Six years ago, while at The Banff Centre, jazz pianist and percussionist Kristian Alexandrov met Jens Lindemann, the chair of brass studies at UCLA.
Then, the internationally acclaimed trumpet player and former member of the Canadian Brass was working on his BrassFire show and the pair quickly struck a friendship.
Since then, "he has been taking me travelling with him across Canada and the U.S.," said Alexandrov, a Port Moody resident, noting his partner, Shannon Gaye, a singer and percussion, has also joined them for a few dates.
Last June, while Alexandrov and Gaye were performing outdoors at Port Moody city hall, Valerie Simons - chairperson of the 2014 PoMo ArtsFest - hired them on the spot. And when Simons asked if they knew of anybody to bring in as a special guest, the pair instantly thought of Lindemann. "It was kind of a natural progression to bring Jens here," Alexandrov said.
On Friday, the trio will launch the PoMo ArtsFest at a gala reception in the Inlet Theatre - an event that Alexandrov says will be an "eclectic, sophisticated" mix of jazz and classical compositions and arrangements. "We won't be doing anything crazy like rock 'n roll."
The show will also include Port Moody's Ben Harries on bass.
A native of Sofia, Bulgaria, Alexandrov followed his musician parents to Canada in 1995 and met Gaye a few years later in Calgary. In 2008, he won the Canadian smooth jazz award for best pianist and, recently, released a CD with Gaye, called Little Wonder, in which he co-wrote and co-produced.
Tickets for the PoMo ArtsFest gala reception on Friday, Feb. 21 are $35 through the Port Moody Arts Centre (2425 St. John's St.) or by calling 604-931-2008. Visit pomoartsfest.ca for more information on the events.
FEST LINE-UP
THURSDAY
1:30 p.m., PoMo Public Library: Storytelling with Dan Bar-el
7 p.m., Inlet Theatre: Slam poetry with RC Weslowski, Jacob Gebrewold and the 2013 Youth Poetry Slam Team
FRIDAY
7 p.m., Inlet Theatre: World Jazz with Kristian Alexandrov, Shannon Gaye and Jens Lindemann
SATURDAY
2 p.m., Inlet Theatre: A World of Percussion and Rhythms featuring Boris Sichon
7 p.m., Inlet Theatre: Digital Guise
SUNDAY
All day, PoMo rec complex: Port Moody Art Association's one-day Art to Go sale
11 a.m., Inlet Theatre: Russian Favourites - In the Footsteps of Glinka, Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff
1 p.m. PoMo city hall galleria: Coquitlam Weavers Guild and Dye Pot Club exhibit
1 p.m., Inlet Theatre: Classical afternoon with tea and scones
7 p.m., Inlet Theatre: Silk Road Music and Wen Wei Wang - Cultural Fusion and Dance
