Will Clements' Compass at Bernie Legge Theatre, New Westminster
![Will Clements' Compass at Bernie Legge Theatre, New Westminster](/content/images/size/w1200/2024/04/2024-06-01-Will-Clements-Compass-Jazz-Night-inkonlyWCcut.jpg)
On Saturday, June 1, 2024 at the Bernie Legge Theatre, I presented a special concert with the Vagabond Players in my hometown of New Westminster featuring vocalist Will Clements.
![](https://www.williamchernoff.com/content/images/2024/04/2024-06-01-Will-Clements-Compass-Jazz-Night.jpg)
Will's band includes Nebyu Yohannes on trombone, Alvin Brendan on guitar, Jason de Couto on keyboards, me on bass, and Todd Stewart on drums. Half of this band is a product of the New Westminster Secondary School music program, including myself.
I played the opening set of the concert with two of these other musicians, playing instrumental music.
Learn about the band:
Described by CBC Music as "a fantastic and easy voice", vocalist Will Clements presents the music of his 2023 album, COMPASS. The album explores the themes of love through a queer lens; having resided in Montreal, Paraguay, and Vancouver, Clements brings influences from these cities into a new collection of compositions and arrangements, ranging from traditional swing music to South American-inspired sounds.
Bassist William Chernoff plays the opening set with his jazz trio, having released his debut album, Aim to Stay ("refreshingly accessible music” - All About Jazz), in 2020 and his sophomore album Maybe Eventually ("swing and melodicism [are] at Chernoff's artistic core" - Chris Wong) in 2022.
Both Clements and Chernoff grew up in New Westminster and were featured at the 2023 Vancouver International Jazz Festival.
Check out the music
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