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Oct 2009 Bookings/Gig Schedule
Date
Time
Band
Idiom
Venue
City
Fri.
Oct 2
2009
Week 1
----
6:00pm
Open for Dinner
----
8:00pm
Show
Toronto's most unique jazz venue presents:
FIVE WEEKS FOR MILES
miles.brownman.com
produced and directed by Brownman
executive producer Frank Francis

For 5 fridays in Oct, Brownman will lead
5 different all-star ensembles through
5 historic eras of jazz which Miles Davis
catalyzed & immortalized with his presence.
 Week 1
"YOUNG MILES"
The BIRD YEARS
At 17 years of age Miles would travel across the river from his home in East St. Louis, Illinois to St. Louis, Missouri to hear well-known jazz musicians play in clubs.  Mesmerized by their talent and style, he would listen to their all night jam sessions until Charlie "Bird" Parker arrived in St. Louis with the Billy Eckstine Band in 1944.  Bird was the creative force behind a new form of jazz later to be dubbed "bebop" and the young Miles would become fascinated with it's complex melodic and harmonic structure leading Miles to follow Bird across the country until he was allowed to substitute for his trumpet player at the time - Dizzy Gillespie.  His tenure as Bird's sideman would most exemplify this hard-swinging period of his life. 
featuring
Brownman Ali - trumpet / musical director
(National Jazz Award Winner)
Bobby Brough - alto sax
(acclaimed saxophonist)
Chris Ziema - piano
(from NYC!)
Ross MacIntyre - upright bass
(Matt Dusk)
Bob McLaren - drums
(Canadian jazz icon)
For the lovers of be-bop, this is the show for you.
 WEB AD
Week 1
- JAZZ - 
A Tribute to
Miles Davis
Trane Studio
Info:
416-913-8197
(MAP)
$20

at the door
----
$15
advance list
----
Email us
to get on the
advance guest list
964 Bathurst St.
(north of Bloor
at Follis)
Toronto
Fri.
Oct 9
2009
Week 2
----
6:00pm
Open for Dinner
----
8:00pm
Show
Toronto's most unique jazz venue presents:
FIVE WEEKS FOR MILES
miles.brownman.com
produced and directed by Brownman
executive producer Frank Francis

For 5 fridays in Oct, Brownman will lead
5 different all-star ensembles through
5 historic eras of jazz which Miles Davis
catalyzed & immortalized with his presence.
Week 2
"BIRTH OF THE COOL
& KIND OF BLUE"
Post-bop Miles
The term "cool" came to particular prominence in the 1950s to describe a more cerebral, less impassioned way of playing jazz. It's generally supposed that these sessions were part of the inspiration for the 'cool school' of jazz which flourished, particularly on the West Coast, in the 50s.  Miles would confound the public's expectations by departing the bop world of Charlie Parker and embracing this new order of jazz as heard on "Birth Of The Cool" (Capitol Records, '50).  This 'cooler' form of expression would lead to the modal approaches of "Kind Of Blue" (Columbia, '64) free of fixed harmony and the now legendary collaboration with the then rising tenor saxophone icon John Coltrane.
featuring
Brownman Ali - trumpet / musical director
Pat LaBarbera - tenor sax
Adrean Farrugia - piano
Jon Maharaj - upright bass
Anthony Michelli - drums
The first set will focus on the "Birth Of The Cool" beginnings of this era... the second set will emphasize the "Kind Of Blue" approaches
 WEB AD
Week 2
- JAZZ - 
A Tribute to
Miles Davis
Trane Studio
Info:
416-913-8197
(MAP)
$20

at the door
----
$15
advance list
----
Email us
to get on the
advance guest list
964 Bathurst St.
(north of Bloor
at Follis)
Toronto
Fri.
Oct 16
2009
Week 3
----
6:00pm
Open for Dinner
----
8:00pm
Show
Toronto's most unique jazz venue presents:
FIVE WEEKS FOR MILES
miles.brownman.com
produced and directed by Brownman
executive producer Frank Francis

