Juno Award winner Gabriel Mark Hasselbach’s new straight‑ahead jazz album and contemporary jazz single, both released during Jazz Appreciation Month, are tracking toward the top 50 on the JazzWeek and Billboard charts. Simultaneously, the trumpeter-flugelhornist-flutist’s new instructional book continues to educate and inspire new and veteran trumpeters.
Hasselbach is a rare jazz artist who works fluently in two distinct genres. His Windtunnel Records released MidCentury Modern Vol. 4 in April, a wide-ranging 20-song collection composed of jazz standards and two Hasselbach compositions. Seven-time GRAMMY®-winning trumpeter Randy Brecker said the album features “a first rate cast of characters…Very artfully executed and enjoyable from start to finish!”
“Randy and I met backstage at a show decades ago, and he’s offered me encouragement and support ever since. He’s a legendary trumpeter so I’m particularly proud of his review of MidCentury Modern Vol. 4,” said Hasselbach. “His support means a lot, especially on a project that reflects my deepest roots in straight‑ahead jazz.”
MidCentury Modern Vol. 4 is the latest chapter in the series Hasselbach conceived years ago as an outlet for his love of jazz without compromising the classic jazz essence. He refers to this fourth volume as his “legacy project” on which he is featured playing trumpet, flugelhorn, flute, and valve trombone as well as vocals. He produced the album, which features standards by icons such as Freddie Hubbard, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, and Thelonious Monk along with two originals, including “Coming Home for Mardi Gras,” inspired by Hasselbach’s formative years living and playing in New Orleans.
On the contemporary jazz front, Hasselbach’s collaboration with Billboard chart-topping guitarist Chris Standring, “Swizzle Stick,” is building momentum on the charts through airplay. It’s a feel-good, groove-laden track co-written and co-produced by the duet partners, who released the single on Standring’s Ultimate Vibe Recordings.
Hasselbach, who hit the Billboard charts eleven times in the contemporary jazz format, said, “Chris’s style is the perfect pairing with mine - succinct and accessible yet informed by the deep and thoughtful history of jazz. He reached out a year ago and suggested I get on his record label, and so we created something that expressed our mutual tastes.”
Inkwell Publishing recently published Hasselbach’s compact guide Top Tip Masterclass Jazz Trumpet in which he shares his wealth of knowledge, teaches technique, offers tips, and provides education to longtime players and newbies. The book’s release is perfectly timed, arriving as Hasselbach showcases his versatility across both straight‑ahead and contemporary jazz.
“I had a strong calling to help up-and-comers bypass the trials and challenges of the trumpet. I wanted to help fast track the rewards and increase the fun quotient while keeping attrition low. So, I created a distilled handbook that is not about what to play, but how to play,” said Hasselbach. “If you start properly and stick with it, the joy will bloom.”
While all three build momentum, Hasselbach is working on his next album, a bluesy, contemporary jazz project titled Le Trompette Bleu. Half the album will be composed of Hasselbach originals. The other half will feature an eclectic array of reimagined covers such as “End Credits” (John Lee Hooker and Miles Davis), “Inner City Blues” (Marvin Gaye), “Pop’s Cool Groove” (Norman Brown), and “Slippin’ Into Darkness” (War).
The Denver-born, Vancouver-based Hasselbach has won several Juno Awards (Canada’s GRAMMY® equivalent). Among the many GRAMMY® winners and Billboard hitmakers he’s played with are Michael Bublé, Bob James, Jeff Lorber, Paul Brown, Greg Manning, and Darren Rahn. He also has performed on festival stages in Australia, Canada, Europe, Mexico, South Africa, and Japan.
Hasselbach is equally adept in straight‑ahead and contemporary jazz, refusing to limit his artistic expression to a single lane.
Stream or purchase MidCentury Modern Vol. 4 at https://lnk.to/KUeVK2.
Play or download “Swizzle Stick” at https://lnk.to/5oPZHTjw.
To get Top Tip Masterclass Jazz Trumpet, visit https://tinyurl.com/2wxm4eck.
For more information, go to www.gabrieljazz.com.
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