Musicians only get better with age, so imagine the chops Quincy Chimich will have by the time he leaves his teens.
The recent high school grad, who started studying piano at age five and was playing Vancouver’s Cellar Jazz Club by 16, is home for the summer after completing his first year of a four-year bachelor's program the prestigious New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York.
Before leaving for a city that was “huge and overwhelmingly competitive,” Chimich also completed two rounds of the highly selective TD Jazz Intensive, an educational branch of the Vancouver International Jazz Festival that offers 21 Lower Mainland high school students a free nine-day music residency and prepares them for the professional arena.
“It helped me learn how to play in a band, and how to not only depend on myself but depend on other people as well,” says Chimich, who will be playing two shows with his quintet during the festival.
Chimich says that opportunities to play – something the residency provides daily, culminating in a main stage festival performance each year – are what benefit young musicians the most.
“Most of music-making is on the bandstand. You’re learning every second what’s right, what you should do, what you shouldn’t do, what you need to learn, what you already know that you maybe didn’t know that you knew.”
The pianist, whose foundations in jazz allowed him to build his hip hop and neo soul houses, says the Vancouver Jazz Festival catches the attention of players his age because it welcomes trends, despite the city’s “traditionally-bound” reputation.
His pick of the fest? The Charles Lloyd Quartet (June 27) with hard-swinging New York draw Gerald Clayton, 30, on piano.
“Charles Lloyd is a legend and he rarely plays anymore. He’s sort of older, and his group features a lot of younger guys. I love seeing that because it gives me hope for the future that maybe an older guy will pick me up some day.”
More with Quincy Chimich:
KK: What suprised you the most about the scene in New York?
QC: The amount of players, first of all. The scene in Vancouver in terms of jazz is just not that big. There's a few jam sessions that happen and I go to them, but it's always the same players. It's just not a big environment. And that's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just the nature of the city. But when you go to New York there are sessions everywhere, every night. So many players, so many venues. And it's overwhelming, but it's inspiring. If someone calls you for a gig, you can't sleep on it because they always have a number two.
KK: As a young musician, are you optimistic about your professional outlook?
QC: Yes, but more than ever I've realized the amount of work it's going to take to get there. There's no way you can just kind of slide into it; you really have to work hard. The biggest part of it is connections.
KK: How did the closure of Cory Weed's Cellar Jazz Club in February alter the Vancouver landscape?
QC: I'm good friends with Cory and we've talked about it. He agrees, and feels that there's probably going to be a bit of a void now. But you have to respect the fact that he's moving on to a different phase. Thirteen years is a fairly long time and he did the city really well. I think it's great that we have this jazz festival, because I feel like every year the festival is increasing its amount of great music. I look forward to a lot of shows now that are underground, that people wouldn't necessarily know. That shows to me that Vancouver is looking more into what's on trend and popular and bringing it to the festival and exposing people to it.
KK: Is there a contemporary whose career arc mimics your own goals?
QC: There's this new guy named Kris Bowers from LA (LA County High School for the Arts, Juilliard). The way I look at him and see a future for myself is he's not just doing one thing. He's a jazz piano player at heart, but he's toured with Kanye West and he's played with Q-Tip. He's sort of looking at where music is right now and not just making pop music, but music that he enjoys and that an audience can enjoy as well. That's what I would like to do, because I feel like a lot of jazz musicians just make music for themselves, and not to please the audience.
KK: What is your earliest memory of jazz?
QC: My dad used to listen to this one record by Dave Brubek called Time Out a lot. I had a good ear at a young age and I would just listen and try to pick it out on the piano. Without success, but I nonetheless tried! [laughs]
KK: What can people expect at your Jazz Festival sets?
QC: I have a few New York friends from the new school – from Portland, Dallas, Winnipeg – and we have a drummer from Vancouver. We're going to be playing the Jazz Vespers on June 22 and then we're opening for this jazz piano player named Harold Mabern on June 26. We haven't really decided specific songs, but for the Vespers it is going to be a more open feel. We're not just going to play jazz; we really want to give a good concept of our group and all of our interests. So we'll play some instrumental hip hop and maybe some arrangements. And then for the 26th we're probably just going to swing hard, because we want to showcase that aspect and that's sort of what Harold is into. I really want to show the contrast between those two.
You can catch the Quincy Chimich Quintet June 22 at St. Andrew’s Wesley United Church, and opening for Cory Weeds and Harold Mabern June 26.
