Two guitars: Fortin-Léveillé
Fortin & Léveillé both master the guitar and the rich blend of tones that meet on this
musical palette is sure to appeal to even the most demanding music aficionados.
Their instrument holds no secrets from this pair of strumming composers and they,
in turn, reveal all the subtleties the guitar has to offer through their choice
of harmony and lavish arrangements.
FORTIN LEVEILLE DUET - FORTIN-LEVEILLE-DONATO-NASTURICA QUARTETLuc Fortin has been a guitarist for more than thirty years. A well-learned musician, he flirted with
jazz, rock, latin and classical music, while he was completing a master's degree in music. Graced with
an authentic talent for improvisation and served by remarkable finger dexterity, he can weave
astounding flights of fancy one after the other... On stage, he puts the stakes very high, acting as a
first class performer, and the public just love it. His free-style music has a life of its own, where
poetry rubs shoulders with improvisation; his sources of inspiration are great guitarists like Paco de
Lucia, Baden Powel, Egberto Gismonti and Django Reinhardt.The trade-mark of Richard Léveillé is a unique guitar style. He developed his musical
arrangement technique while playing with a number of multi-ethnical in full-scale musical events.
Combining an academic knowledge of music (a master's degree in music) with hands-on experience he
picked up while jamming with musicians from all over the world, he developed a well-balanced artistic
maturity. In concert, he introduces the pieces with tongue-in-cheek presentations stuffed with funny
trivia to warm up the public. He also collaborates with Jeunesses Musicales du Canada.Born in Romania and now residing in Montreal, world acclaimed Marin Nasturica learned to play the accordion by the age of 4. At the age of 19, he had already started a fantastic touring career around the world, enjoying success in countries such as Germany, Austria, Belgium, Italy, Turkey, Greece, USA, Egypt, Israel, Russia, ex-Yugoslavia, Hungary, Japan and Hong Kong. Throughout the several tours he went on, Marin Nasturica has had the opportunity to perform before several well-known international personalities. And even for the first astronauts who went to the moon.
Michel Donato was born in Montreal on August 25th, 1942, into a family drenched in musical tradition.
The 1960s saw the beginning of Donato’s long and illustrious professional career. Over the course of the decade, the young bassist developed and even excelled in the company of some of music’s most respected luminaries, including Art Blakey, Sonny Greenwich, Charles Aznavour, Jacques Brel and Carmen McRae.
As the seventies approached, Donato made the difficult decision to leave his Montreal home for the evergreen musical pastures of Toronto. In the years that followed, he gigged relentlessly in clubs, studios and on television- climaxing in 1971, when an invitation came for Donato to join the world-renowned Oscar Peterson Trio. In 1977, Donato returned to Montreal with renewed creative vigor, almost instantly recording successful albums with Félix Leclerc and François Dompierre.
In 1995, He was awarded the prestigious Oscar Peterson Award for excellence in Canadian Jazz, and to this day remains committed to teaching and developing young musical talents.
Escale, or “port of call” in French, is the new “world jazz” album from the quartet comprised of accordionist Marin Nasturica, bassist Michel Donato, and guitarists Luc Fortin and Richard Léveillé. After sailing the world’s seven musical seas for two years, the group has safely reached their port of call and dropped anchor to present a new cargo of 14 compositions brought back from their travels. North, South, East, and West, the waters meld and the lapping of their waves creates a sound that is rich, unbounded, universal and timeless. (buy "Escale")
FORTIN, LÉVEILLÉ, DONATO AND NASTURICA
Luc Fortin, Richard Léveillé, Michel Donato and Marin Nasturica are gifted musicians coming from very different musical backgrounds. Today, they are proud to present you with their new eponymous album, in the World Jazz style. Their remarkable sound, a child of pleasure, evolved from a keen complicity born from their meetings.
• From swing to tango, from waltzes to blues, from rumba to geampara, two guitars, a bass and an accordion dialog with each other, echoing and intertwining their themes in countless ways to create ineffable harmonies.You are kindly invited to discover the dazzling and timeless musical universe of Fortin, Léveillé, Donato and Nasturica.
Fortin-Léveillé-Donato-Nasturica - Guit’boys d’Amerique GIT2 2055
listen to BLUES LAB (L. FORTIN)
