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Live tonight – Benny Goodman Tribute Band!

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Tune in tonight to hear the Benny Goodman Tribute Band LIVE at the Isabel at 7 pm EST!

The Benny Goodman Tribute Band features local Kingston musicians Chris Alfano (clarinet), Greg Runions (vibraphone), Paul Clifford (bass) and Rich Bannard (drums). Together they bring alive the music of Benny Goodman, performing famous works such as Avalon, Moonglow, Memories of You, and others. They have performed on the Island Star, as part of the Kingston Jazz Society’s series at the Tett Centre, as part of the Happy Hour Sound Bytes series as well as part of the St. George’s Summer Concert Series.

You can hear them through the Isabel’s streaming site: https://www.isabeldigitalconcerthall.queensu.ca/live-streams or on Facebook (look for The Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts)

You can also watch the concert via YouTube (both Live at 7pm and after) Here’s the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4sy_fmRXRU

Chris, Paul, Greg and Rich play at the Tett Center

Bouree

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It’s summer and that usually means Wedding season! In honour of those getting married this summer, here’s something we usually play as part of a wedding – the Bouree from Handel’s water Music.

Here is a link to the video: https://youtu.be/xepgQRnWFeE

Katie Legere, bassoon and Chris Alfano, clarinet (Time for Two)

Livestream Concert – Sept 3

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The Kingston Classics Trio will be performing a concert at the Royal Theater that will be streamed using Facebook Live, Sept 3rd at 7: 00 PM.

The concert is funded by the City of Gananoque, and the Musicians Trust Fund, which is a fund set up by record companies to help fund live music, with the requirement no charge for the audience. 

The Royal Theater is trying to attract sponsorship for the concert series; if you know a business or somebody who would be interested in sponsoring this concert, the fee would be $200 which would give them advertising for the concert, and the ability of introducing us at the start. Let Katie know if you do know someone interested (legerek@queensu.ca) and I will pass it along.

Here is a recording we made at the Isabel last year put together with some or our travel photos…

More news as it becomes available!

Happy Canada Day

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Chris arranged three Canadian themes for us to brighten your Canada Day – Ca-Na-Da, Vive La Canadienne, and , of course, O Canada. Have a wonderful, safe Canada Day.

Link to YouTube

Chris Alfano clarinet and Katie Legere bassoon #KSOMusiciansAtHome #FormalFridays

Summertime

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We began working on this week’s piece two weeks ago – before George Floyd was brutally murdered by a police officer in the US and, while we try to stay apolitical, these events can not and should not be ignored.

We believe that racism in any form is unacceptable and, although we will never really experience the systemic discrimination that minorities face every day, we can be thoughtful of how our actions contribute and try to make that contribution positive.

We thought hard about performing Gershwin’s Summertime – an opera about black men and women written by white people but decided to go ahead with the following caveat.

Porgy and Bess has been called the first great American opera, set in a black American community and performed by black artists. The themes expressed in the opera are human themes. Indeed Gershwin’s aim was to create a unique folk opera to be performed only by black actors and Ira Gershwin, George’s brother and collaborative lyricist, made it a stipulation of all productions around the world that the cast is always overwhelmingly black. In doing this, it allowed opera to move away from an art form overwhelmingly white.

Summertime, from the opera, is doubtless one of the one most popular songs in the Great American Songbook and, we hope you will enjoy it and understand that in our hearts it is our offering of a positive contribution.

Link to You Tube Video