Oeno Gallery presents the MSF trio, a free-jazz ensemble led by the County resident and baritone saxophonist David Mott on April 30.

Celebrating the conclusion of Jazz Appreciation Month, the event promises to layer the visual and musical arts through the attentiveness both require.

Originally from the United States, Mr. Mott comes from a family of professional musicians. Initially drawn to the visual arts, he found himself pursuing academic degrees in musical composition and performance, instead.

Graduate studies at Yale University exposed him to a generation of American jazz musicians who explored and questioned the boundaries of music. Mr. Mott has worked with the likes of Jane Ira Bloom, Gerry Hemingway, George Lewis, Anthony Braxton and William Parker: all jazz players interested in creating music on the outside of the “rules.”

“Improvisations that go to unknown destinations” — that is how Mr. Mott describes his performances.

In 1978 he turned down an offer to go on the road with Buddy Rich’s band, wary of the unpredictability of life as a sideman.  He moved to Canada instead, to take up a job teaching at York University in Toronto.

After a 35-year career teaching, writing and performing music, travelling between Toronto and a cabin north of Tamworth, Mr. Mott and his wife, Barbara Dahlman, discovered the County. They settled in Waupoos. “It was the lack of deerflies compared to the cabin in the Canadian Shield,” he notes with a smile.

But it was also, he adds, the sympathetic artistic environment. “During the pandemic,” he recalls, “percussionist Jesse Stewart and I set up right out in front of the house. It was really good. We did that because we wanted to play and friends wanted to listen, so we said, yeah, come on over, sit six feet apart. We did the whole thing.” He adds with a smile, “I’ve had more air-time on CountyFM than I ever got in Toronto.”

Mr. Mott’s musical aesthetic is wide open. “What I like to explore is what’s unpredictable.” He plays with musicians who are keen listeners. “That’s what’s critical, and not every musician is capable of that. I often talk about a musical murmuration where the three of us are listening to something and all of a sudden, it’s like those starlings: we make a left turn or a right turn, and everybody just knows that’s where we’re going. That’s what I love.

“It’s all about the process, the creative process, not the product.”

And this is fundamental to music. It is only present as it is played. “But if it’s good, the experience will linger.”

In the spirit of its collective sound, the MSF trio is simply named for its intergenerational members: Mr. Mott, with his baritone saxophone, percussionist Jesse Stewart (head of the music program at Carleton University), and double bassist Ben Findley, the youngest member, who is still completing his graduate degree in music improvisation at Guelph University.

We can expect a strong sense of space and close listening from this performance. “Playing at Oeno offers the opportunity of melding visual art and improvised jazz,” suggests Mr. Mott. “The colours of the music almost emerge from the colours of the paintings. The shapes of the sculptures almost allow for the shape of the music.”  

This event is sponsored by the Union of Professional Musicians. Admission is free and seats need to be reserved by calling Oeno Gallery at 613-393-2216.