Jazz quartet to perform in Canaan

The acoustic jazz ensemble, The Rhythm Future Quartet, will be bringing the best in Gypsy jazz music to the area when they perform on Saturday, March 3, at Grace Community Church in Canaan.

The concert is hosted by the Great North Woods Committee for the Arts (GNWCA).

“We are delighted that the first show we’ve ever brought to Grace Community Church will be this superior quartet,” said GNWCA president Charlie Jordan.

The Rhythm Future Quartet has a straightforward agenda: to keep the spirit of Gypsy jazz alive and expanding in today’s musical universe. The virtuosic foursome, named for a Django Reinhardt tune, offers up a newly minted sound, influenced by the classic Hot Club of France, yet wholly contemporary. Led by violinist Jason Anick and guitarist Olli Soikkeli, the quartet performs dynamic and lyrical arrangements of both Gypsy jazz standards and original compositions that draw upon diverse international rhythms and musical idioms. With Max O’Rourke on second guitar and Greg Loughman on bass, Rhythm Future is dedicated to expanding the boundaries of a vital musical genre.

The band will be performing selections from its two CDs, including the quartet’s current release, Travels. Travels was picked as one of the best jazz albums of 2016 by the website All About Jazz and the Huffington Post.

Mr. Anick, an award-winning composer and one of the youngest professors at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, has shared the stage with an array of artists including Grammy award winning guitarist John Jorgenson, and Stevie Wonder. Mr. Soikkeli recently made the move from Scandinavia to New York City, where he quickly became a top call guitarist in the bustling Brooklyn jazz scene. He has performed alongside rising star Cyrille Aimee, world-renowned Gypsy guitarist Stochelo Rosenberg, Bucky Pizzarelli and many others. Mr. O’Rourke was the winner of the 2015 Saga Award from DjangoFest Northwest, and at 21 has already toured and recorded with many of the top American Gypsy Jazz musicians. Mr. Loughman is a top call bassist in Boston and has been heard with such luminaries as Sheila Jordan, Curtis Fuller, and George Garzone.

Tickets are $15 for adults, $5 for children 12 and under, and $8 for young people ages 13 to 18. They are available online at www.gnwca.org, or at the door on the night of the concert.

For more information, visit the website or call (603) 237-9302. — from the GNWCA.