The Pearl Company

Gary Santucci’s CD RE-Release! Saturday April 30. 8:00pm. $20 /$15 students/ seniors/ wage-challenged. In response to increasing demand, Gary Santucci (Flamenco, Classical & Jazz Guitar Artist) will re-release his first CD Recording, Santucci Solo, a selection of solo guitar works composed between the years 1974 and 1995. Santucci Solo was first released in 1999 and the works have remained timeless in the classical tradition. Gary will perform the entire CD as a kick-off to his return to the studio to begin recording many of his projects for guitar and other instruments as well as further works for solo guitar. As part of the evening there will be a post performance reception; also Gary’s impressive instrument collection will be on display!
Santucci’s fourth CD is currently in rehearsal; It will feature 3 major works. Suite for Gu Zheng (Chinese harp) and Guitar, Melodious Thelonious Suite for Drum Kit and Guitar and the title track of the CD The Unknown World for solo guitar.

Duane Andrews and the Conception Bay String Quartet: Friday, April 22, 8 PM, $25 at the door/ $20 in advance at http://www.ticketscene.ca/events/15092/ Free admission for ages 12 and under. Join Duane and members of the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra for an evening of jazz, classical and folk music from his latest album ‘Conception Bay’! Duane Andrews – Guitar, Stephen Sitarski – Violin, Cecilia Chang – Violin, Elspeth Thomson – Viola, Kirk Starkey – Cello. Guitar virtuoso Duane Andrews’ new album, ‘Conception Bay’, is an ambitious undertaking, pairing Andrews’ jazz-influenced guitar with a string quartet and pulling from a spectrum of jazz, classical arrangements, and traditional Newfoundland folk music. For more insight into Conception Bay visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYOGqtnAkzE
“The music might be best described as Folk music played by a top Jazz guitarist and the result is refreshing and stunning. Highly recommended.” Folkworld Magazine, Germany

Roxanne Potvin & Erin Costelo! Saturday, April 23. 8:00pm. $20 /$15 students/ seniors/ wage-challenged. Roxanne Potvin’s latest album, For Dreaming, sees the Montreal-based singer/songwriter and guitarist return with a highly personal and deeply affecting collection of songs after a five-year break from recording. The hiatus Included two years of formal training in sound engineering and work as a studio assistant. When Potvin decided to record a new album, she produced most of it herself, building upon the quiet intensity displayed on her album Play. For Dreaming now opens a new chapter for Potvin as a singer/ songwriter with pop smarts, undeniable soul, and a ceaseless drive in uncharted directions.
Erin Costelo’s a Halifax, Nova Scotia native. Her latest album Down Below,The Status Quo is a reflection of her (and our) complicated world, expressed through a voice unlike any other in Canada; she has an exquisite vocal talent, also piano playing and songwriting. With her vintage soul music influences on her previous album, We Can Get Over, Erin’s musical evolution has taken its next natural step on Down Below, The Status Quo, by channeling those themes into 10 new deeply personal tracks that display her exceptional gifts as a producer, songwriter and arranger.
Roxanne – Listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOymxX2z340 www.roxannepotvin.com
Erin – Listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUEmzrES1uY http://erincostelo.ca/

Carlos del Junco and The Blues Mongrels: Saturday April 16, at 8pm Tickets: $20 advance/$25 at the door. Carlos is one of those players whose music is so advanced that he’s not allowed to compete any more (Eight time Harmonica Player of The Year at the Maple Leaf Blues Awards!). Simultaneously sophisticated and raw, his backing band’s playing blurs the boundaries between blues and jazz. The emphasis is on blues, but they are not afraid to merrily traipse off in other directions delivering a seamless fusion of New Orleans second line grooves, jazz swing, Latin, hip-hop or ska melodies, to swampy roots rock. The Blues Mongrels are: bassist Henry Heillig (founded the nine piece Latin band Manteca), and guitarist Eric St. Laurent. Get ready to trash all you thought you knew about the harmonica. The Blues Mongrels deliver a no-holds-barred display of fun and melodic virtuosity.  “a model of focus and urgency..a true virtuoso”.. Brad Wheeler – The Globe and Mail  http://www.carlosdeljunco.com  Listen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpuBtxuE_xo