For 5 fridays in Oct, Brownman will lead
5 different all-star ensembles through
5 historic eras of jazz which Miles Davis
catalyzed & immortalized with his presence.
Week 3
"PLUGGED NICKEL"
The Shorter Years
Two quintets in particular featuring 2 tenor saxophone giants dominated Miles' musical life almost exclusively from the mid 50's, right up until the 70's, one featuring John Coltrane and the other featuring Wayne Shorter.  This period would feature an assortment of quintets and sextets all pushing the boundaries of improvisation within a simple modal framework, but the two teamings that would leave the world breathless would be those of Coltrane and Shorter.  Of those two teamings it would be the Miles-Shorter pairing that would result in some of the most explosively creative & exploratory jazz in Miles' history.  "Live at the Plugged Nickel" (Columbia / Legacy '65) continues to be a paramount recording in the great Miles lineage and considered by many to be some of the most ground-breaking jazz in history.
Brownman Ali - trumpet / musical director
Ryan Oliver - tenor sax
Dave Restivo - piano 
Marc Cashion - upright bass
Aaron Staebell - drums (from NYC)
The tune list will be choosen from the tunes performed by the 1965 Live At The Plugged Nickel band
 WEB AD
Week 3
- JAZZ - 
A Tribute to
Miles Davis
Trane Studio
Info:
416-913-8197
(MAP)
$20

at the door
----
$15
advance list
----
Email us
to get on the
advance guest list
964 Bathurst St.
(north of Bloor
at Follis)
Toronto
Sun.
Oct 18
2009
noon
to
7:00pm
----
FREE
shows
all day
All day at Yonge-Dundas Square
LET THE SNEAKERS
WALK AGAIN
www.sneakerswalkagain.com
"The situation in Haiti has recently gone from bad to worse and this international crisis requires our immediate attention and action. Inflation and socio-economic ills have propelled this impoverished nation into absolute poverty, and starvation, that has now reached epidemic proportions.  It isn't an exaggeration to say that in every Canadian household, there is at least one pair of sneakers in good condition that haven't been used in years.  Today, even trying to forage for food in piles of garbage is done barefoot, leading to widespread foot diseases that can result in amputation or even death.
In September 2009, we are launched Let the Sneakers Walk Again: A one-month charitable campaign in downtown Toronto.  We are counting on generous Torontonians, political dignitaries, corporate sponsors and their employees to donate a pair of sneakers so we can make great strides in providing desperately needed footwear to those that need it the most, in Haiti.
--
Brownman is the entertainment director
for LTSWA
--
Performers on Sun Oct 18
12:00pm-1:00pm : Batucada Carioca
1:30pm-2:30pm : Dana Jean Phoenix feat. Phatt Al
3:00pm-4:00pm : Elizabeth Shepherd Trio
4:30pm - 5:30pm : Brownman Electryc Trio
6:00pm-7:00pm : KC Roberts & The Live Revolution
Donation
Campaign
--
Please bring
your sneakers
to YD-Square
on Sun Oct 18
and support
Haiti!
Yonge-Dundas
Square
Toronto
Fri
Oct 23
2009
Week 4
----
6:00pm
Open for Dinner
----
8:00pm
Show
Toronto's most unique jazz venue presents:
FIVE WEEKS FOR MILES
miles.brownman.com
produced and directed by Brownman
executive producer Frank Francis

For 5 fridays in Oct, Brownman will lead
5 different all-star ensembles through
5 historic eras of jazz which Miles Davis
catalyzed & immortalized with his presence.
 Week 4
"From BITCHES BREW to TUTU"
Electric Miles
Legendary as a kind of line in the sand challenging jazz fans during the ascendance of electric, psychedelic rock, "In a Silent Way" (Colombia Records, 1969) hinted at the repetitive polyrhythms Davis would employ throughout the early '70s. It also partook generously of electric piano and bass tonal colourings previously explored in acoustic settings, but "In a Silent Way" and the subsequent "Bitches Brew" and "Live Evil" recordings remains a clearly electric jazz record, part ambient color exploration, part rock-inflected energy and vibe, and part outright maverick creativity. Long, breathy solos would be a feature of this era, glistening against his new groups' strange admixture of musical moods.  Miles would stay on this "electric" path right in to the '80's, continually exploring these textures with newer and younger generations of musicians.
Brownman Ali - trumpet / musical director
Kevin Breit - electric guitar
Eric Boucher - rhodes
Lionel Williams - 6-string electric bass
Colin Kingsmore - drums
w/ special guests
Sundar - alto sax
Ruben Esguerra - congas
The first set tonight will focus on the "Bitches Brew" 70's era... the second set will emphasize the "Tutu" 80's ideologies.
 WEB AD
Week 4
- JAZZ - 
A Tribute to
Miles Davis
Trane Studio
Info:
416-913-8197
(MAP)
$20

