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"a combination of intelligence and abandon; music making of the highest calibre"   ALL ABOUT JAZZ
"brilliant...inventive..."   ALL MUSIC GUIDE
"Braid has neither the experience or reputation of Hersch or Mehldau, two musicians that I'm sure he highly esteems. However, the quality of the music on Verge, and the concert that he gave in Ottawa on the weekend suggest to me that Braid has the potential to ascend to their lofty artistic heights."   JAZZBLOG
"...une force poétique"   LE SOLEIL
"Braid's tone, touch, chord voicings and imagination make him one of the most interesting new pianists I've encountered in a long time."   DOUG RAMSEY, RIFFTIDES
"Braid has always impressed with his clarity of musical thought."   Budd Kopman, ALL ABOUT JAZZ
"A Jazz Genius to Call Our Own"   MACLEANS MAGAZINE
"[David Braid] possè de un doigté techniquement impeccable qui fait abstraction des dynamiques appuyées."   VOIR MONTRÉAL
"Braids musik är harmoniskt intrikat, karaktärsmättad och kan vara såväl ljuvlig som bluesigt skarp."   SKÅNSKAN
"No musician in Canada took such giant strides as David Braid did in his twenties, and this year, his 31st, might eclipse all that." JACK CHAMBERS, CODA MAGAZINE
"If Mozart played jazz, he'd be David Braid"   HALIFAX CHRONICLE-HERALD
"Touted as one of the most gifted young pianists and composers in the country"   CBC
"I have to stop thinking of Braid as 'Canada's-best-young, most-promising etc.' jazz piano player, and (because I've not heard all the others) among-the-top anywhere. He has arrived. He ranks."   TED O'REILLY, WHOLENOTE
"a wonder... elegant"   OTTAWA CITIZEN
"Braid has accomplished much for someone still in the early stages of a career. He has been evolving so quickly that he doesn't just need to be watched--he needs to be watched closely."   ALL ABOUT JAZZ
"Braid's playing finds a remarkable level of taste, technique, and depth of communication."   EDMONTON JOURNAL
"If Bill Evans were alive, I'd send Braid's CD to him."   GENE LEES, THE JAZZLETTER
"...he's already secure in the senior ranks of jazz pianists... Braid the player, writer, arranger and bandleader is clearly a force to be reckoned with."   TORONTO STAR



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CD Reviews
Features/Profiles
Concert Reviews/Previews
Press Releases
Press Kits - Special Projects



CD Reviews
VERGE: David Braid Solo
  • "In Their Solitude: Solo Piano reviews of Mehldau, Hersch, and Braid." - JAZZBLOG  [full article]
  • "Braid exudes confidence, at times a model of concision, at others ranging from fiercely edgy through to sweetness as he creates complex narratives told with flair and always favouring finesse over sheer power." - WHOLENOTE  [full article]
  • "With Verge, David Braid has really set himself up with a terrific launching pad that should be recognized by a much wider audience. His inventiveness and in some case risk-taking are elements that are making David Braid part of that select few pianists in jazz that continue to move outside the borders of the genre. " - JAZZWRAP  [full article]
DMBQ: Live
  • "DMBQ LIVE... highly recommended... serious jazz fans should seek out and hold onto most dearly. " - All Music Guide [full article]
  • "There's nothing dated or predictable about the inaugural recording of the Toronto-based Davidson/Murley/Braid Quintet..." - Toronto Star [full article]
  • "a rewarding programme of original and challenging compositions..." - Wholenote [full article]
  • "a superb quintet..." - Montreal Mirror [full article]
  • "Davidson blends easily into the band, holding her own with her former teacher Murley, and complementing Braid, one of the best pianists on the Canadian scene." - Winnipeg Free Press [full article]
TWOTET/DEUXTET: Brubeck Braid
  • "Matt Brubeck and David Braid create a unique jazz album that's anything but traditional" - CTV [full article]
  • "Twotet/Deuxtet is music making of the highest order" - All About Jazz [full article]
