TD Toronto Jazz Festival Free Music Series at Shops at Don Mills, June 21-30

North York, Ontario – June 17, 2013 – For the fourth consecutive year, the TD Toronto Jazz Festival brings the pre-eminent sounds of jazz to the prestigious Shops at Don Mills (1090 Don Mills Road at Lawrence Ave. East) in the Town Square for a series of FREE concerts that showcase the diversity of jazz. 

The TD Toronto Jazz Festival Free Music Series at Shops at Don Mills kicks off on Friday, June 21 and runs until Sunday, June 30, unofficially extending the music one day longer than most venues throughout the rest of the city.  For additional information, please visit www.shopsatdonmills.ca or www.torontojazz.com or call 416-447-6087 ext. 244.

Open air concerts are the epitome of summer and what better place to soak it all in than at Shops at Don Mills, where fashion, dining and entertainment come outside to play. This year for the TD Jazz Festival, Shops at Don Mills will be transforming the outdoor Urban Village into a music city featuring FREE performances by Michael Dunston / Dave Young Tribute to Donny Hathaway, Dixie Demons, Beyond the Pale, Alan Hetherington & Banda Illuminada, Jive Bombers, Norman Marshall Villeneuve’s Jazz Message Quintet, Lily Frost Swings, Maylee Todd, Diana Braithwaite & Chris Whiteley, Grooveyard, Organic, Erin Costelo, Roberto Linares Brown Orchestra and Toronto Rhythm Initiative.

“Relax in comfortable lounges in our Town Square while enjoying the smooth sounds of jazz,” states Lauren Genz, Marketing Manager, Shops at Don Mills. “Not only is there an amazing line-up of talented musicians performing for FREE daily in our Town Square, but the TD Jazz Festival will also be invading the entire mall with tons of fun activities. Grab something to eat and drink from our beer gardens and don't forget to let the jazz musician in you out to play a tune or two on the custom piano!”

One of North America’s premier jazz festivals, the TD Toronto Jazz Festival attracts over 500,000 loyal patrons and features more than 350 performances with over 1,500 musicians performing at approximately 60 locations around Toronto.

While at Shops at Don Mills visit Anthropologie, Banana Republic, Coach, Michael Kors or PANDORA for a little retail therapy or dine at Glow Fresh Grill and Wine Bar, P.F. Changs, Bier Markt, Linda Modern Thai Cuisine, Jack Astor’s, Fabbrica or Joey Don MIlls Grill/Lounge.  With a four level parkade, there is tons of FREE parking just steps from Town Square.

TD Toronto Jazz Festival Shops at Don Mills Schedule:

Michael Dunston / Dave Young Tribute to Donny Hathaway – Friday, June 21 at 8:00pm
In our world of “flash-in-the-pan” singers and “here today, gone tomorrow” pop stars, it is a deserved treat to hear a beautiful tune rendered soulfully and with an authentic depth of emotion that only a seasoned artist like Michael Dunston can bring. While Dunston’s music speaks for itself, there is clearly more to his story.

Dixie Demons – Saturday, June 22 at 2:00pm

Dixie Demons have been dazzling audiences for the past 26 years! Anyone who has seen this stellar 6-piece band on stage knows that the chemistry they share is what makes the Dixie Demons tick. Their performances are a real treat of great music, amazing virtuosity and showmanship!

Beyond the Pale – Saturday, June 22 at 5:00pm

For over a decade Toronto’s Beyond the Pale has been making its distinctive brand of boundary-busting Eurofolk fusion. Mixing Klezmer, Balkan, and Romanian styles with an eclectic range of North American influences, the band members’ diverse musical and cultural backgrounds intersect in a shared impulse to push the boundaries of contemporary acoustic roots music into new realms. Their exuberant live performances range seamlessly from raucous dance rhythms to intricate chamber-folk dynamics, taking audiences on an invigorating musical ride with stunning virtuosity and thrilling arrangements. Beyond the Pale has performed at festivals, theatres, and clubs across Canada, the U.S., and Europe, including the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards, NY’s famed Carnegie Hall, and the Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow, Poland.

Alan Hetherington & Banda Illuminada – Saturday, June 22 at 8:00pm

Banda Illuminada is a brand new and very exciting Brazilian band from Toronto made up of some of Canada's top musicians and 'veterans' of the flourishing and ever expanding Brazilian music scene including Alex Dean (sax), Mark Duggan (vibes), Aline Morales (vocals), Wagner Petrilli (viola), Maninho Costa (percussion),  Alan Heatherington (drums). Influenced by Choro, Musica Popular Brasileira and Jazz, the group’s musicianship is outstanding, driven by a fervent sense of rhythm. Their repertoire is a mixture of Brazil’s classic instrumental tunes mixed with some Brazilian standard songs and original compositions.

