Matthew-Aaron Dusk (born November 19, 1978) is a Canadian

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

vocalist. He has four certified gold albums: '' Two Shots'', '' Good News'', ''Old School Yule!'' and ''JetSetJazz'', and two certified platinum albums; ''My Funny Valentine: The Chet Baker Songbook'' and '' Just the Two of Us'' (with

Margaret Margaret is a feminine given name, which means "pearl". It is of Latin origin, via Ancient Greek and ultimately from Iranian languages, Old Iranian. It has been an English language, English name since the 11th century, and remained popular thro ...

Life and career

Dusk was born on November 19, 1978, in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Canada. From an early age, he wanted to become a performer. At the age of seven, he was accepted into

St. Michael's Choir School St. Michael's Choir School (also known as SMCS, The Choir School, or St. Mike's Choir) is a semi-Independent school, private Catholic Church, Catholic Cathedral school, choir school for boys from Educational stage, grades 3-12 in Toronto, Ontario, ...

, where he remained for eleven years. He performed

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

and

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

but after hearing

Tony Bennett Anthony Dominick Benedetto (August 3, 1926 – July 21, 2023), known professionally as Tony Bennett, was an American jazz and traditional pop singer. He received many accolades, including 20 Grammy Awards, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, ...

, Bob Fenton, and

Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (, March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer and pianist. Nicknamed "Sassy" and "List of nicknames of jazz musicians, The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, ...

when he was seventeen he began to change his musical direction. In 1998, he won the Canadian National Exhibition Rising Star Competition. He intended to take over the family business, and in 1998 he went to

York University York University (), also known as YorkU or simply YU), is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, and it has approximately 53,500 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, ...

in Toronto to study economics. After one year, he decided to switch to music. He studied jazz theory with John Gittins, jazz vocal with Bob Fenton, and attended master classes taught by

Oscar Peterson Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian jazz pianist and composer. As a virtuoso who is considered to be one of the greatest Jazz piano, jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordin ...

. He was awarded the Oscar Peterson Scholarship and graduated in 2002. Before Dusk secured a record deal, he recorded four albums independently. In March 2003, he signed a deal with

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, record label * Decca Gold, classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, musical theater record label * Decca Studios, recording facility in West ...

. In 2004 he was invited to the Golden Nugget Casino in Las Vegas to perform as in-house entertainer for the filming of the television show '' The Casino''. His debut album, '' Two Shots'', was released on June 5, 2004, and was certified gold in Canada. The album produced the hit single "Two Shots of Happy, One Shot of Sad", which was written by

Bono Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by the nickname Bono ( ), is an Irish singer-songwriter and activist. He is a founding member, the lead vocalist, and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Bono is known for his impassioned voca ...

and

The Edge David Howell Evans (born 8 August 1961), better known as the Edge or simply Edge,McCormick (2006), pp. 21, 23–24 is a British-Irish musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the lead guitarist, keyboardist, and backing vocalist o ...

of the rock band U2. This song was the theme for ''The Casino''. Dusk followed up his debut album with a holiday EP entitled ''Peace on Earth'' which was released on November 30, 2005. In January 2006, Dusk traveled to Los Angeles to record his second album, '' Back in Town'' at Capitol Studio A. He recorded with a 58 piece orchestra conducted by Patrick Williams and

Sammy Nestico Samuel Louis Nistico (February 6, 1924 – January 17, 2021), better known as Sammy Nestico, was an American composer and arranger. Nestico is best known for his arrangements for the Count Basie orchestra. Early life and education Samuel Luigi ...

and recorded by

Al Schmitt Albert Harry Schmitt (April 17, 1930 – April 26, 2021) was an American recording engineer and record producer. He won twenty Grammy Awards for his work with Henry Mancini, Steely Dan, George Benson, Toto (band), Toto, Natalie Cole, Quincy Jone ...

. ''Back in Town'' includes a mix of jazz standards and originals and was released in June 2006. '' Good News'' was released on October 27, 2009, in Poland and Canada. The album paid tribute to the crooner style but was produced in a contemporary style. In late 2009, ''Good News'' was certified gold in Poland. In March 2010, Dusk recorded the soundtrack to the TV series ''

Call Me Fitz ''Call Me Fitz'' is a Canadian television series produced by E1 Entertainment, Amaze Film & Television, and Big Motion Pictures. The half-hour comedy stars Jason Priestley as Richard "Fitz" Fitzpatrick, a morally bankrupt used-car salesman wh ...

