Performers

René Lussier (Québec) and Kevin Breit (Ontario)

The Guelph Jazz Festival has now cultivated a tradition of programming top-notch guitar duos – the ‘duelling banjos of the avant garde’ jokes are growing increasingly irresistible.

While last year featured the co-operative/combative wall of sound thrown up by Nels Cline and G.E. Stinson, each member of this duo has featured in a memorable partnership in the Festival’s history. Few in attendance could forget the sheer joy, ebullience, and hilarity of the 2005 set by two kindred spirits, René Lussier and Eugene Chadbourne as they ripped through country and western tunes, jazz standards, and québecois folksong in a mind-bending romp. Kevin Breit, the local guitar hero who needs no introduction to Guelph regulars, played an equally memorable (though quite a bit more reflective) set with Bill Frisell in the 2001 edition of the Festival.

What to expect when Lussier and Breit meet in Guelph? Who knows! These two have fertile imaginations and are technical polymaths with command of countless musical styles. In short, they can go just about anywhere they want and a good chunk of the fun, for listeners, will simply derive from an attempt to keep up with them.

Websites:
www.kevinbreit.com
www.renelussier.com