Philippe Lauzier (saxophones, bass clarinet), Antoine Berthiaume (guitar), and Miles Perkin (doublebass) will be at the Café l’Utopik in Montréal on Thursday February 22, 2007. You can also listen to them on the new CD Today is a Special Day.

The Treize lunes series continues from January 31 to February 3, 2007 at the Monument-National, in Montréal. Created by Daniel Soulières, Louise Bédard, Jean Derome, Antoine Berthiaume, and Lucie Bazzo, this performance brings together 10 dancers from Danse-Cité and the Ensemble SuperMusique (10 musicians) in a celebration of the new moon.

Musicians in Montréal’s Ambiances Magnétiques orbit have historically been musical adventurers unconstrained by considerations of style (or the possibility of fame and fortune).

Guitarist Antoine Berthiaume is a relative newcomer to that circle, at least as far as recorded output goes. He has put out three albums in the last couple of years, but even within that number, one gets a sense of an artist committed to wide-ranging explorations.

Over the years he has benefited from the inspiration of the likes of Derek Bailey, Fred Frith, Jean Derome and especially Pierre Tanguay.

”Montréal is open in terms of so many things. I’ve been able to play with many older musicians just by calling them. Pierre Tanguay is the one who led me to so many different kinds of music. I started playing with him when I was about 19,” says the 29-year-old. “He got me into René Lussier, Jean Derome, Joane Hétu and Derek Bailey… That was how I ended up meeting Derek Bailey and doing my first CD,” he says, referring to Soshin, a set of improvised duos with Bailey and Frith.

Since then, Berthiaume has issued Leaves and Snows with Quentin Sirjacq and Norman Teale, as well as Ellen’s Bar with Michel Donato and Tanguay, pretty much a straight-up jazz outing.

Berthiaume prefers not to dwell on projects once they’re done, so it’s not surprising that he has three very different CD releases planned for 2007: Rodéoscopique, which he describes as folk/avant-garde/western; PantyTron, a duet with MaryClare Brzytwa from California on guitar, flute and electronics; and guitar duets with Elliott Sharp coming in September.

Next week you can catch Berthiaume in two settings. At Casa del Popolo he’s playing with drummer Robbie Kuster and bassist Morgan Moore (“It’s kind of jazz and rock, and it’ll be loud”), and after that he’s at Divan Orange with Donato and Tanguay.

Guitarist Antoine Berthiaume will be in concert at Casa del Popolo (Montréal) on January 18, 2007 with Robbie Kuster and Morgan Moore. {nbio:berthiaume_an} will also be in concert on January 21 at Divan Orange (Montréal) alongside Michel Donato and Pierre Tanguay.

Antoine Berthiaume will present the latest compositions from his album Ellen’s Bar in various venues across Montréal. {nbio:berthiaume_an} will play with Robbie Kuster and Clinton Ryder at Casa del Popolo on September 6 2006, and at the Quai des Brumes on September 11.

{nbio:berthiaume_an} and {nbio:kuster_ro} will also play alongside Michel Donato at La Mesure du Temps (L’Assomption) on September 15, at La Chasse Galerie (Lavaltrie) on September 16, and at the Upstairs Jazz Bar & Grill on September 24.

Antoine Berthiaume presents Ellen’s Bar, his latest album and his first on the Ambiances Magnétiques Jazz label. For this trio, he couldn’t possibly be backed by more solid musicians: double bass player Michel Donato and drummer Pierre Tanguay. The delicate compositions of Ellen’s Bar have the perfect cool for this summer.