Subtle Fire

The first moments of Subtle Fire, the debut CD from Winnipeg pianist Will Bonness, are like doors swinging open, an entry point to some of the most appealing and artful trio playing out there right now. From fresh takes on standards like Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise and It Never Entered My Mind to compelling originals like Walking on Water and the title song, Subtle Fire is stylish, sophisticated, and emotionally charged. Bonness has incredible facility, and it always serves his muse-he's as convincing in a soulful ballad as he is at a blistering tempo. The rapport between Bonness and his bandmates, bassist Steve Kirby and drummer Terreon Gully, is uncanny, like three separate individuals expressing a single musical mind. Subtle Fire is both intimate and expansive. It's also witty, powerful, and refined without a trace of pretension. Bonness is definitely a brilliant new star. Still in his early twenties, jazz pianist WILL BONNESS has heated up the keyboard in performances across Canada as well as in some of the most prestigious jazz clubs in the United States and Europe-the Blue Note and Small's in New York, Croce's Restaurant and Jazz Bar in San Diego, Dowe's on 9th in Pittsburgh, and Ronnie Scott's in London. As a teenager, he joined Maynard Ferguson's Big Bop Nouveau Band on their world tour, and since then has performed with many other internationally-acclaimed jazz artists, including violinist Regina Carter and trumpet sensation Avishai Cohen. In 2009, he toured Canada with Steve Kirby and Larry Roy as part of the Wicked Grin band. Bonness recently received Canada Council support to study in New York and Boston. Bonness' bandmates on Subtle Fire are bassist STEVE KIRBY and drummer TERREON GULLY, jazz musicians who perform, record, and tour with some of the highest profile players in the business. Kirby moved from New York to Winnipeg in 2003, becoming the Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Manitoba. Gully, a native of East St Louis, lives in Atlanta.