Char’s Landing will be welcoming home Port Alberni’s own Graham Villette with The House Trio on Saturday, Jan. 19.
The House Trio consists of three roommates: Kosma Busheikin on guitar, Brock Meades on upright bass and Port Alberni’s Graham Villette at the drums.
Although Villette has been living in Nanaimo for the past few years, he grew up in Port Alberni and has performed in his hometown a number of times.
“Mainly to play at Char’s Landing,” Villette said. “I’m trying to make it a regular thing.”
Villette, who has been playing the drums since he was 11 years old, recently completed a Bachelor Degree in Jazz Studies at Vancouver Island University. He performs regularly with a number of west coast-based groups, but appreciates coming back to Char’s Landing to perform in front of his home town crowd.
“It’s just a really inviting environment,” Villette explained. “Char is a welcoming person with lots of love for music and bringing people together. It feels like home whenever I perform there.
“A lot of the people that come to these shows saw me play as a little kid,” he added. “It’s nice to look out in the crowd and see familiar faces. It takes a lot of the pressure off.”
The House Trio came about when Villette and his roommates came together to explore their favourite songs in the jazz idiom. “We kind of realized we have a band between the three of us,” said Villette.
The name comes from the term ‘house band,’ which refers to a group of musicians who play regularly at one establishment.
“We jokingly decided to call it that since we all live in the same house,” Villette said.
With fun and inventive arrangements of jazz standards by the trio, coupled with the beautiful and exuberant compositions of Ray Brown and Barney Kessel, Villette hopes it will be a night of exciting music and fun.
“Music-wise, it’s fun,” Villette explained. “These are our favourite songs from this kind of instrumentation. We take from their repetoire and add a bit of our own stuff.”
The show starts at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 19. Tickets are available for $15 in advance, $20 on the showdate and $10 for kids under 12. You can purchase them by phone (778-421-2427), at the Rollin Art Centre (cash only) or online at http://bpt.me/4028594.
