Jodi Proznick

Career

In 1993, Proznick won the General Motors Award of Excellence as one of the top young musicians in Canada. In 1998, she obtained her B.Mus. from McGill University and in 2006, her M.Ed. from Simon Fraser University. Since moving back to Vancouver in 2000, Proznick has become a top call bassist.

A highlight in her career was opening for Oscar Peterson with the Oliver Gannon Quartet at the Orpheum in the summer of 2004. She was a featured soloist with the violinist Mark Fewer and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, with the Vancouver Chamber Choir and with Elektra. She also accompanied Michael Bublé in the closing ceremonies of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games.

Proznick is also a regular member of the Tilden Webb Trio, Triology (featuring Bill Coon and Miles Black), the Joel Haynes Trio, and the Oliver Gannon Quartet.

She has worked with Eric Alexander, Seamus Blake, Paul Bollenback, Gerald Clayton, Richie Cole, George Coleman, George Colligan, Eddie Daniels, David Hazeltine, Eddie Henderson, Jeff Hamilton, Scott Hamilton, Tamir Hendelman, Patience Higgins, Ingrid Jensen, Sheila Jordan, Ryan Kisor, Joe Magnarelli, Kitty Margolis, Charles McPherson, Mark Murphy, Lewis Nash, David "Fathead" Newman, Houston Person, John Proulx, Herlin Riley, Jim Rotondi, Bobby Shew, Gary Smulyan, Jim Snidero, Grant Stewart, Ed Thigpen, Warren Vache, and Wycliffe Gordon.

She has worked with Canadian musicians Laila Biali, Dee Daniels, Phil Dwyer, Hugh Fraser, Oliver Gannon, Ian McDougall, Kirk MacDonald, P. J. Perry, Denzal Sinclaire, and Don Thompson.

Proznick is on the faculty of Capilano University, Kwantlen Polytechnic University and is jazz department chair at the VSO School of Music. She has been on the faculty at the CYMC Pacific Jazz Workshop, the Yukon Arts Summer Music Program, and Douglas College. She has been an adjudicator and clinician at festivals across Canada, including Music Fest Canada, the Envision Jazz Festival, the Brandon Jazz Festival, the Winnipeg Optimist Festival, the West Coast Jazz Festival, and the Nelson Jazz Festival. She has given clinics and concerts at McGill University, Brandon University, St. Francis Xavier University, Western Michigan University, Grant McEwan Community College, Capilano College, and UBC as well as the BCMEA and IAJE conferences. In 2014, she performed at the TED Conference in Vancouver with recording artist Somi.

Awards and honors

McGill University awarded Proznick a performance scholarship in 1997 as a member of the McGill Big Band I. In 1998, she won the IAJE Sisters in Jazz competition, which took her to New York City to perform with Ingrid Jensen and to Detroit to open for Geri Allen. In 2004, the Jodi Proznick Quartet was awarded the Galaxie Rising Star of the Vancouver International Jazz Festival. Proznick was awarded a Canada Council for the Arts Specialized Music Sound Recording Grant for her debut album Foundations. In 2007, the Jodi Proznick Quartet was awarded a Canada Council Festival Travel Grant to perform at the Montreal International Jazz Festival as part of the GM Prix De Jazz competition.

Proznick was awarded Bassist of the Year at the 2007 and 2008 National Jazz Awards. The Jodi Proznick Quartet, which features pianist Tilden Webb, drummer Jesse Cahill, and tenor saxophonist Steve Kaldestad, won the Acoustic Group of the Year award and their album Foundations (Cellarlive) won for Album of the Year. She was nominated for a Juno Award in 2008.

As leader

As sidewoman