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| PAUL
PIGAT |
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Paul attended the Claude Watson School of the Arts and graduated from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Music in theory and composition in 1992. He taught at the Eli Kassner Guitar Academy while continuing to explore live performance opportunities with various bands. Shortly thereafter Paul headed for the west coast, where he has made his home since 1994, and has earned a reputation as one of the most accomplished guitarists around. An extremely versatile artist, with projects ranging from delta blues to classical music, he heads four diverse Vancouver bands and is in high demand as a sideman, having recorded and toured with the likes of Neko Case, Carolyn Mark, Michael Kaeshammer and Ndidi Onukwulu. Artists with whom he has performed include Taj Mahal, Mae Moore, Lee Aaron, the Blind Boys of Alabama, Joshua Redman, Big Sandy and His Flyrite Boys, Aaron Neville, The Sojourners, CR Avery, Zubot & Dawson, and more, including a signature performance with legendary bluesman Jim Byrnes and roots wizard Jesse Zubot at the closing ceremonies of the 2006 Paralympic Games in Torino, Italy. Paul has played domestic and international performance venues ranging from small clubs to large stadiums, and festivals covering the entire spectrum of roots, blues, rockabilly, folk and jazz music. He is regularly represented at significant industry events; in the past year alone he has participated in showcases at the Western Canadian Music Awards, MIDEM (France), Viva Las Vegas (USA), SXSW (USA), BC Scene (Canada), and the Canadian Juno Awards, at which he also performed in the select Juno Songwriters’ Circle. Paul’s central touring project is his rocking hillbilly trio Cousin Harley, considered to be Canada’s premier rockabilly and roots band. Cousin Harley has a hard-earned reputation for delivering everything from blistering rockabilly to foot stomping vintage country and western swing. Pigat is legendary for his inspired guitar work, mixing bebop jazz, honky tonk and pure 50s rock ‘n’ roll. Paul’s Cousin Harley style is deeply rooted in the playing of Les Paul, Charlie Christian and Link Wray with a modern twist to create a style that is exhilarating in its intensity, yet at the same time fluid and precise. His creative use of tone and dynamics is a hallmark of everything he plays, and his sense of rhythm is both sophisticated and dead on. His superb talent as a guitarist is matched by his songwriting and his vocal abilities; a warm baritone equally at home singing flat-out rockers and relaxed country swing. Paul released Cousin Harley’s second CD Jukin’, to critical acclaim in 2002, followed by a year living and playing in China, before settling in Vancouver on his return to Canada in 2003. Hillbilly Madness was released in August 2006 and captures the blistering spirit of Cousin Harley’s dynamic live performances. The album showcased the swing, rockabilly, blues and jazz elements that make Cousin Harley truly unique in the roots music world. Studio work is complete on Cousin Harley’s latest offering, It’s A Sin, which will be released early in 2010, in conjunction with an innovative animated video project. The recording is sonically and stylistically more diverse than previous Cousin Harley outings. His songwriting has matured. It’s another CD with songs about relationships, but there is a wider scope this time around. There’s more of a tongue-in-cheek feel to the proceedings. It’s the first Cousin Harley CD with the crowd-pleasing Keith Picot on the big bass fiddle, and the second with dynamic drummer Jesse Cahill. Paul will also release his debut solo acoustic CD in November 2009. Boxcar Campfire features a collection of songs about love, heartbreak, and redemption; mostly self-penned tunes along with a handful of creatively arranged covers. At one end of the scale are light hearted ditties, and on the other, dark fantasies of the mind. The tone can veer from lush to aggressive. Although laced with tasteful musicianship, this recording is a departure in the sense that the songs rather than the playing are showcased. Paul will be touring both projects domestically and internationally in 2010 and beyond. Other current projects include the Paul Pigat Trio (bebop jazz) and Pigby (acoustic swing/jazz duo with Paul Rigby of Neko Case renown). An acclaimed educator, Pigat has produced a series of highly regarded and best selling guitar instructional DVDs, distributed in the Learn Roots Music series. He is a popular and esteemed instructor at several guitar camps each year and also presents many workshops while on tour. A stellar performance at Viva Las Vegas in April 2009 netted Paul an endorsement with Gretsch Guitars. He is the newest addition to their roster of distinguished guitarists, and will be touring extensively for Gretsch as a clinician and workshop instructor. |
HIGHLIGHTS |
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Paul Pigat started playing the guitar at 11 years of age and was gigging steadily in downtown Toronto by the time he was 12. Through a lifetime dedication to live performance, recording and study he has developed into a superb guitarist, vocalist and songwriter.