Jeff Reilly is a bass clarinetist, composer, improviser & music producer.
“The virtuoso clarinetist Jeff Reilly extends his cadenzas across the history of sound, from monotony to modernism, in a performance that is dominant and often hypnotic” Norman Lebrecht, La Scena Musicale
Jeff Reilly is a twice Juno award nominated musician who plays bass clarinet with the precision of gesture and clarity of focus that blurs any simple distinctions between improvisation and composition, and does so with a musicality and sensitivity that reminds us that such distinctions are moot.
Jeff’s focus is to develop a wide range of collaborative projects that exploit the full range of possibilities of this unique and powerful instrument. Read more →
The Blackwood trio is very happy to announce the release of our new full length album “How Long We Wait” and in order to celebrate this, we are having a special album release concert on Friday, September 4th!!!!
The album’s name is Inspired by Thomas Merton’s poem ‘How Long We Wait, With Minds a Quiet as Time’, and the album reflects on patience, surrender, and our intimate place within the slow, enduring rhythms of nature.
And it has been a bit of a wait since our last album! It’s been two years since “Passages”, our last album as a trio. However – this one is special as it is the first album where our cellist, India Gailey is a full contributor as both a composer and performer.
Friday, September 4th, 2026 First Baptist Church in Halifax. 7:30 pm
Or – you can get them at the door as well. Cash or e transfer only. Tickets are $25.00 but we have a pay-what-you-can policy if you pay at the door.
If you want to check us out before the concert (and please do!) head on over to Bandcamp where you can listen to some of this beautiful album and – we would love it if you’d show your support and pre-order your copy. We can have it ready for you to pick up at the concert! Here’s the link:
Sanctuary Concerts announces the upcoming September 4th release of How Long We Wait (SCCD 008), a new recording from the BlackwoodTrio with Peter-Anthony Togni (pipe organ) and Jeff Reilly (bass clarinet) and India Gailey (cello).
The album features 9 newly composed, original tracks by the three members of the ensemble. The album’s name draws inspiration from Thomas Merton’s poem ‘How Long We Wait, With Minds a Quiet as Time’ and it reflects on patience, surrender and our quiet, elemental bond with the deep forces of nature that govern our world.
Building on the sonic palette established across Lost and Found and Passages, How Long We Wait marks a clear evolution in both sound and scope. The distinctive timbres of bass clarinet, cello and piano remain at the heart of Blackwood’s sound, while a greater emphasis on melody allows the music to unfold with new warmth and lyricism. The result is a richly textured musical language that blurs the boundaries between contemporary classical, minimalism, jazz and free improvisation.
Through exploring the power of a sun shower in India’s Gailey’s “Sonnenreggen”, the mourning of a vanishing species in Jeff Reilly’s “Last Flight” and the powerful natural forces that shape our planet in Peter-Anthony Togni’s “Surge” – these titles and all of the others are inspired by the group’s profound respect for the mystical forces of nature that govern our lives.
October 18th, 2024. Sanctuary Concerts announces the release of Passages (SCCD 007), a new recording from Blackwood duo Peter-Anthony Togni (pipe organ) and Jeff Reilly (bass clarinet) with special guest India Gailey.
While their previous release Lost and Found featured exclusively tracks with Peter-Anthony Togni on piano, PASSAGES focus on the pipe organ. Recorded on 3 different organs across the maritime provinces of Atlantic Canada, the sound of PASSAGES is rich, mysterious and lyrical.
Watch Peter and Jeff perform the title track here:
Inspired by plainchant, free improvisation and holy minimalism (think Arvo Part meeting up with Bram Stoker) Blackwood members Jeff Reilly and Peter-Anthony Togni join up with cellist India Gailey to release this new album PASSAGES.
Peter and Jeff are honoured and delighted to be joined by the cellist, composer, and improviser India Gailey, a rising star based in Kjipuktuk/Halifax, who appears on 2 tracks from this album. India adds her wonderful musicianship and powerful improvisations to the sound of this project.
“Sonically haunting, sophisticated, euro-jazz minimalism” Selwin Harris, Jazzwise UK
Blackwood’s lyrical approach to music straddles the mysterious boundary areas between jazz and classical. Over the past 25 years these musical soul searchers have released eight albums on labels like the ECM new series and Warner Classics and presented hundreds of concerts around the world. Along the way, they’ve garnered four JUNO nominations between them.
Peter and Jeff are honoured and delighted to be joined by the cellist, composer, and improviser India Gailey, a rising star based in Kjipuktuk/Halifax, who appears on 2 tracks from this album.
