As the second act in a double bill, Edward "Kidd" Jordan and his quartet continued the evening's unspoken theme of individualistic playing with their free jazz improvised performance. CBC Radio 2's Caitlin Crockard, of the programs Fuse and The Signal, introduced the upcoming musicians. She also informed the audience that the performance would be recorded for future broadcast on The Signal that can be heard nightly at 10 p.m. on CBC Radio 2 with hosts Laurie Brown and Pat Carrabre.

The attention of these virtuosos to detail was evident in the first few minutes as Fielder brought out his wrench to quickly adjust his drum kit and Futterman later adjusted a few of the hammers in his piano. Interestingly, the hammer tweaking was made easier since the piano was uncovered with two strategically placed microphones pointing into the interior.

The skilled musicians in this quartet have played together in various groupings and regroupings over their careers. Immediately evident in their coming together was their comfort and familiarity with each other underlined by the synergy of their playing.

Mohmed, on upright bass, experimented with sound by alternating between methodically picking the fingerboard to enthusiastically using a bow. At one point, he was frenetically using his bow on the lowest point of the fingerboard while maintaining an iron grip at the top creating a haunting vibration of sound.

Rounding out the strength of this quartet, Fielder barely miss-stepped as one of his sticks flipped dramatically behind him, to the amusement of the audience. And, during the blink-your-eyes-and-you'll-miss-them quieter moments, Fielder's deft play of bells rolling over his cymbals or the overhead display of the meeting of the Tibetan bells brought a feeling of calm and lightness to the performance.

This performance underlined the sheer talent and confidence of these musicians as they improvised every note, working together to create a relaxed yet intense concert that mesmerized their audience. Throughout their time on stage they stretched out to the far musical reaches, unafraid to take chances, providing a freewheeling wall of textured sound while competing in the department of musical dazzle.

About Edward "Kidd" Jordan
Kidd Jordan performs on tenor, baritone, soprano, alto, C-melody and sopranino saxophones, as well as contrabass and bass clarinets. Over the course of his performing career, he has worked in many forms with artists such as Cannonball Adderley, Ray Charles, Ornette Coleman, Aretha Franklin, The Supremes and Stevie Wonder, yet there is not much written about him.

As a teacher, he has contributed much time and effort on musical education programs in Mali, Senegal and Sierra Leone and was an instructor of jazz studies at Southern University at New Orleans from 1974 until 2006. His work in Africa has been covered by the program 60 Minutes.

The French Ministry of Culture, in 1985, bestowed upon Jordan the title of Chevalier (Knight) de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres which is their highest artistic award. In 2008 at the Vision Festival, he received the honour of a lifetime recognition award.

Everything that Jordan performs musically is improvised and when he works with a group, it is a collective improvisation as each musician creates individually and within the context of the group to provide their delighted audiences with a unique performance.