A full weekend of music & don't forget Valentine's Day! - Gabriel Mark Hasselbach

A full weekend of music & don't forget Valentine's Day!

We don't sweat the small stuff, and we can all sleep when we are dead.... let's make life's moment's count!

OK, so the weather has just been 'meh', but it could easily be 'argghhh!' if Vancouver wasn't at the foot of that Pineapple Express.... let's all count our blessings, and breathe a sigh of relief that we aren't digging out from snow and that Fukashimi hasn't propogated three eyed fish (yet)...

That brings me to this weekend, arguably one of the romantic signposts in our culture, well spaced between other holidays to allow Hallmark time to restock all the shelves with current product.... of course, I am referring to Valentine's Day. He may have been a Saint, I am not sure anymore because his friends just call him Val....

Music is our lifeblood (which is certainly the right color for this holiday), and even before Valentine's festivities get underway, there is a ramp-up of great music (and art) options. I will share:

I am not superstitious, so it bothers me not in the least that it is Friday the 13th! So here is what's shakin':

I have swapped my regular Saturday night at Ten Ten Tapas (1010 Beach Ave, on the seawall) with Friday's romantic stalwart Rossi (on spanish guitar), and I will be holding court there Friday with my funky and classic brand of jazz. Start time 6:30 pm, make a rezzie!

Now, Saturday is PACKED!

First off, I'll be heading to renowned artist Raymond Chow's farewell sendoff at The Archer and Horseman Gallery at 1 pm (208 E 16th Ave); then at 2 pm I head to the Vancouver Public Library where I will be performing with the Urbana Big Band from 3 - 4:30 in the Alice McKay Room downstairs; after that I race outta there to Steveston where I am performing a special Valentines Day event at Shady Island Bar and Grill, right on the waterfront! It is not strictly a couples oriented event, and it goes early (6 - 9 pm), so you can still get your romance in later if you like. Great food and drink, and lots of special guests including Linda Szentes' Tribute to Ella Fitzgerald and more...... make a rezzie!

Hope you can make it!!!

Gabriel Mark Hasselbach

This site documents my journey as an independent jazz artist in a chaotic music industry. I guess this is where I get to 'blow my own' horn, so here goes.

I consider myself rather unique, as I am a multi-wind instrumentalist, performing and recording (mostly jazz) on trumpet, flugelhorn, C and alto flutes, valve trombone, and the Akai EVI wind instrument. I was born and raised in Denver, Colorado, but followed my muse to Vancouver, Canada, where my career on the world stage started with the success of the multiplatinum Powder Blues Band. After many national, international, and world tours, I launched a solo career with my Polydor album Solar Winds, and the dozen or so albums since then seem to have withstood the test of time, steadily building up my body of work. Due to pent up demand, my entire catalog has been meticulously remastered and is now on iTunes and all digital distributors, with a limited physical pressing of each available at info@windtunnelrecords.com

I have toured world festivals in locales such as Switzerland (Montreux), Netherlands (North Sea Jazz Fest), and the UK, Japan, Singapore, Philippines, Mexico, USA, and I continue to develop my fanbase through live appearances and esome choice exposure on radio and TV. I have spent the most number of weeks of ANY Canadian artist on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Charts.

My 2010 release, ‘Told Ya So’, won ‘Album of the Year’ and ‘Instrumentalist of the Year’ at the 2011 Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards, and spawned three singles including ‘Rockin’ The Ribjoint’, my first Billboard charting track, co-written with Jeff Lorber.

‘Kissed By The Sun’, the 2012 follow-up to that home run, seems to have been a home run with three Billboard charting singles, including ‘Starpixie’ and ‘Lock It Up’; and ‘Ready When You Are’. KBTS reached #8 on the Smooth Jazz Top 50 Album Charts, and was in the top 200 on the Contemporary Groove Charts for 2012. ‘Kissed By The Sun’ was co-produced with, and features Jeff Lorber, as well as a plethora of stellar guests such as Chuck Loeb, Brian Bromberg, Rock Hendricks, and fellow Canadians Rob Tardik and Walle Larsson.

I have also had notable straight ahead jazz successes, including a relatively lengthy two month run on the Jazz Week Mainstream charts with my ‘Come Out Swingin’ album, which featured Michael Bublé (before his rise to prominence), and also made a splash with ‘Swingin’ Affair’ which featured international latin star Nancy Ruth and the legendary jazz and blues icon Dee Daniels. I try to keep the improvisational content of my playing rich but concise, drawing from the Blue Mitchell/ Donald Byrd legacy. Critics seem to support that theory, and I have mountains of reviews to attest to that fact.

However, I prefer the more rhythmically succinct domain of contemporary jazz (or smooth jazz as it is sometimes called) for the variety of color and texture that it provides. I have tried to develop a style that pleases my ear and suits my skills, and that is highly listenable to music aficionados of all stripes.

I am the recipient of a JUNO Award (Canadian equivalent of a Grammy), two JUNO/Technics ‘All Star Band’ Awards (people choice awards with Guido Basso and Maynard Ferguson also in the running), a West Coast Music Award, a Jazz In The Park ‘Best Instrumental Performance’ Award, an Ampex Golden Reel Award, and several gold and platinum album awards (with my earlier group Powder Blues and a few others), besides the aforementioned ‘Album of the Year’ and ‘Instrumentalist of the Year’ nods at the 2011 Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards. I have recorded or performed with the likes of such varied artists as Michael Bublé (I toured with him extensively, and recorded several albums with him, and even produced his album ‘Dream’ in my studio), Bob James, Ernie Watts, Little Richard, Tom Scott, George Benson, Lowell Fulsom, John Denver, The O’Jays, Ben E King, Heart, John Lee Hooker, Nikki Yanofsky, and Long John Baldry, including recent Billboard-charting records with Paul Hardcastle, Bob Baldwin and Steve Oliver.

Home Page: www.gabrieljazz.com

Webstore: http://tinyurl.com/pjcl977

Flash site: www.gabrielmarkhasselbach.com

Twitter: @gabrieljazz

Linked In: http://ca.linkedin.com/pub/gabriel-mark-hasselbach/11/55a/429

Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/GabrielsJazz

Wedge 'Gabriel' Signature Mouthpiece line: http://goo.gl/1v7OrM

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEB4D2A58A839C402

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