The Broken Songs Band
Richard Moody, violin/viola/vocals
A veteran of the Canadian music scene, violinist/violist Richard Moody has delved into almost every style a string player can try. After an education in classical at the University of Manitoba and the Conservatoire Nationale de Musique in Caen, France, he co-founded the folk-rock group Acoustically Inclined, garnering national following and acclaim. He would subsequently perform and/or record with the Wyrd Sisters, the Bills, Joel Fafard, Jane Siberry, Glenn Buhr, Paris to Kyiv, and the Manitoba Chamber orchestra, among many others.
His musical interests lie mainly in improvisation, drawing from and combining the many styles and techniques he has learned in his musical travels. As a composer and arranger for such groups as the Manitoba Chamber orchestra and Eagle and Hawk with the Winnipeg Symphony, he combines a knowledge and love for classical counterpoint with a edgy style of harmony drawn from his exposure to Jazz and Pop music. Richard spends the winters in India studying yoga.
Chuck McClelland, saxophone
Acclaimed as a considerable and highly individual talent, saxophonist Chuck McClelland is one of the most prolific jazz musicians on the Winnipeg scene today. Known for playing adventurous, original music, he has performed with such prestigious groups as the Ron Paley Big Band, Michelle Grégoire/Dave Lawton, and Marco Castillo. Chuck's distinctive saxophone sound and innovative compositions have been heard from basement clubs in Toronto, jazz festivals in Canada, to Europe and Africa.
In addition to Chuck's extensive work as a leader, he has been sought after as a sideman, appearing with the Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra, Gilles Fournier, and Knut Haugsoen, among many others. Chuck has also appeared onstage with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, Moses Mayes, Jazz on Wheels, and the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra. Recordings include work with Glenn Buhr, Richard Moody, Saxology and others. He's at home with blues, funk and R&B; he played with the Temptations and the Four Tops in Winnipeg's MTS Centre in fall 2008.
Greg Lowe, guitar/vocals
www.greglowe.com
Greg Lowe picked up his brother's guitar at age 10 and immediately began composing his own music. Initially inspired by blues and rock musicians he eventually found jazz, and proceeded to Grant MacEwan College in Edmonton to learn the basics of jazz harmony. In 1985 on return from a two week stint studying in New York with guitarists John Scofield, John Abercrombie and Steve Kahn, Lowe put a call into Prakash John, leader of Toronto's premier R&B band The Lincolns, and shortly after began four years of touring coast to coast with many of Toronto's finest players.
Upon returning to Winnipeg in 1990, he began recording his first CD The Art Of Bending, which lead to the international release of Greg Lowe by Jazz Inspiration/MCA in 1993 and Thrilled Against My Will by Jazz Inspiration/Allegro in 1996. Jazz Times reviewer Hillarie Grey wrote "making unexpected orchestration seem perfectly natural... Lowe's work is deliberate and clever." Focusing on composition as much as guitar performance, Lowe's body of work has grown to include large orchestra, chamber ensembles, theatre, television, dance, radio musicals and dramas. He has released seven CDs featuring original music in both electric and acoustic formats.
Gilles Fournier, bass/vocals
Gilles Fournier has performed and/or recorded with Clarke Terry, Arturo Sandoval, Tito Puente, Paquito De Riviera, Bud Shank, Chase Sanborn, Eddie Henderson, Kenny Wheeler, Bobby Hutcherson,Terri-Lynne Carrington, Bucky Pizzarilli, Kevin Eubanks,Paquito D'Rivera, Phil Nimmons, Rob McConnel and PJ Perry. In addition to leading his own distinctive Sextet and funk/R&B band Ego Spank, he has performed and recorded with diverse Winnipeg groups and talents such as The Ron Paley Big Band and The Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra, the Buhr Quartet, Papa Mambo and Ozmium among countless others.
Fournier performs often with symphony orchestras, having participated in the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's New Music Festival (electric bass in Louis Andriessen's De Staat and Glenn Buhr's Bassoon Concerto) and numerous orchestral pops performances supporting artists such as Maureen McGovern, Tommy Banks, Byron Stripling, Gary Guthman, Jennifer Hanson, Dee Danieles, Denzal Siclaire and Shirley Jones.
Daniel Roy, drums/vocals
www.danielroa.com
Over the last decade, musician and singer-songwriter Daniel Roy (ROA) has played an important role in Winnipeg's musical community. As a freelance drummer and percussionist, he has recorded and toured with the likes of Nathan, Madrigaïa, Johnny Cajun, Steve Bell, Alana Levondowski and countless others.
Though the songwriter in him took more time to evolve, Daniel's first solo release, le nombril du monde (2009), is creating waves on the national scene. He will be toured throughout Québec and the Maritimes as well as France and Switzerland in 2009/10. Daniel hopes to carve out a place in the international francophone world, where being from a small town in the prairies may be both a curse and a blessing!