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Mother of Pearl has learned the secret of jazz survival- don’t just do one thing! They’ll play a concert, a club or a wedding. They’ve visited hundreds of classrooms from Haida Gwai to Castlegar, earning them “schools” of fans. Jazz festivals from Halifax to Whitehorse welcomed them with open ears. Radio audiences from The Vinyl Café to Hot Air to Sounds Like Canada have heard them perform and discuss their music. Even flyers on Air Canada have heard them on the in-flight entertainment. With two CDs to their credit, they are slowly but inexorably building a national following for their work.
Mother of Pearl casts a wide net for their repertoire. There are “standards” from the golden age of jazz and blues, tunes and songs they have composed and funky gems drawn from the contemporary jazz revival. Through it all runs a commitment to playing great music and also to playing music written and performed by women. From the International Sweethearts of Rhythm, circa 1945, to the work of Carla Bley, circa now, Mother of Pearl has always paid tribute to their foremothers. In 2000, they began the research that would lead to sheBOP!-A Century of Jazz Compositions by Canadian Women.
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