Additional Information
The Montreal guitarist Mike Bruzzese will take the stage at the Bourgie Hall for the first time in his life, and with great pleasure, on Thursday, November 12, 2026. For the occasion, he will be in a duo with New York pianist Angelica Sanchez, whose album Sparkle Beings was among the top 10 best albums of 2022 according to the New York Times. A rare guitar/piano duo, therefore, which will leave plenty of room for melodies, harmonies, and inspired and refined interweavings. On the program, a brand new work by the Montrealer in three movements, inspired by his grandfather’s poetry and his Calabrian roots. Also, compositions by Sanchez, including a very recent one from her album Brilla Suite and a Coltrane classic. I chatted with Mike Bruzzese.
PanM360 : Hello Mike, tell us about yourself, first
Mike Bruzzese : Well, I’m a jazz guitarist and composer from Montreal. I got interested in music in a couple of different ways from my father’s record collection. Ever since I was born, and before I was born, he had a tremendous record collection of all kinds of music. Different stuff, some classical music, some music from around the world. And so I just grew up hearing that. Then I got a guitar when I was 12, because I had a friend who was getting into guitar. We started playing together, mostly in rock situations. And then later on, when it was time to go to Cegep, I wanted to pursue jazz. So that’s when I started learning.
PanM360 : How would you define your music, your style?
Mike Bruzzese : I’m a very open person in terms of music, especially now. But, I’ll tell you, the people that have influenced me the most, and pretty much I’ll follow them wherever they go, is John Coltrane. I love everything John Coltrane ever did. Same with Miles Davis, Grant Green. Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner. People like that, you know, have influenced me the most.
And guitarists like Sonny Greenwich, Wes Montgomery, obviously. Kenny Burrell, Barney Kessel, I love them all. But the one whose concept influenced me the most is Grant Green.
PanM360 : Why?
Mike Bruzzese : Well, he was able to really make the guitar sing like a horn. Mostly with pianists, organists, whatever. But he was more of a single note line player.
And that concept influenced me a lot. Also the way he played with all the great drummers, you know, like he played with Louis Hayes and Elvin Jones. I love the way he was able to hook up with those drummers.
READ THE REVIEW OF MIKE BRUZZESE’S ALBUM ANOTHER SPACE, RELEASED IN 2026
PanM360 : What about the concert? Did you ever play with Angelica Sanchez?
Mike Bruzzese : I’ve never played with her, but I’ve been listening to her music for quite some time. And I always wanted to do a duet project, something in duo with guitar and piano. I always loved the sound of guitar and piano, just no rhythm section with a lot of space. Sonically, that sound is very beautiful to me. And I thought her style, her approach and her music would fit perfectly with what I wanted to do, because she can play really beautifully with space and she could also play in a more multidirectional kind of way, which I also like. I wanted each piece to be like a poem, since they are compositions of mine. That’s why I called the program Poems for Strings.
PanM360 : So, what is it linked to, also?
Mike Bruzzese : It is based on poetry that my grandfather wrote. I dug that up with the help of one of my family members, a cousin of mine who put them all in digital and sent them to me. I was reading through his poems and then wrote three pieces based on these.
PanM360 : What about the compositions by Angelica Sanchez in the program? Are they linked to this?
Mike Bruzzese : Her compositions are different. They’re hers. The Poems for Strings really are my duet compositions. Three of them. They are : Alla terra nativa, Batte il cuore, L’emigrazione. We will also play a fourth piece of mine, Lianne, that is not related to the other three.
PanM360 : What about your impressions of Angelica?
Mike Bruzzese : I know her solo work. She’s got a great solo album that I enjoy listening to, as well as a great trio with Billy Hart and Michael Forman. I know she’s played with Ben Monder and other great guitar players.
PanM360 : Was that your idea?
Mike Bruzzese : That’s right. I asked her if she’d be open to doing this project with me. And she was. And, you know, luckily, Salle Bourgie was interested in the idea as well.
PanM360 : And why did you contact Salle Bourgie specifically for this?
Mike Bruzzese : I just feel like the sound in that room is really beautiful, you know, for this kind of open music with more space that I’m going for. I feel like it’s the perfect venue to do it rather than in a jazz club, let’s say. It might work, but I think that, you know, I’ve heard a lot of beautiful music at Salle Bourgie and feel it’s just right for this. I heard all of the Ravel solo piano works, with Louis Lortie for example. And it was such a beautiful sounding room. So I’m grateful to be able to play that venue.
PanM360 : You love Coltrane, as you said. And there will be a Coltrane cover (Expression)…
Mike Bruzzese : It’s one of his great compositions that he recorded pretty much a few months before he passed away, if I remember correctly, on his last studio album entitled also Expression. And it’s just a beautiful piece that fits right in. I wanted to play it and do it with Angelica. I know she told me she played it with Joe Levano, which is pretty cool. So she’s familiar with it as well.
PanM360 : But then, you’re taking it on the guitar. How do you do it?
Mike Bruzzese : I always am trying to learn more from Coltrane. Part of what I’ve tried to do for a long time is get ‘’saxophonistic’’ things on the guitar, because I’m so influenced by saxophone players. Obviously, the guitar has its limits, you know, so I’ll be learning Coltrane stuff. And then I reach a point where I just can’t go further, but that’s interesting, because then I have to come up with other solutions or think differently. He phrases mélodies and lines so beautifully on the saxophone. So I try to emulate that on the guitar.
PanM360 : How do you feel playing at Bourgie?
Mike Bruzzese : I’m honored. It’s a beautiful place. So I’m excited. But, you know, as much as I work so hard to prepare for these concerts, a lot of it is really just right there. You have to be open without too many expectations. It wil be interesting to hear what Angelica is doing and react to that and see how the music comes out.
PanM360 : Going back to your grandfather, how do you feel playing music based on his poetry?
Mike Bruzzese : It’s a very good feeling because I was telling a friend of mine the other day, it feels like I’m collaborating with my grandfather, you know, after he’s gone. In a way it’s like learning about your roots, learning things you’ve never known about somebody. Cause I knew him, but this is, you know, when you read someone’s poetry years later, you actually learn more about them and what they were feeling.
So, it’s all very positive emotions and I’m really excited to bring the music to life and perform it.
PanM360 : Thank you so much for these personal thoughts.
Michael Bruzzese, guitar and composition
Angelica Sanchez, piano and composition
PROGRAM
Michael BRUZZESE
Alla terra nativa
Batte il cuore
L’emigrazione
Lianne
Angelica SANCHEZ
Funny Thing
Love Dogs
COLTRANE
“Expression”
