Combining acoustic grand pianos, synthesizers, organs and the melodica, Parker Abbott Trio isn鈥檛 your grandfather鈥檚 jazz from decades gone past.
The trio鈥攎ade up of Simeon Abbott, Teri Parker and Mark Segger鈥攊s a keyboard-centric group of Toronto-based musicians who dive deep into today鈥檚 modern world of jazz using only two pianists and a drummer, creating a unique multi-faceted sound.
鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 say we鈥檙e jazzy-jazz. We have a lot of influences from popular music and I think that really comes through in our music and we feel like that really appeals to a wider audience whether they like jazz or not,鈥� Abbott said. 鈥淪ynthesizers and electric pianos aren鈥檛 something usually heard in jazz music so we鈥檙e hoping to attract some listeners outside of jazz fans.鈥�
Fresh out of the recording studio with their third album, Elevation, the trio is making the rounds throughout British Columbia and Alberta, stopping at the Jasper Artists Guild (JAG) art gallery on Oct. 23.
According to JAG member Greg Deagle, this will be the first musical experience the gallery has ever hosted. Deagle added that he hopes this performance will help open the door to other performances at the gallery.
鈥淣othing has been confirmed yet, but we鈥檇 really like to start testing the waters of whether this could be a potential venue for live music,鈥� said Deagle, adding that JAG opted to host an afternoon show in order to appeal to a wider-range of music lovers.
During their six years together, the trio has played a slew of different venues all over the country, however, Abbott said an art gallery in the middle of the Rockies is a first.
鈥淚n terms of the space we hope that it really inspires the performance,鈥� said Abbott, adding no two shows are the same. 鈥淲e improvise a lot, so the space, the audience and the environment really play into our shows.
鈥淥ur live performances are very spontaneous and very 鈥榠n-the-moment鈥� so if people are willing to take those risks with us then I think it鈥檚 going to be a really exciting show.鈥�
While the band鈥檚 upcoming Jasper show is sure to be chock-full of musical surprises, Abbott said the group will be showing off a lot of songs from their latest album, which combines an array of smooth danceable songs like 鈥淒isclosure鈥� with far-out tracks likes 鈥淣ight Song,鈥� which sounds like a tune made for an alien dance club.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of character in these compositions. Teri and I split the composition work and we have different styles so there鈥檚 a lot of variety on this album,鈥� Abbott said. 鈥淭here aren鈥檛 too many venues that have two good acoustic pianos so as a band with two pianists we had to get creative from the beginning, quickly evolving into a more electric sound.鈥�
Out of 贰濒别惫补迟颈辞苍鈥檚 11 tracks, Abbott said his favourite is the album鈥檚 title track.
鈥淭he whole song starts out mellow and builds for three or four minutes and it kind of encapsulates into this idea of building towards a goal and elevating your mind to overcome difficulties and challenges that come up with any project,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut there鈥檚 a lot of variety on this album and we鈥檙e super stoked to share it and to visit Jasper鈥檚 new art gallery.鈥�
The Parker Abbott Trio will perform at the JAG art gallery on Oct. 23 at 1:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at the Jasper Art Gallery, Habitat for the Arts and at the door.
After their Jasper performance the band will head off to Vancouver before making their way back east.
Kayla Byrne [email protected]