''. On August 25, 2010, Dusk recorded a live DVD concert special for

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

which aired in America in December 2010 and across the world in 2011. The concert was recorded live at the

Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino The Rio is a hotel and casino near the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States. It is owned and operated by Dreamscape Companies LLC. It includes a casino and 2,520 suites. It features a Brazilian theme based on Rio Carnival. The Ri ...

in Las Vegas with a 17 piece big band. In 2013 Dusk returned to his jazz roots and released his ''My Funny Valentine: The Chet Baker Songbook''. It included an eighty piece orchestra and guests such as

Arturo Sandoval Arturo Sandoval (born November 6, 1949) is a Cuban-American jazz trumpeter, pianist, timbalero, and composer. While living in his native Cuba, Sandoval was influenced by jazz musicians Charlie Parker, Clifford Brown, and Dizzy Gillespie. In 1977 ...

, Guido Basso,

Emilie-Claire Barlow Emilie-Claire Barlow (born June 6, 1976) is a Canadian singer, arranger, record producer, and voice actress. She has released several albums on her label, Empress Music Group, and has voiced characters for animated television series. She perform ...

, and Ryan Ahlwardt of the American a cappella band Straight No Chaser . The album paid homage to

Chet Baker Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker Jr. (December 23, 1929 – May 13, 1988) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist. He is known for major innovations in cool jazz that led him to be nicknamed the "Prince of Cool". Baker earned much attention and ...

. On October 10, 2013, the album was certified gold in Poland. On December 17, 2013, the album achieved platinum status (also in Poland). In 2013 Dusk recorded a duet with

Edyta Górniak Edyta Anna Górniak (; born 14 November 1972) is a Polish pop singer. Górniak started as a musical theatre actress in 1990. She performed in the most popular musical in Polish history, the Tony Award-nominated ''Metro (musical), Metro''. Some ...

. Additionally in 2013, Dusk performed songs for the ''

Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood ''Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood'', also spelled ''Daniel Tiger's Neighbourhood'' in Commonwealth of Nations, Republic of Ireland, Ireland and Hong Kong, is an animated musical children's television series aimed at preschool children. It was creat ...

'' special "Snowflake Day", including a version of the show's opening tune, based on the theme for ''

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' (sometimes shortened to ''Mister Rogers'') is an American half-hour educational children's television series that ran from 1968 to 2001. It was created and hosted by Fred Rogers. Its original incarnation, the se ...

'' and the songs "The Snowflake Day Song", "Let Your Light Twinkle" and "It's Such a Good Feeling". In 2014 Dusk began work on his ninth studio album, a duet album. Produced by Dusk, it featured a jazz sextet and string orchestra. Musically the album pays homage to the bossa nova genre, with songs by Antonio Carlos Jobim. The album was recorded and released in 2015 and 2016 three times with different duet partners. In Canada, the album is called ''Quiet Nights'' with French-Canadian singer Florence K and was number one on the Canadian Jazz charts for 16 weeks. It was nominated for an ADSIQ. In Poland, the album is called '' Just the Two of Us'' with Polish singer

, was certified platinum and won a Roze Gali award. In Japan, the album is called ''Lost in Rio'' with Japanese singer Karen Aoki. In 2016 Dusk self-produced his first full-length Christmas album, ''Old School Yule!''. The album included over 100 musicians and the

, his childhood school. The album was certified gold by

ZPAV The Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry (; ZPAV) is the trade organization that represents the interests of the music industry in Poland, and the Polish chapter of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). Founded ...

. In 2018 Dusk released his twelfth studio album, ''JetSetJazz''. The album was co-written, recorded and produced by Dusk and pays homage to the golden age of travel throughout the 1960s. In 2020 Dusk released ''Sinatra with Matt Dusk'' and followed it in 2021 with ''Sinatra with Matt Dusk Vol. 2''. The albums were certified platinum and gold by ZPAV, respectively.

Discography

Albums

References

Sources

* All Music Biography- last accessed on July 16, 2011

External links