Rebecca Hennessy – Trumpet
Petr Cancura – Saxophone and Clarinet
Michael Herring – Bass
Richie Barshay – Drums

CHECK OUT OUR BRAND NEW WEBSITE – www.waynorthband.com

From the very first notes of its kick-off track, Fearless and Kind, the sophomore release from the quartet called Way North, announces that it knows how to get the party started… For this band and others like it, there’s a tricky tightrope to walk, I think. Err in one direction, and even the originals might sound like overly reverent repertory music. Err in the other, and the music can sound caricaturish. Fortunately, Way North keeps its balance with songs that sound rich and personal while acknowledging the tremendous heritage behind them.” – Peter Hum, Ottawa Citizen (read the whole review)

Fearless and Kind is all about a celebration of sound, with a rapturous elasticity on the up-tempo tunes, and a hearteningly ruminative heft on the more languid moments. It’s like a band standing on a street corner in the French Quarter, giving it their all.” – Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz (read the whole review)

The music is instantly inviting and infectious with a capacity for taking the listener to unexpected places.” – Ted Quinlan, The Whole Note (read the whole review)

Way North is the best kind of musical collaboration, one born out of the joy of playing together. Way North was formed in Brooklyn in 2014 by three Canadians – saxophonist Petr Cancura (Down Home – JUNO nominee), trumpeter Rebecca Hennessy (Women’s Blues Revue bandleader/Hobson’s Choice), bassist Michael Herring (Peripheral Vision – JUNO nominee) and one American, drummer Richie Barshay (Herbie Hancock/Chick Corea). The band brings together four musicians who love to use jazz and improvisation as a means of exploring folk and world music. Their debut CD, Kings County, was launched in 2015 with an Ontario tour and it was picked by the Ottawa Citizen as one of the best Jazz CD’s of 2015. You can hear the influences of a wide range of folk genres, including the blues, old-time, Balkan, Brazilian and Calypso. In January 2016, Way North was invited to perform and teach at Danilo Perez’s Panama Jazz Festival. While in Panama they were also invited to the Mamoni Reserve in the jungle where they performed and collaborated as part of the NGO Earth Train’s Geoversity campaign.