  • "In all, this recording is well produced and performed with supreme confidence. But the most enduring quality of the music is its uncommon marriage of styles which are blended seamlessly in the masters' hands." - Scene Magazine [full article]
  • "This gifted duo delivers new music that glows with clarity and depth..." - Coda Magazine
  • "Wide-ranging, exploratory, contemplative and at times surprisingly funky." - South China Morning Post  [full article]
  • "David Braid and Matt Brubeck do no less than transcend the boundaries of jazz...they've not only studied the greats of jazz thoroughly, but also 19th and 20th century classical pioneers - Debussy, Stravinsky, Bartok, Ginastera..." - Cello City  [full article]
  • "a summit of creativity... in this charming, sometimes brilliant, and always intriguing debut" - WINDSOR STAR  [full article]
  • "Brubeck's "Huevos Verdes y Jamon" has a Hispano-Caribbean lilt worthy of Sonny Rollins or Chick Corea, Braid's "Mnemosyne's March" Brahmsian gravity and beauty of line." - Doug Ramsey 'ARTS JOURNAL'  [full article]
  • "I have to stop thinking of Braid as 'Canada's-best-young/most-promising etc.'jazz piano player, and (because I've not heard all the others) 'among-the-top anywhere.'He has arrived... I've now moved on to expecting a high standard in his work, and he and Brubeck more than justify my trust on this album." - Ted O'Reilly 'WHOLENOTE'  [full article]
  • "...pulsating percussive rhythm sets the stage for exploration of the theme - sliding gracefully into a cello break of pleasing classically tinged tonal musings that create emotions of high drama, solitude and passion." - JAZZ REVIEW  [full article]
  • "Mr. Brubeck and Braid are wonderfully talented musicians with a completely unique sound." - A. Allsop, Jazz Syndicate Radio, U.K.
  • "This is a duo of like-minded musicians who seem to know each other well and they make some very enjoyable music full of melody and energy." - © Cadence Magazine 2008 www.cadencebuilding.com [full article]
ZHEN: The David Braid Sextet Live, Vol.II
  • "Superior small-band music arranged by Braid with ingenuity and wit." - Doug Ramsey, RIFFTIDES  [full article]
  • "Jazz Top 10 for 2006... and then some" - TORONTO STAR  [full article]
  • "#1 Jazz Release in 2006" - OTTAWA CITIZEN  [full article]
  • "Best Releases in 2006" - ALL ABOUT JAZZ  [full article]
  • "Hugely Imaginative and Emotionally Charged" - TORONTO STAR  [full article]
  • "Sensitive and beautiful, weaving textures that calm, surprise and engage" - TOJAZZ  [full article]
  • "More inherently orchestral than bassist Dave Holland's flagship quintet, [Braid] demonstrates a similarity in his ability to write knotty tunes that only reveal their idiosyncrasies on closer inspection. Braid's writing, which is never self-conscious, continues to refine itself... Braid has accomplished much for someone still in the early stages of a career. He has been evolving so quickly that he doesn't just need to be watched--he needs to be watched closely." - ALL ABOUT JAZZ (KELMAN) [full article]
  • "This band's longevity and cohesiveness allow Braid to develop knowing that he has a vehicle to play his music--outstanding, superb music--effortlessly... Zhen, paints a picture of Braid as a player and composer who is growing astonishingly quickly." - ALL ABOUT JAZZ (KOPMAN) [full article]
  • "Saxophonist, Mike Murley, cornetist John MacLeod and trombonist Gene Smith, as well as a rhythm section of incredible depth, Steve Wallace on acoustic bass and Terry Clarke on drums, and led by one of the brightest lights in contemporary composition, David Braid. Put all of these elements together and you have the makings of a must have recording of classic proportions, this is Zhen. " - JAZZ REVIEW (Youngman) [full article]
  • "discipline... and roaring spirit of improvising" - WINNIPEG FREE PRESS  [full article]
  • "Top Material Shines" - VANCOUVER SUN  [full article]
  • "Six of the seven selections are Braid originals... which show the range of his interests, from blues to melancholic ballads to world music. And it should be noted that the music works as well as it does because of the very effective Braid arrangements." - WHOLENOTE MAGAZINE [full article]
