Happy Hour - Howard Rees Trio

Duncan Hopkins (bass), Howard Rees (piano), Harry Ellis (drums)

Howard Rees: Belleville Jazz Festival Founder & Artistic Director. Howard Rees will be leading a trio at the Belleville Club from 4.30 to 6pm on July 28, 29 & 30. Howard has performed with some of the greats in jazz including; Jaki Byard, Ray Drummond, Slim Galliard, Barry Harris, Earl May, Charles McPherson, Akira Tana and Leroy Williams. Howard is also a well-known teacher of jazz, and will be giving master classes in improvisation and harmony for all instruments at the Belleville Club on July 30th. His teaching is based on the methodology of Barry Harris with whom he apprenticed from 1978 to 2021, many of those years in New York City. Aside from his Toronto based jazz workshop now in its 39th year, Howard has been invited to teach in many schools around the world including Shobi University, Japan; University of Leeds, UK; and Stanford University, USA.

Duncan Hopkins: Double bassist, composer and arranger Duncan Hopkins has been working at the highest levels of jazz for almost thirty years. In that time he has worked with such luminaries as Norma Winstone, Rob McConnell, Scott Hamilton, Houston Person, Peter Appleyard, Ed Bickert, Mark Murphy, Bobo Stenson, Diana Krall, Sheila Jordan, Kenny Wheeler, Bobby Watson, Sam Rivers, Harry Allen and Edward Simon to name but a few. Duncan was a member of Rob McConnell and the Boss Brass and the highly distinguished Canadian Jazz Quartet for ten years before moving to Europe. His newest project “Elysian” joins long time collaborator (and 2017 British Pianist of the Year) Nikki Iles BEM and the incredibly talented vocalist Thierry Peala from Paris. Their CD is called “Voyageur” and has music and lyrics by Duncan Hopkins. Together they have a unique chemistry which simulates eventide and candlelight in one moment and sea breeze on your cheeks in the next.

Harry Ellis: Harry Ellis has had a long and varied career playing and travelling with such artists as Helen Reddy, Gary Lewis & the Playboys, Maria Muldaur, Tanya Tucker, Michelle Wright and Carol Baker. He has performed in jazz festivals in Europe and Asia with Milt Hinton, Buddy Tate, Warren Vache, Danny Moss and Roy Williamson, and in Canada with Peter Appleyard, Norm Amadio, Frank Wright, Michael Stewart, Bobby Fenton, George Koller, Hilario Duran, Luis Mario Ochoa and Bill McBirnie to name a few. Harry now resides in Prince Edward County and performs regularly with a wide assortment of players and vocalists in the area.