Jive Bombers – Sunday, June 23 at 3:00pm

The Jive Bombers are a Toronto based group that performs a lively variety of off-beat jazz and blues classics from all eras of the genre. Led by Trombonist John Karpenko, there’s always a sense of fun and mayhem when these old friends get together to play their wicked horn-heavy mix of jump-blues and jazzy swing tunes. Performers include: John Karpenko (Trombone), Alex Dean (Sax), Bob Brough (Sax), Johnny Johnson (Sax), Brigham Phillips (Trumpet), Del Dako (Vibes), Gord Sheard (Piano), Al Henderson (Bass), Curtis Smith (Drums) and Special Guest Vocalists.

Norman Marshall Villeneuve’s Jazz Message Quintet – Monday, June 24 at 7:00pm

Félix Award Winner Norman Marshall Villeneuve is a Canadian jazz icon who plays with a spirited passion that is exciting and contagious to anyone within earshot. This veteran player has a successful career spanning more than 60 years. For over 35 years he has made his home in Toronto where he has earned a reputation as 'father figure' to a younger generation of players. Villenueve continues his life's work under his banner Norman Marshall Villeneuve’s Jazz Message and has given innumerable performance opportunities to a new generation of those who now comprise the best of Canadian jazz - Bill McBirnie, Robi Botos, Reg Schwager, Bob Brough, Mike Downes, Grant Stewart, Eric Boucher, David Restivo, Jake Wilkinson, Ken Fornetran, Artie Roth, Gord Webster, Shawn Nyquist, Brownman Ali, Mike Pelletier and Brian Chahley.

Lily Frost Swings – Tuesday, June 25 at 7:00pm

Infectious and charming are the best words to describe Lily Frost Swings. The talented singer-songwriter, whose original music has been heard on TV shows such as Grey’s Anatomy, brings new and fresh interpretations to classic songs from the great American Songbook made famous by the legendary Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald and more. The arrangements recall the heyday of swing – peppered with the slightest hint of western swing - which blends a period feel with a contemporary sensibility. The repertoire appeals to both veteran jazz fans and a young contemporary audience.

Maylee Todd – Wednesday, June 26 at 7:00pm

Meet quirky songstress, Maylee Todd, the multi-talented singer/songwriter with an appetite for obscure instruments. Born to an English/French father and a Filipino/Spanish mother, this skilful young lady has many strings to her bow (or harp, rather). You may know her from the humorous interactive aerobics events called "Sweatshop Hop" which have aired on Canada’s Much More Music. And when she’s not dressing in spandex and entertaining the crowd with comical parodies, you can find her at Toronto’s Second City where she is a regular. Crazy for Jose Feliciano and Gilberto Gil, whose concerts she recalls perfectly, her own creations are an amalgamation of these influences, or ‘Bossa-meets-Funk-and-Indie’ as she calls it. Her band ‘Pegwee Power’ which started as a harp + looping station + vocals solo act, now consists of musicians Andrew Scott (horns /synth), Eric Woolston(double bass), and Chris Kettlewell (drums/vibraphone).

Diana Braithwaite & Chris Whiteley – Thursday, June 27 at 7:00pm
Diana Braithwaite's personal history as the direct descendant of American Blacks that were able to escape to freedom in Canada through the Underground Railroad lead to the creation of a multimedia musical history workshop that Braithwaite and Chris Whiteley have taken to primary and middle schools across North America. This Underground Railroad workshop has been performed over 5 years to more than 60,000 students and community groups across the country.

Kansas born Whiteley moved with his family to Toronto, where as a teen-age performer he met blues legend Lonnie Johnson, who taught and encouraged him. During the late 70's he toured and recorded with Leon Redbone, appearing with him on Saturday Night Live. He also met a great mentor in legendary Chicago piano player Blind John Davis, who had been the house piano player at Bluebird Records, Whiteley toured and recorded with Davis, as well as building a solid reputation as a multi-instrumental session player, appearing on over 200 recordings, and as a solo artist, leading to numerous Canadian Maple Blues Awards as both songwriter and horn player of the year, and a Jazz Report Magazine Blues Album of the Year Award. In 2010 Whiteley was awarded the prestigious Blues With a Feeling Award, for lifetime achievement in the blues.