MNEMOSYNE'S MARCH: The Murley/Braid Quartet Live
  • "Best Releases in 2006" - All About Jazz  [full article]
    •
  • "not bombastic or long winded...swings like crazy, with intelligence in every note" - ALL ABOUT JAZZ (KOPMAN) [full review]
  • "the interplay is remarkable in its understatement. Rather than aiming for overbearingly explicit exclamation marks, the quartet's subtle interaction is all about risk; but while the music often dangles at the edge of the precipice, the quartet never loses its balance." - ALL ABOUT JAZZ (KELMAN) [full review]
  • "The playing is assure, quietly intense, wonderfully imaginative, intricately propulsive; they make complexity sound so easy, proof of the ultra-high standards achieved." - TORONTO STAR [full review]
  • "lyrical and dancing" - WHOLENOTE [full review]
BEGINNINGS: Nimmons'n'Braid Live
  • "the music itself is refreshingly uncategorizable" - Paris Transatlantic  [full article]
  • "...'Fresh' and 'alive' are perfect descriptions of Beginnings... it is very easy to forget that they are winging it... we experience an old master and a very mature young player working without a net. The very high-quality music they produce quickly engages the listener, pulling her forward as ideas are tossed back and forth and expanded upon. After a few minutes, one no longer wonders, how do they do it?"-instead just allowing this organic, instantaneous creation to happen." - ALL ABOUT JAZZ (KOPMAN)  [full article]
    •
  • "Nimmons and Braid manage to successfully mine Jarrett's stream of consciousness turf, which is all the more impressive because it's not the insular experience of a single mind at work. Akin to an intimate conversation between friends so comfortable with each other that neither is afraid to go in unexpected directions...stunning for the apparent ease with which each player latches onto the other's thoughts." - ALL ABOUT JAZZ (KELMAN)  [full article]
  • "Nimmons has a gift for creating spontaneous and essential melody often from modal materials then burnishing it with a gorgeous liquid sound and an intense high register. For his part, Braid can delicately echo a phrase, reinforce a tonal center or surround the clarinetists lines with a dense weave of recirculating harmonies. The result is a fluid beauty that can suggest Debussy or Stravinsky but which everywhere testifies to the subtle interaction that can arise only in improvisation." - Signal to Noise [full article]
  • "the duo demonstrates an uncanny sense of empathy. The mood ranges from wistful and ballad-like... to bluesy... [to] unexpectedly veering off into a furious exchange" - The Music Scene  [full article]
  • "seriously-skilled players complement and confront each other as they illuminate terrific techniques, fierce imaginations and the ability to respond to ever-changing ideas." - Toronto Star  [full article]
SET IN STONE: Nehring, Koller, & Braid
  • "The diversity that Stone injected into his writing is seen in vivid detail on the music this trio chose to record....Braid plays the piano with a crisp air; his notes are the joy of sound, clear and magical. He darts on to the plain of invention and lets daring and unusual ideas gush in a fount, but the torrent neither overwhelms nor stifles." - ALL ABOUT JAZZ (D'SOUZA) [full review]
    •
  • "It is obvious from the very first to the very last notes that the members of this trio feel deeply about this music. Stone was an amazing composer, a real "Third Streamer" in many ways, and his music is given a wonderful treatment here... Braid is an extremely mature player with wide-ranging tastes who balances the rhythm section. While Koller or Nehring come to the front at times, most of the time they create a very tight unit that allows Braid freedom to fly." - ALL ABOUT JAZZ (KOPMAN) [full review]
