Alex Goodman embarking on jazz tour

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• Historic Fort York David Spittal courtesy murmur.com
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At the tender age of 20, young composer and jazz guitarist Alex Goodman has already accomplished more than many musicians can hope to achieve throughout their entire careers.

Goodman, who lives in the Lytton Park area, has already released a CD, toured extensively with gigs on three continents and composed scores for a couple of films, including the award-winning Goodbye Rosebud.

Despite his obvious talent, however, he has not always considered music his calling. Though trained in piano at a young age, he drifted away from the art form as he reached his pre-teen years.

"By the time I was 12, I wasn't really enjoying it that much," he said. "It wasn't the right time for me to be involved in music, and I didn't enjoy practicing. I was just young and at a different place in my life."

Over the next three years, he shied away from musical involvement, but once he got settled in high school, he picked up the guitar, with his education and experience in classical piano helping him learn the nuances of his new instrument of choice.

"It was the typical high school thing where I was trying to be cool by playing guitar," he said. "I met a lot of people interested in (jazz) then, and that's when I got into it more seriously."

Since then, he has rarely looked back, studying jazz for two years at McGill University's Schulich School of Music and earning various accolades and honours including two scholarships to attend the prestigious Banff Centre, a Millennium Scholarship and recognition as a 2008 CBC/Galaxie rising star in his chosen field.

Goodman has also released a CD, the critically acclaimed Roots, and is looking to release another in the not-too-distant future.

"I probably have four or five albums of material already," he said. "But I realize I'm young and I don't want to rush putting out an album."

The local guitarist recently returned home to complete his education at the University of Toronto, where he was awarded three scholarships.

"It was hard to move home at the time," he said. "My girlfriend lives in Montreal, I have a lot of really good friends there and I loved the city so it wasn't trivial, but I realized the advantages."

Those advantages included financial incentives such as the scholarships and the ability to live at his parents' home, which has cut down on expenses and freed up more of his time for composing and practicing music.

"I feel like practicing is my day job now," he said. "I fit in seven or eight hours a day of practice and then I work on composing and getting gigs."

Without the scholarships and the reduced costs of living, Goodman said his current dedication to music would not be an option. He is able to spend ample time performing with an array of musicians around the city and with his own ensemble, the Alex Goodman Quartet.

His foray into composing scores came about through one of his performing gigs. He encountered screenwriter Brian Lynch at a gig and Lynch called him over a year later when his project was set to take off. Lynch made good use of Goodman's talents for a subsequent film, a feature-length work named Reality Check, which forced the musician to push his boundaries.

"We scored it basically over a weekend, from conception to completion from Monday to Friday," Goodman said. "It was crazy. He needed a game show theme, 18-piece ragtag eastern European circus-type stuff, a cinematic Philip Glass-type thing."

Goodman loved delving into new genres, and is constantly looking for new and innovative ways to blend musical styles. Though he does not want to limit himself to one style, he admitted his first passion remains jazz.

"It's the area of music where I feel like I've found my calling," he said. "I'm intrigued by the fact that jazz is a very gutsy kind of music while at the same time it can be very cerebral."

He also feeds off of the interaction jazz performers share with one another while on stage. He is preparing for an upcoming series of shows with three of his favourite collaborators, bassist Dan Fortin, drummer Max Roach and saxophonist Nick Morgan, all young up-and-comers on the Toronto jazz scene.

"All of us look at music in a similar way and we're at relatively similar points in our careers," he said. "Artistically, it's quite rewarding to work with them, but it's not very lucrative and they're all quite busy, so I'm very happy they're taking the time to take part."

The upcoming tour will include performances in Peterborough, Ottawa and Montreal, with a Toronto show slated for 9:30 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 29 at the Dominion on Queen, 500 Queen St. E.

Visit www.alexgoodman.ca for more information on the tour or on Goodman.