Tuesday Night Jazz at the Church presents English virtuoso pianist Nicolas Peck, with bassist Peter Dowse and drummer Kelby MacNayr!
Virtuoso pianists are not the rarest thing in jazz, but a pianist who can swing like Oscar Peterson, play with the openness of Keith Jarrett, the inventiveness of Cecil Taylor, and the strength of McCoy Tyner — all while bringing their own style and originality — now that is something quite special indeed!
Nick Peck came into his own in London’s dynamic jazz scene before becoming one of the most in-demand pianists in Vancouver. During the pandemic, Nick moved to northern Vancouver Island to be closer to family, where he worked as both a pianist and computer programmer.
In this special trio presentation, Nick joins longtime musical collaborator drummer Kelby MacNayr and new friend and fellow Englishman bassist Peter Dowse.
Join us for a beautiful, elegant, swinging, and enigmatic night of piano trio playing at its finest!
Admission by donation (suggested donation: $20). Everyone is welcome, regardless of ability to pay.
Nicholas Peck is a Canadian multi-instrumentalist and composer, primarily known as a jazz pianist and organist who has performed across Canada and Europe.
Nick’s musical background was initially self-taught, playing on the local jazz circuit around his native Kent, UK. Pursuing formal studies in music, he was introduced to a wide range of classical, contemporary, and world music that broadened his outlook. However, it was in jazz improvisation that he found his preferred outlet.
Moving to London, he studied piano and composition at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama. During this time, he received tuition from Simon Purcell, Scott Stroman, and John Taylor, all of whom introduced him to ways in which a diverse range of ideas and colours could be brought together while respecting the jazz tradition.
Following this, Nick became increasingly active as a sideman, gaining valuable hands-on experience accompanying visiting jazz artists on piano and Hammond organ in and around London and the South of England.
Since 2013, he has resided in British Columbia, Canada, where he can frequently be found playing with many talented colleagues up and down the Canadian West Coast. His style is marked by his ability to shift from hard-swinging jazz to pastoral serenity to elements of the 20th- and 21st-century piano tradition at the drop of a hat, with both hands equally creative on the keyboard, in a manner that is constantly engaging and accessible.
In contrast, another side of Nick’s music can be found in his growing output of recorded work. Over the course of the last decade, this has revealed another side of a complex musical personality that exists beyond categorization, blurring the lines between composition and improvisation and sometimes exploding into large, multi-tracked symphonic forms, coloured by his experiences performing jazz, contemporary classical, folk, electronic, and freely improvised music.
Wednesday and Friday, 9am to 2pm