  • "...little notice of Stone has been taken in the nearly two decades since his passing, a situation remedied by the ironically titled "Set In Stone"...bassist George Koller worked/studied with Stone, and has been stalwart in championing his philosophy. Lorne Nehring does something few drummers seem to do these days: listens. The youngest player here, pianist David Braid, likely never met Fred Stone, but he follows the teacher's edict to find "the uniqueness of their statement." - shining brightly on the whole record." - WHOLENOTE [full review]
VIVID: The David Braid Sextet LIVE
  • "Vivid: The David Braid Sextet Live is yet another reason for listeners abroad to check out the Canadian scene. Young artists like David Braid are proof positive that jazz is alive and well north of the 49th parallel." - ALL ABOUT JAZZ (KELMAN)  [full article]
    •
  • "Contemporary Jazz Thrills" - TORONTO STAR  [full article]
  • "...intelligent, lyrical, beautiful.. complex and accessible", PLANET S MAGAZINE  [full article]
  • "...early years of what will be a remarkable career in jazz." - WHOLENOTE  [full article]
  • "The group possesses a fat, punchy, highly structured sound... Although very dynamic, it retains an underlying feeling of relaxed confidence... cover[ing] an impressive range of mood and style." - PLANET JAZZ  [full article]
Features/Profiles
"A Pianist Looks Inward" - OTTAWA CITIZEN [full article]
"Mozart Could Play Jazz: An Interview with David Braid" - THE BEIJINGER  [full article]
"David Braid: Algorithms" - DIG MAGAZINE [full article]
"David Braid Solo in Qingdao" - QINGDAOnese  [full article]
"Brubeck Braid: A rich, somewhat unexpected approach to jazz" - THE GLOBE & MAIL  [full article]
"A Nice Feeling at Junos" - THE NATIONAL POST  [full article]
"A Jazz Genius to Call Our Own" - MACLEANS  [full article]
"Zhen and the Art of Tickling the Ivories" - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST  [full article]
"The Apprenticeship of David Braid" - CODA MAGAZINE  [full article]
"A Huge Talent" - PERFORMANCE MAGAZINE  [full article]
"The Architecture of Jazz" - TORONTO STAR  [full article]
"About Face" - HAMILTON MAGAZINE [full article]
Concert Reviews/Previews
SOLO,  "Amazing equality of touch, tone and function, seamlessly integrated." - HALIFAX CHRONICLE-HERALD [full review]
SOLO,  "Simply put, everyone was entranced, well aware that they were witnessing something special." - Jazzblog [full review]
SOLO,  "showed again how Braid could redefine music into his own vision." - OTTAWA JAZZ SCENE [full review]
Nimmons'n'Braid,  "Jazz geniuses bridge generations " - EDMONTON JOURNAL [full preview]
Nimmons'n'Braid,  "Geniuses at work " - BRANTFORD EXPOSITOR [full preview]
Brubeck Braid,  "Live at Bennett's Lane" - AUSTRALIA JAZZBLOG [full review]
Brubeck Braid,  "Les contraires s'attirent" - VOIR [full review]
Brubeck Braid,  Atlantic Jazz Festival - HALIFAX CHRONICLE HERALD [full review]
DMBQ, "Quintet lived up to its billing as the best contemporary mainstream jazz group in the country..." - Ottawa Citizen [full review]
DMBQ, "Jazz Quintet's Original Approach Stands Out" - KW Record [full review]
DMBQ, "Jazz Heaven With Davidson, Murley, Braid" - HALIFAX CHRONICLE HERALD [full review]
Hideaki Tokunaga/David Braid Duo, "Subarashii Desu: Magnificent" - THE LIVE MUSIC REPORT [full review]

David Braid Sextet, "Karaktärsmättad och övertygande"  - ÅKE HOLMQVIST [full review]
David Braid Sextet, "If Mozart Played Jazz..."  - HALIFAX CHRONICLE HERALD [full review]
David Braid Sextet, "JAZZ FESTIVAL BRASIL 2008"  - SCOTT YANOW [full review]
David Braid Sextet, "Pianist Returns to Old Stomping Ground" -  HAMILTON SPECTATOR [full preview]
Murley/Braid Quartet (Montreal Bistro, January 2005) - THE LIVE MUSIC REPORT [full review]
David Braid Trio, "Pianist a force to be reckoned with..." -  TORONTO STAR [full review]

For further information, photography, CD review requests
or to schedule an interview with -David Braid-
Please contact: Anita Wong
anita(.)wong(@)rogers.com
416.219.6357




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Last updated February 2017

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