at the door
----
$15
advance list
----
Email us
to get on the
advance guest list
964 Bathurst St.
(north of Bloor
at Follis)
Toronto
Fri.
Oct 30
2009
Week 5
----
6:00pm
Open for Dinner
----
8:00pm
Show
Toronto's most unique jazz venue presents:
FIVE WEEKS FOR MILES
miles.brownman.com
produced and directed by Brownman
executive producer Frank Francis

For 5 fridays in Oct, Brownman will lead
5 different all-star ensembles through
5 historic eras of jazz which Miles Davis
catalyzed & immortalized with his presence.
Week 5
"DOO-BOP"
Had He Lived...
Towards the end of Miles' life he began an exploration of another sub-component of modern popular music - hip-hop.  The "Doo-bop" recording (Warner,'92) would feature rappers and loops and would have marked the beginning of Miles' exploration or this artform.  It is often harshly referred to by critics as his "worst" documented recording and as a "forgettable" era of his life, but it still stands strongly as a prime example of the Milesian ethic - his ability to recognize "what's next" and creatively move within and extend that artform.  Brownman states "I believe it is extremely probable that Miles would have worked closely with the likes of Tribe Called Quest, The Roots, Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, junglists, DJs, rappers, beat-makers alike... had he lived.  Tonight will be a salute to what MIGHT have been."
 Brownman - electric trumpet
 Enlight - rapper
Lil Jaz - turntables
Marc Rogers - 6-string electric bass
Mark Kelso - drums
All night groove baby...
 WEB AD
Week 5
- JAZZ - 
A Tribute to
Miles Davis
Trane Studio
Info:
416-913-8197
(MAP)
$20

at the door
----
$15
advance list
----
Email us
to get on the
advance guest list
964 Bathurst St.
(north of Bloor
at Follis)
Toronto
Sat
Oct 31
2009
8:00pm
FINALLY!
The CD Release Party for
BROWNMAN ELECTRYC TRIO

&
Label Launch Party for
BROWNTASAURAS RECORDS
(Brownman's new record label)
&
Halloween Bash!
featuring
Brownman - electric trumpet
Tyler Emond - 6-string electric bass
Colin Kingsmorel - drums
--
JazzOnline writes: 
"Brownman Ali's powerful trio captures the essence of the later years in Miles Davis' life, his electric period, without imitation. Brownman's ELECTRYC TRIO is uniquely his own, yet echoes with the sounds of ‘Bitches Brew’ and ‘In a Silent Way’ right down to Miles’ use of electronics while still managing to stay grounded in the sounds of today, clearly paying apt tribute to Brownman's NYC mentor Randy Brecker. Impressive."
CD Release
Party & 
Label Launch!
Trane Studio
Info:
416-913-8197
(MAP)
$20

at the door
(includes CD)
----
$15
without CD
964 Bathurst St.
(north of Bloor
at Follis)
Toronto
.
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.
.


UPCOMING
Nov 02 - 18 w/ GURU's JAZZMATAZZ
EUROPEAN TOUR DATES
Mon-Nov-02 - fly Toronto > Paris
Tue-Nov-03 @ La Bellevilloise, Paris, France
Wed-Nov-04 @ L'Affranchi, Marseille, France
Thu-Nov-05 - day off, Marseille, France
Fri-Nov-06 @ Kafe Antzokia, Bilbao, Spain
Sat-Nov-07 @ Charada, Madrid, Spain
Sun-Nov-08 @ Bikini, Barcelona, Spain
Mon-Nov-09 - day off, fly to Frankfurt, Germany
Tue-Nov-10 @ Enjoyjazz Fest, Mannheim, Germany
Wed-Nov-11 @ Max Events, Innsbruck, Austria
Thu-Nov-12 @ Kino Siska, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Fri-Nov-13 @ Moods, Zurich, Switzerland
Sat-Nov-14 @ Domicil, Dortmund, Germany
Sun-Nov-15 - day off, Hannover, Germany
Mon-Nov-16 @ Jazzclub, Hannover, Germany
Tue-Nov-17 @ Zwischenbau, Rostock, Germany
Wed-Nov-18 - fly Germany > Toronto
.


