February 20th, 7-9pm. Doors @ 6:30. Tickets $15.
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Way North is the best kind of musical collaboration, one born out of the joy of playing together. 

Way North was formed in Brooklyn in 2014 by three Canadians – saxophonist Petr Cancura (Down Home – JUNO nominee), trumpeter Rebecca Hennessy (Women’s Blues Revue bandleader/Hobson’s Choice), bassist Michael Herring (Peripheral Vision – JUNO nominee) and one American, drummer Richie Barshay (Herbie Hancock/Chick Corea). The band brings together four musicians who love to use jazz and improvisation as a means of exploring folk and world music. Their debut CD, Kings County, was launched in 2015 with an Ontario tour and it was picked by the Ottawa Citizen as one of the best Jazz CD’s of 2015. You can hear the influences of a wide range of folk genres, including the blues, old-time, Balkan, Brazilian and Calypso. In January 2016, Way North was invited to perform and teach at Danilo Perez’s Panama Jazz Festival. While in Panama they were also invited to the Mamoni Reserve in the jungle where they performed and collaborated as part of the NGO Earth Train’s Geoversity campaign.

Listen to Way North on Bandcamp
View Peninsula News Review Article about Way North

Way North is:

Rebecca Hennessy – Trumpet
Rebecca Hennessy is a Toronto based trumpeter and composer active in many different genres of music, focused mainly in jazz and creative music. Most recently, Rebecca’s group, FOG Brass Band, was nominated for the Grand Prix de Jazz at the International Jazz Festival in Montreal and for the Rising Star Award in both Montreal and Halifax Jazz Festivals. Rebecca is a co-leader and composer of Toronto’s chamber-jazz quartet, Hobson’s Choice and is the musical director of Massey Hall’s annual Women’s Blues Revue. She can also be heard performing regularly with The Woodshed Orchestra, Drumhand, as well as Viva Mexico Mariachi and has performed and or recorded with Ron Sexsmith, Feist, Broken Social Scene, Andy Kim, Sarah Harmer, and Adele.

Petr Cancura – Saxophone and Clarinet
Born in Eastern Europe, brought up in the wilderness of the Great White North, and later thrusting into the urban Jungle of New York City, it is no surprise that Petr Cancura’s musical pallet is as wide as it is. A saxophonist with a vast knowledge of Jazz, Balkan, African and American folk traditions, Petr performs on banjo and mandolin as well as on the medium format black & white camera… all of which influences each other into a Roots Song & Improvising music machine with a visual sensibility. Petr Cancura has performed with Danilo Perez, Julian Lage, Joe Maneri, Cecil McBee. the Mighty Popo, and is currently performing as part of the Ghost Train Orchestra, The Forro Brass Band amongst others. Petr’s source of expression is most focused on his blend of Americana roots music and jazz in his groups Big Sky and Down Home.

Michael Herring – Bass
Michael Herring is a double-bassist and composer based in Toronto who writes, performs and records across genre lines, equally comfortable in jazz as in roots settings, including folk, world, and pop/rock. Herring leads or co-leads a number of ensembles which feature his original compositions, including: Michael Herring Quartet, a chordless two-saxophone band drawing inspiration from 1960’s jazz; Peripheral Vision, a JUNO nominated modern-jazz quartet co-led with guitarist and long-time collaborator Don Scott; Michael Herring’s Vertigo, a modern-jazz sextet which recorded two albums featuring New York’s David Binney.

Richie Barshay – Drums
Eclectic percussionist Richie Barshay’s second album as leader, “Sanctuary”, is a collection of drum-centric originals, accompanied by special guest Chick Corea, a follow-up to the critically acclaimed “Homework” featuring Herbie Hancock. He is noted for his work with the Herbie Hancock Quartet, has established himself as a prominent musical voice of his generation and is regarded as “a player to watch” by JazzTimes magazine. On tour and recordings his diverse résumé includes Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Esperanza Spalding, The Klezmatics, Fred Hersch, Kenny Werner, Lee Konitz, Natalie Merchant, Claudia Acuña, Bobby McFerrin and Pete Seeger among others. Since 2004, he has led outreach projects as an American Musical Envoy with the U.S. State Department in Asia, Africa, South America, and Europe. Way North Contact: Michael Herring – michael@dangerherring.com – 416-458-8757
www.dangerherring.com/waynorth