Renee Rosnes
Biography
"Renee Rosnes has carved out for herself a reputation as one of
jazz's new bright lights. She has impressed veterans of the bebop
and free jazz wars with a crisp, uncluttered approach to
improvisation that respects, but doesn't genuflect to, the music
of the past. Her exposure to a variety of artists has prodded her
to develop a clear voice all her own."
- Bob Young, The Boston Globe
Canadian pianist Renee Rosnes moved from Vancouver, B.C. to New
York City in 1986, courtesy of a Canada Council Arts Grant to
further her jazz studies. It wasn't long after she arrived that
many fellow musicians took notice of her remarkable talent and she
soon began to notch a series of high profile jobs. During the
years that followed, Rosnes found herself recording and touring in
groups led by such greats as Joe Henderson, Wayne Shorter, James
Moody, Jon Faddis and J.J. Johnson among others. Eventually she
landed a recording contract with Blue Note and recorded three
acclaimed CDs for them: Renee Rosnes (a Canadian Juno Nominee);
For The Moment (a Juno winner) and Without Words. The latter,
which features her trio backed by a string orchestra, was voted
one of the top ten recordings of 1993 by USA TODAY, and was also
awarded Best Jazz Album of the Year (1993) by The Jazz Report
magazine. Renee Rosnes has recently joined forces with EMI Music
Canada and significantly is the first Jazz instrumentalist to be
signed by a major label in Canada. Her dynamic debut is Ancestors,
a strong recording that highlights Rosnes' playing and
compositions in a variety of settings.
Many of us go through our daily lives having
certain expectations for what Herbert Hoover
dubbed, "normalcy". The events in pianist Renee
Rosnes' life leading up to the music featured on this recording
were anything but "normal". Within a span of three months in the
spring of 1994, Renee met her biological mother Mohindar, after a
search that had lasted many years. Shortly after this joyous
discovery, Renee's adoptive mother Audrey succumbed to cancer
which had only just been diagnosed. The extremes of joy and pain
that Renee experienced simultaneously gave rise to strong musical
inspiration. The result of this creative energy is found here in
many of the original compositions.
Blue Note Records
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