Brown is focused heavily
on recording sessions:
He was, or is, currently locked in
studios with the following artists:
Guru (hip-hop)
Nelly Furtado (pop)
Brownman Electryc Trio (electric jazz)
Josh Goodman (jazz)
Gerardo Brizuela (Latin house / electronica)
Trey Mills (singer/songwriter)
Rex Mann (folk)
Sheldon Barkley (Calypso)
Fernando Maar (jazz-rock)
Tia Brazda (singer/songwriter)
Jued (hip-hop)
John Eccelston (singer/songwriter)
Professor D (hip-hop)
Third Word (hip-hop)
Rikoshay (hip-hop)
Jason Wilson (progressive reggae)
CRUZAO (latin-jazz-urbania)
Chiva (Colombian latin-jazz)
.



**Released Summer 2007
Brownman is currently the touring trumpet soloist with with legendary rapper GURU (of Gangstarr fame) in his JAZZMATAZZ ensemble. 

Guru & Brownman
- a brief history -
Guru and Brownman - Belgium
2006 ended for Brownman with the explosive "Jazz By Genre" presentation of legendary rapper of Jazzmatazz and Gangstarr fame - GURU, held in Toronto's revered Mod Club.  This could have been just another 'backing band for out-of-town act' session for the often called Trinidadian trumpeter, but the chemistry between Brown and Guru was evident even back then on their first meeting.  During that show Guru would push him out of his regular horn position to the front of the stage to solo while the hip-hop legend held a mic in front of his horn's bell.  This single performance would lead to a phone call from Guru's producer Solar a month later asking Brown if he was available to make an appearance on the upcoming 2007 release of 'Jazzmatazz Vol. 4', replacing the luminious Donald Byrd as the featured trumpet soloist.  Brown, accepting immediately, would write a special horn arrangement of "Universal Struggle" and solo throughout the tune.  In early Feb '07 he was again contacted by Solar, impressed by Brown's work on the track, to ask him to tour America for the release of JAZZMATAZZ VOL. 4. 
Brownman soloing hard - Portugal (photo: Alexandre Vaz)
Since then Brownman is deeply honoured to have been touring the world as the featured soloist with GURU's JAZZMATAZZ as they bring their unique breed of jazz-hip-hop through The United States, Europe, Japan & South America.  The world tour continues...

See extensive YouTube archive of tour footage.

Guru and Brownman - Brazil


BROWN NEWS
(by publicist Andrew McIntosh) :

Brownman nonimated for a 2008
Toronto Independant Music Award w/ the
BROWNMAN ELECTRYC TRIO for
2008 Toronto Jazz Group of the Year
--
Brownman nonimated for a 2008
National Jazz Award w/ the
BROWNMAN ELECTRYC TRIO for
2008 Electric Jazz Group of the Year
(the group won in this category last year)
--
Brownman named Toronto's
NOW Magazine's
2007 Toronto Jazz Trumpeter of the Year
--
Featured cover story for the Oct/Nov 2007 issue
of CODA magazine, Canada's most acclaimed
jazz publication since 1958. 

