Jazz At Lincoln Center alumnus Ron Westray is steeped in the performance practice of the deeply rooted traditions of jazz. His is a sonic landscape that, as his signature, is his creative plain guided by a keen respect for the giants and pioneers who blazed the paths and trails before him.
His artistry is well respected. He is the Oscar Peterson Chair in Jazz Performance at Toronto’s York University. It’s an honor I know he basks in with much-deserved pride. He is a generous educator, and you can sense the enjoyment he gets from sharing his experiences and his love of the genre. Listen to Ron making music and you cannot help but get into the grooves he sets, the lyrical texture, and how he romances the place where music glides so freely above the tender grounding of sweet harmonies.
It’s just sugary like that.