Ottawa saxophonists Petr Cancura and Mike Tremblay join forces with the potent Toronto rhythm section of Michael Herring, Adrean Farrugia, and Tim Shia for a two-tenor, two-city outing across the Internet. They’ll perform a mix of standards and originals.

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 has performed with Grammy-nominated Danilo Perez, Grammy-nominated Julian Lage, Bob Moses, Joe Morris, Jacek Kochan, Kathleen Edwards, Kenny Wollesen, Joe Maneri, Cecil McBee and the Juno award-winning Mighty Popo. He is currently performing as part of the Ghost Train Orchestra, The Richie Barshay RB3, 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.

Mike Tremblay has more than 30 years in the music industry as a woodwind specialist, and educator. He is an associate performance faculty member at Carleton University where he teaches saxophone, ensembles, jazz improvising, and is the co-founder and director of the annual Carleton University Jazz Camp. He adjudicates for Musicfest Canada and the Kiwanis music Festival. Mike also founded and directs the annual Ottawa Saxophone Camp. Mike frequently performs with the National Arts Centre Orchestra, and many other ensembles around the Ottawa Area, including the Cosmos Saxophone Quartet. Some of his performance credits include Natalie Cole, Alanis Morissette, Lou Rawls, Bernadette Peters, John Pizzarelli, Diana Ross and Aretha Franklin.

Award-winning pianist and composer Adrean Farrugia began playing piano at the age of 12. By age 16 he recognized that he would dedicate his life to music. Since then he has become recognized as one of Canada’s most sought after pianists and composers, having shared the music he loves globally with various bands across Canada, the United States, London UK, Paris, Tokyo, Tel Aviv, Australia, Poland, and The Netherlands with artists such as Ernie Watts, Sheila Jordan, Brad Goode, Cyrille Aimee, Matt Dusk, Molly Johnson, Joel Frahm, Ernesto Cervini, The Worst Pop Band Ever and others. Adrean serves on the faculties of Mohawk College and Humber College and has conducted masterclasses and workshops for students at the University of Colorado at Boulder, the Sydney Conservatorium, the Polish Jazz Society Summer Workshop, and the University of Toronto. Adrean has played on more than 40 albums to date garnering 2 Juno awards, 8 Juno award nominations, a Mark Award for ‘Best Production Music Artist’ from the Production Music Association of America, ‘Pianist of the Year’ at the Hamilton Arts Awards, and a nomination for the Ontario Arts Council’s Louis Applebaum Composer’s Award. Adrean believes that music is a powerful form of communication that has the power to heal and inspire both the performer and the listener, as well as revealing a higher sense of being which exists in all people, and it is this belief that drives his continued journey and commitment to musical growth and sharing. Adrean Farrugia is endorsed by Shigeru Kawai Pianos.

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 and co-leads a number of groups which focus on original music of which he is a major contributor. Herring’s compositions and bass playing can also be heard in the collectives Way North (New York/Toronto collaboration with Petr Cancura, Rebecca Hennessy and Richie Barshay).

Whether it be a jazz festival gig with Rich Underhill; winning a Trille Or with Amelie et Les Singes Bleus; playing Cumbia’s with Quique Escamilla on CBC; adding percussion on a Electronica recording with Milosh (Rhye); to headlining a Hip Hop festival in Taiwan with LEO37, Tim Shia has been fortunate enough to play with a host of Juno and Grammy Award winning musicians in an array of genres. When he’s not performing, Tim has scored and licensed music for film and television including work for CBC, the Toronto Public Library, Teletoon and the NFB. He has given masterclasses and workshops on performance and improvisation at every level from Elementary to Post Secondary Institutions across Canada. He also hosted a radio show on Jazz Fm 91.1 called “Jazz is What?!”