Wild Rice QuartetWild Rice Quartet - Gareth Rice, Dan Keding, Tetyana Haraschuk and Liam Allen

The 2023 Winnipeg International Jazz Festival was attended for the first time by Portage la Prairie resident Gareth Rice. He's getting ready for the event again this year. 

"I was playing there with my quartet, the Wild Rice Quartet, at the Dave Barber Cinematheque. It was my first time playing there and it was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed it. I'm playing with my friends. Dan Keding on guitar, Tetyana Haraschuk on drums, Liam Allen on bass, and I was playing piano."

Rice notes they performed for an hour with a mix of standards, some original compositions, and some a bit of obscure Canadian compositions. He adds it was a fun to program.

He explains different performers were playing different venues around Winnipeg with different kinds of configurations including quartets, big bands, and trios. Rice says his venue was packed. 

"It's happening again at the Bijou Patio near the Cube in the exchange district," adds Rice. "It's five dollars for entry and it's happening Friday, June 14th, at 6:30 p.m."