Centre

The reputation of this Quebec saxophonist is well established: musician, composer and arranger, he is sought after on the music scene in Quebec and elsewhere. In 1982, he was already performing at the Montreux Festival and rubbing shoulders with the great names of jazz and pop, from Michel Legrand to Paul Anka. After obtaining his Master's degree in Jazz from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester N.Y. Jean Pierre performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival and the International Saxophone Congress in Nuremberg in 1982. In the same year, he recorded two albums with the Eastman Jazz Ensemble and Saxology which won the Downbeat Recording Award for best jazz group of the year. He is an excellent instrumentalist who has worked with such prestigious musicians as Rufus Reid, Terence Blanchard, Bob Brookmeyer, Kenny Wheeler and Frank Sinatra Jr. to name a few. He has also taken part in numerous events on the jazz scene in Canada and Europe. In 1987 he arranged the instrumental version of the Montreal Jazz Festival theme "Summertime". Zanella has created strong ties and has recorded with Brazilian artists such as Marcos Valle, Altay Veloso, the group Boca Livre, pianist Marcos Ariel and guitarist Roberto Menescal. He received the Ordem do Rio Branco from the Brazilian government. In 1994 he represented Canada in Belgium during the centenary of the death of Adolphe Sax, inventor of the saxophone. He has seven solo recordings to his credit: Caminho (1994), Mystic Infancy (1998), Puzzle City (1999), Mother tree (2002), Villa-Lobos & Jobim (2006), Infinito (2010) and Quattro Venti (2016). Zanella is the recipient of the 2011 Oscar Peterson Award from the Montreal Jazz Festival for his contribution to the Canadian jazz scene.

The musical universe of Montreal-based Canadian guitarist Oli Astral (Olivier Grenier-Bédard) fuses the sound of modern jazz guitar with digital audio technology and visual projection. At 32, Oli Astral embarks on the adventure of From the Astral (2022), his first album as a leader. He is an active member of the Montreal band LEAF, whose self-titled debut album was released in 2017. Olivier Grenier- Bédard is the recipient of awards and distinctions such as the Audience Award at the La Musique Change Des Vies competition (2015) organized by the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal and the Audience Award (2019) at the Festival

Festival International de Jazz de Rimouski, as part of the Grand Prix LOJIQ with the group LEAF.