Read the whole article
here (2.3meg PDF file)
--
After being nominated in 5 categories at the 2007 Canadian National Jazz Awards, the BROWNMAN ELECTRYC TRIO was honoured to have been awarded the 2007 National Jazz Award for Electric Jazz Group of the Year.  Thanks to all that voted!
Brownman was nominated for :
- Canadian National Jazz Composer of the Year
- Canadian National Jazz Musician of the Year
- Canadian National Jazz Instrumentalist of the Year
- Canadian National Latin-jazz Artist of the Year
- Canadian National Electric Group of the Year
    (w/ Brownman Electryc Trio)
--
Brownman asked to tour with legendary NYC hip-hop rapper Guru (of Gangstarr and Jazzmatazz fame).  After replacing the unavailable Roy Hargrove on Guru's Jazzmatazz Vol. 4 recording session (hits the store in June), Brownman was asked to tour America.  He departs June 9th for Zurich, Switzerland for 3 days of rehearsals before embarking on a blistering tour European tour before the U.S.A. tour dates being July 15.  Check out the tour dates:
http://www.brownman.com/GigSchedule/2007-06-sched.htm
--
Brownman was nominated for a 2006 Canadian National Jazz Award for "Latin-jazz Artist of the Year". The prize was awarded to the luminous and deserving Hilario Duran, but we at Brownman Music Inc. would like to thank all those who voted for this dynamic performer!
--
Shortly after returning from the last South American tour in Jan '06, the BROWNMAN ELECTRYC TRIO began a new jazz residency at Buffalo's ultra hip Allen St. Hardware Cafe... this residency will continue through summer and all of upstate NY is invited to join the party! 
http://ElectrycTrio.brownman.com
--
No longer able to deny the undeniable - Brownman Music now has a MySpace.com page. There are 4 tunes and some video from CRUZAO is currently loaded (though they will be on weekly rotation), pics, and a ton more.  Feel free to drop in and make Brown your MySpace friend.
http://www.MySpace.com/BrownmanMusic
--
The AUDIO/VIDEO section at Brownman.com now has new audio up - as well as a 2 minute movie trailer from film maker Vitold Vidic's Documentary "CRUZAO: The Movie" which first aired at the 2005 Toronto film festival and documents the trials and tribulations of Brownman's struggle to get CRUZAO GRUPO MONSTRUOSO - the 15-man version of CRUZAO - prepped for it's inaugural performance at the 2004 Distillery Jazz Festival with the clocking ticking down and problems mounting. http://Brownman.com/pages-AudVid.htm  (Under VIDEO)
--
Brownman recently appointed to the Prague Jazz Open Festival's Board of Artistic Directors where his knowledge and expertise will aid in shaping the vision of the festival's 2006/2007 programming.
http://www.praguejazzopen.cz
--
Brownman toured ARGENTINA for 3 weeks - beginning with the Buenos Aires Jazz Festival and includes feature concert presentations with some of Argentina's finest jazz and tango artists!  May 21 to June 15 2006 - arriving back in Toronto just in time to perform 8 times for the Toronto Jazz Festival.  More Argentine info as it comes in...
--
Collaborations seems to be the name of the game in 2006 and we'd like to mention some of those fantastic groups that have featured Brown in recent months: IRAKERE, CHISPA Y LOS COMPLICES, TUMBAO INC., DUB TRINITY, KUSH, FERTILE GROUND, SOULIVE, KOBOTOWN, KELLY LEE EVANS, MR. SOMETHING SOMETHING, METHODOLOGY, JAH-B, MAPALE, CHIVA, RITA DI GHENT & The SPRAWL PROJECT, AVE RD. & CESCO. All are world-class ensembles and we encourage those reading this to put their names into Google and check out their artistry.


OLDER BROWN NEWS
(by publicist Andrew McIntosh) :
Brownman voted Toronto's 2005 BEST JAZZ ARTIST by NOW Magazine:

http://brownman.com/PressReleases/NowAward-Oct27-2005_v13.PDF

Errol Nazereth's feature article on FIVE WEEKS FOR MILES:
http://Brownman.com/Interviews/Eye-Sept2005/StyleForMiles.html

ALI BROS "mythological" Canada Day performance:
http://Brownman.com/Interviews/2005-08-FilmFest/Mythology.html

Interview with View Magazine (in depth)
http://Brownman.com/Interviews/ViewMag-Mar2005/VIEW-Gruv-Mar24to30-2005.htm


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[ STRANGE ATTRACTORS ] [ ALI BROS ] [ CHIVA ] [ ODDBAWL ]
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Official Website: http://Brownman.com
MySpace: http://MySpace.com/BrownmanMusic
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Twitter: http://Twitter.com/BrownmanMusic
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CD Store: http://Browntasauras.Brownman.com
Gig Schedule: http://www.brownman.com/GigSchedule.htm
 

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