Grooveyard – Friday, June 28 at 8:00pm
Grooveyard’s repertoire draws on everything from classic funk and soul to reggae, disco, jazz, ‘80’s new wave, classic rock, and, when required for weddings, traditional music. The band puts its own distinct stamp on the music it performs and the group is definitely not just another cover band. Flexible in its size (the band performs dance music as everything from its core 5-piece to a 9-piece and usually adds a great female vocalist such as Laura Lynn to the band, along with 1-3 horns). Lead singer Lester McLean is a talented and versatile vocalist and saxophone player whose dynamic presentation and ability to get an audience having a good time is unmatched. Guitarist Michael Occhipinti and keyboardist Paul Neufeld are both Juno award winning musicians who co-lead NOJO, one of Canada’s most critically acclaimed jazz groups, and together with bassist Mike Pellarin and drummer Don Pham they bring a very high level of musicianship to Grooveyard.

Organic – Saturday, June 29 at 2:00pm
Organic’s signature brand of B3 jazz blends hard bop and blues sensibilities with original compositions and blistering improvisation. Organic was formed when Ryan Oliver (Derek Miller, Shuffle Demons, Fishook) returned to Toronto after 5 years on the New York scene and sat in with his former collaborator Nathan Hiltz’s (GHT, Terra Hazelton, Brandi Disterheft) group at Joe Mamas in the entertainment district in mid 2012. The group plays every week in the heart of Toronto’s entertainment district at Joe Mamas.

Erin Costelo – Saturday, June 29 at 5:00pm
Erin Costelo has found her voice. Inspired by her love of old soul, 60s vocal groups and classic arranging, Costelo takes listeners on a journey of heart, soul, and transcendence. Based in Halifax, the accomplished musician and arranger has toured North America, scored performances with Symphony Nova Scotia and the Blue Engine String Quartet.

Roberto Linares Brown Orchestra – Saturday, June 29 at 8:00pm
One of Cuba's most talented arrangers and composers, Roberto Linares Brown began his career with Cuban groups Valentin y Los Del Caribe, Azucar Negra and Adalberto Alvarez. He was a catalyst for the creation of Lula Lounge's popular Havana Norte series which has featured a who's who of Toronto-based Cuban musicans. Linares Brown has been contributing to the series since 2006 performing original compositions that became the basis of his brilliant 2008 solo release, "Que No Se Pierda La Essencia". After an extended tour of Europe in 2008, Roberto Linares Brown (aka El Seña') returned to Canada - boasting new compositions and with a renewed desire to take Toronto's salsa scene to the next level.

Toronto Rhythm Initiative – Sunday, June 30 at 3:00pm
Started by local rhythm tap dancer Allison Toffan, the Toronto Rhythm Initiative [TRI] is committed to voicing the artistry of Toronto's professional tap dance community. TRI further establishes the identity of rhythm artists through the fusion and merging of tap dancers and musicians through consistent collaboration. TRI also welcomes dancers from multiple genres with rhythmical elements and foundation to promote the identity of percussive dancers working with a musical focus. TRI performers are multi-generational, hail from different parts of North America, and work together to build their professional bodies of work, inspire and support each other, and advance their art form.

About the TD Toronto Jazz Festival
Turn up the jazz and explore the TD Toronto Jazz Festival as it plays nonstop for 10 days, from June 20 - June 29, 2013. Uniting half a million fans at more than 60 locations across the city, the Festival is the ultimate destination for music lovers. Make the Festival your meeting place this summer and take in a breath of fresh jazz.

About Shops at Don Mills:

Shops at Don Mills is a high-quality retail and commercial destination where fashion, dining and entertainment come outside to play.  The first Urban Village in Ontario to integrate residential and commercial environments, Shops at Don Mills is truly a breath of fresh air. Located on the southwest corner of Don Mills Road and Lawrence Avenue East, just two blocks west of the Don Valley Parkway, Shops at Don Mills has free parking and is easily accessible by public transit via the following bus routes: 25 Don Mills; 54 Lawrence East; 162 Lawrence.  To learn more about the centre's exceptional shops, restaurants, services and community events hosted at the Town Square, please visit shopsatdonmills.ca or call 416-447-6087 ext 244.

About Cadillac Fairview:

Shops at Don Mills is owned and operated by The Cadillac Fairview Corporation Limited, one of North America's largest investors, owners and managers of commercial real estate. For more than 50 years Cadillac Fairview has been leading the way in commercial real estate with innovative design, development and management.

Cadillac Fairview focuses on developing and managing high quality office properties and regional shopping centres in Canada and the United States, as well as international investments in real estate companies and investment funds. With a portfolio valued at more than $21 billion, Cadillac Fairview and its affiliates own and manage nearly 46 million square feet of leaseable space at 79 properties across North America, including some of Canada's landmark developments, such as Toronto-Dominion Centre, Toronto Eaton Centre, Pacific Centre and Chinook Centre.

-30-