Allison Au is a Canadian jazz saxophonist. She has been nominated three times for the Juno Award for Best Jazz Album, her second album Forest Grove won the Juno for best group jazz album in 2016.[1]
Allison Au | |
|---|---|
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Instrument | Saxophone |
| Years active | 1990s–present |
| Website | allisonau |
Career
editAu was born to a Chinese father and a Jewish mother;[2] her maternal grandmother is a Holocaust survivor.[3]
Au grew up in Toronto listening to her father's diverse record collection. She started classical piano lessons at age six and started playing the alto saxophone in elementary school at Grade 7 at Claude Watson School for the Arts.[4] She graduated from Humber College's music program.[5] She formed the Allison Au quartet in 2009.[6]
In 2022 she joined the Ostara Project, an all-female jazz supergroup led by Jodi Proznick and Amanda Tosoff. The album was nominated for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year at the 2023 Juno Awards. The Ostara Project has toured Canada throughout 2022 and 2023, featuring other musicians such as Laila Biali, Jocelyn Gould, Shruti Ramani, Rachel Therrien, Virginia MacDonald, Valerie Lacombe, and Marianne Trudel.[7][8][9]
In 2023 Au released Migrations with the Migrations Ensemble.[10]
Discography
edit- The Sky Was Pale Blue, Then Grey (2013)
- Forest Grove (2016)
- Wander Wonder (2018)
- The Ostara Project (2022) - with the Ostara Project
- Migrations (2023) - with the Migrations Ensemble
Awards
edit- 2013 Juno Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album (nominated)
- 2016 Juno Award for Best Group Jazz Album
- 2019 Juno Award for Jazz Album of the Year - Group (nominated)[11]
References
edit- ^ Feibel, Adam. "Allison Au explores the act of leaving home with fourth album Migrations". Jazz FM. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
- ^ Levesque, Robert (2018-06-21). "Canada shines for its diverse styles, sounds at jazz festival". Retrieved 2018-07-14.
- ^ Varty, Alexander (2018-06-20). "Saxophonist Allison Au balances the playful with the beautifully bittersweet". Retrieved 2018-07-14.
- ^ Hum, Peter (2016-08-22). "Six questions for Allison Au". Retrieved 2018-07-14.
- ^ "Allison Au". Retrieved 2018-07-14.
- ^ "About Allison Au". Retrieved 2018-07-14.
- ^ "The Ostara Project". Jazz Winnipeg. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
- ^ "The Ostara Project – The Ostara Project is a jazz supergroup featuring a rotating cast of award-winning Canadian women in jazz". Retrieved 2024-01-13.
- ^ "Jodi Proznick, Amanda Tosoff lead new jazz supergroup The Ostara Project". JAZZ.FM91. 2022-10-07. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
- ^ "Migrations, by Allison Au". Allison Au. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
- ^ "5 jazz underdogs to watch at this year's Juno Awards". Jazz FM. Retrieved 12 January 2024.