing with Out of the Blue (OTB) and moving to New York, Wilson toured the US and Europe for one year with the Lionel Hampton Orchestra before joining drummer Ralph Peterson’s quintet. He’s also worked with groups led by Buster Williams and Lewis Nash, and devotes considerable time to teaching.

Peter Washington is one of the busiest bassists in modern jazz, and a long-time partner of keyboard giants Bill Charlap, Mulgrew Miller, and David Hazeltine. Recently he has also managed drum duties for Lewis Nash as well as Rene Rosness (both have been members of Nash’s Quartet). Self-taught drummer Bill Stewart gained considerable attention for his work with John Scofield and Joe Lovano in the mid 90s. He’s also had successful associations with Lee Konitz, Michael Brecker, Pat Metheny and Bill Carrothers, among others.

The Village Vanguard hosts the Rene Rosness Quartet, May 16-21. The Vanguard is located in Greenwich Village; visit www.villagevanguard.com