Little Miss Higgins & Jordie Lane: Friday, April 15, 8:00pm $20 /$15 students/seniors/wage-challenged. From the Great Northern Plains of Western Canada, The award-winning Little Miss Higgins struts and serenades her way, guitar in hand, lips blazoned red, onto any stage. As if she just drove in off the back-road of another time with gravel dust and a sunset trailing behind her, this pocket-sized powerhouse plays music brewed up in old-time country blues sprinkled with a little jazz and maybe a hint of folk. Whether it’s songs about passion or songs about panties, she writes about real things in a rooted and poetic way. Guitar and voice are her main instruments and her theatre background brings a “refreshing sound and story to the stage.” As a songwriter, she has been influenced by a range of artists from Memphis Minnie, Billie Holiday, Big Bill Broonzy to Joni Mitchell, Dolly Parton and Bob Dylan. www.littlemisshiggins.com   Listen! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcPas_B_CwA

Big Johnny Blue w Special Guest Voodoo Walter: Saturday, April 9. 8:00pm, $20 / $15 students/seniors/wage-challenged….  Like the blues?  You’ll love them Big Johnny Blue style.  Big Johnny’s a Hamilton guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter and founding member of The Hamilton Blues Society. He has written hundreds of songs, and played with countless local musicians over the years. He is committed to supporting local music and musicians, especially by supporting efforts to tell the story of Hamilton’s blues history, and the power of music to improve the life of every man.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XE8p_zRZeIs&index=1&list=PLB3320D903F7A1FCE       https://www.facebook.com/bigjohnnyblueandstrangecargo/

An Evening of Kurt Weill: Interpreted by 2^nd Year Mohawk Music! Friday, April 8. Doors: 7:30 / Show: 8:00.The wonderful voices of second year music students from Mohawk College are pleased to present an evening of Kurt Weill. Their performance will showcase the influence Weill had on music created after his time. The evening is sure to be a fun night of fusing past and present sounds! We all know who Sophia Perlman is and what a talent she brings.  This is Sophia’s class; I’ve heard them and they are a talented enthusiastic group itching to show you what they can do.  Don’t disappoint them!

“THIS FOOL’S LIFE”…Robin Benedict & Friends: Friday, April 1. 8:00. Doors: 7:30. Show: 8:00 p.m. $20.00. Told through Comedy, Music and Good Friends! This fool, Robin’s signature style is of raw and fearless vocals, with a distinctly vulnerable cadence, self-deprecating humour, and passion. She packs a powerful punch live. A few high notes: the Video that went viral with 4½ million views; her expansive repertoire of everything from rock, reggae and funk, country, folk and blues; her unique, powerful voice which has drawn international attention, and regular trips to Nashville; and finally there’s her relaxed and humorous stage presence and ability to move a crowd of any size and demographic to their feet. With Robin will be Musical Guests: Walter Cernile / Jamie Cameron; Special Guests: our favourite comedy duo, Erin and Nara with Sarah Farr & Misha Fotos.  Here’s the viral video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVjCZ0IoKUE  Robin singing “What’s Up”: http://youtu.be/kFCCe0hleRA  http://www.robinbenedict.ca/

Shari Vandermolen & David Brideau: Saturday May 5.  Doors: 7:30pm. Show: 8:00. Tickets: $20. Shari Vandermolen is a renowned vocalist and award-winning performer in Hamilton and the Greater Toronto Area who has been entertaining audiences for 15 years with her Quartet, Trio or 5-piece band Quarter to Nine.  She is also the lead vocalist for the 10-piece jazz combo SwingLine.  On May 5th Shari brings her powerful and impressive vocal stylings back to the Pearl Company for a more intimate evening of song with jazz guitarist David Brideau, James Gannett on bass and Vince Waters on drums.  “…hear Vandermolen make jelly of your emotions with her voice and her art… one example is Stormy Weather… I barely weathered that storm intact.”  – View Magazine
David Brideau is a Canadian jazz guitarist, composer, and teacher who has been an active musician for over 15 years. A Hamilton native, and honours graduate from the Mohawk Jazz program, David has played all around the GTA with his own group, the David Brideau Trio and Quartet, as well as being prominently featured in groups with Michael Morobito, Amber-Leigh Palka, and Lauren Perreira among others. He studied under jazz greats Bob Shields, Pat Collins, Kim Ratcliffe, and Mark Ucci and is currently continuing his studies at McMaster University. David often composes his own standards, and released the sold-out EP “Addicted To You” in 2016. He is a recipient of the Dave McMurdo Music Bursary, the Antony Roberts Music Bursary, and the Richard Newell Memorial Scholarship.
Ticets: https://www.ticketscene.ca/events/21098/