Norma Winstone with the Atlantic Jazz Collective

Norma Winstone - vocals
Mike Murley - tenor sax
Florian Hoefner - piano
Jim Vivian - bass
Nick Fraser - drums

The Atlantic Jazz Collective is a group of 3 JUNO award-winning artists from Canada’s Atlantic Region. Saxophonist Mike Murley and bassist Jim Vivian are veterans of the Canadian jazz scene and recently returned home to Halifax, NS (Murley) and St. John’s, NL (Vivian) after decades of living in Toronto. Pianist Florian Hoefner moved to St. John’s from New York City in 2014 and now serves as Assistant Professor of Jazz Studies at Memorial University. Born out of the Atlantic Jazz Nights concert series at the Arts and Culture Centre in St. John’s, the Atlantic Jazz Collective’s mission is to develop and promote jazz in Atlantic Canada and beyond through exciting international collaborations.

The group presents their debut album “Seascape (Alma Records, May 2025) that features revered UK-based vocalist, Norma Winstone. Winstone has participated in iconic recordings that have shaped the direction of modern jazz and have set standards for vocal recordings. She was featured as vocalist and lyricist on Wheeler’s influential Music for Large and Small Ensemble (1990, ECM Records). Her 1987 ECM album, Somewhere Called Home was described as “one most original yet idyllic of vocal jazz recordings” by Allmusic. The ensemble will be completed by one of the outstanding drummers of the Canadian scene, Ottawa native, Nick Fraser.

The repertoire includes reimagined versions of pieces by Maria Schneider, Kenny Wheeler, John Taylor, Ralph Towner, Steve Swallow and others. A brilliant wordsmith whose timeless, poetic lyrics have set the standard for the contemporary jazz art song, Winstone has written original lyrics to these previously instrumental pieces.