Album Notes

Duane Andrews Bio

Paris, France. 1934. The Hot Club.

Django Reinhardt and the Hot Club Quintette mesmerize the house with a heretofore unknown style of music.

Imagine the virtuoso guitarist enchanting the audience and setting the stage for a Gypsy style that would change the face of Jazz and the perceptions of the instrument.

Duane Andrews is the continuation of that wave. His new album is a Reinhardt inspired melange of Jazz, Folk and original music.

Andrews has been a staple on the Canadian East Coast music scene for over a decade. Supporting a variety of musicians from rising star vocalist Jenny Gear, Afro-Newfoundland group Mopaya, renowned bluesman Denis Parker, Irish fiddle master Seamus Creagh and the Chieftains to name a few, Andrews has solidified his standing as one of Canada's premiere guitarists and accompanists.

Born and based in Newfoundland, Canada, Duane began playing guitar at age 10 and the instrument quickly became an essential part of his life. His dedication to the instrument led him to the Jazz studies program at ST. FXU in Antigonish, Nova Scotia from which he graduated with a BA Music (Honours) in 1994.

After some time on the Nova Scotia music scene, Duane returned to Newfoundland in 1996, where he rediscovered his musical roots and became heavily involved with the music community, specifically the traditional music scene. He began performing regularly with established musicians and also with younger players such as Newfoundland fiddle prodigy Danette Eddy.

For Danette he produced two acclaimed albums, "Motion Potion" and "Traces", which garnered 2 Instrumental Artist of the Year awards for 2000 and 2002 from the Music Industry Association of Newfoundland and Labrador.

During this time he also began Grande Bouche Productions, a music production company, and started work on a variety of recordings, most recently the debut release from folk/jazz vocalist Jenny Gear and her group the Whiskey Kittens. He also began production on "Water Street", a feature length documentary about the contemporary St. John's music scene.

Furthering his interest in the study of music, Duane began to study classical music, specifically music composition. These pursuits led him to France where he has intermittently returned over the past 5 years, first studying composition with Michel Prady at the Conservatoire International de Paris, and more recently with Georges Boeuf and Regis Campo at the Conservatoire National de Region in Marseille, France.

It was during this time in France that the music of Gypsy jazz pioneer Django Reinhardt made a profound impact on Duane. Upon his return to Newfoundland in 2002 he began fusing Reinhardt's style with traditional Newfoundland music and original compositions in his dynamic first solo project.

If you require any further insight into Duane's extraordinary ability or potential as an artist, you have only to put his CD in your player and press play, quite simply it speaks for itself.

Duane is currently performing in support of his debut CD released July 2004.