The Vernon Jazz Club will be welcoming the Neville Bowman Quartet to the stage Saturday night.
The band is made up of Okanagan favourites, including Bowman (piano and voice), Craig Thomson (sax), Bernie Addington (bass) and Martin Lord (drums).
The quartet will be playing tunes by Gino Vanelli, Irving Berlin, Gershwin, Michel Camilo, plus some originals.
For some time, the Vernon Jazz Club audience has been asking Bowman to add more of his silky vocals to the set list.
This is exactly what they’re going to get. The night will prove to be one that’s high in energy and full of the high quality musicianship that’s come to be expected of these top players.
Bowman is well known throughout the Interior as an accompanist, composer, and arranger. He has been a regular adjudicator and clinician at the B.C. Interior Jazz Festival and is a first-call musician for jazz around the area.
Bowman starting taking jazz seriously in his early 20s and was influenced by a wide range of writers.
These legends spanned from Brubeck and Corea to Beethoven and Chopin, and even included hard rock bands Iron Maiden and Heart.
When asked, “Why jazz?” Bowman says, “Jazz always provided the greatest challenge and freedom. It’s probably why other genres, such as heavy metal and some classical appealed to me too, as they were also improvising within structure.”
The influence of rock can be heard in recordings of the indie rock group Ten2Nine, of which Bowman is a former member.
Bowman has been the music director for various theatre companies with the most recent being Bumbershoot Theatre.
He has composed music for seven original productions and was commissioned by Ballet Kelowna to create an original piece Redux Continuum.
Bowman is a strong actor and is also known for his work in the theatre. He will be performing in two separate stage productions in April and May.
Thomson is not only a killer sax player but also a well-respected teacher and clinician.
He is a large promoter of teaching jazz to Okanagan youth and runs the band program at Mount Boucherie Secondary in West Kelowna.
He also organizes the B.C. Interior Jazz Festival, which will be celebrating its 39th year April 14 to 16.
Thomson received the 2013 Music Award from the Okanagan Arts Council and is the only high school teacher in the country to be sponsored by Yamaha.
Addington has played extensively throughout North America, Europe, and Australia. Over the years, he has recorded and performed with countless artists and is a mainstay of Okanagan jazz.
He will be adjudicating alongside Bowman at the B.C. Interior Jazz Festival next month.
Lord is the founding member of the Just In Time trio and one of the founders of the Kelowna Jazz and Blues Society. He is considered one of the finest traditional jazz drummers in the Interior.
The Neville Bowman Quartet hits the stage at the Vernon Jazz Club (3000-31st St.) Saturday, April 2. Doors open at 7:15 p.m. Tickets are $20 at Expressions of Time and at www.vernonjazz.ca with a $5 rebate at the door for members. Cash only bar. This event is sponsored by Expressions of Time.
