"Summers will be a bassist to follow; she gets a strong wood sound from her instrument and she pays close attention to the other musicians..."
- National Post
Canadian Bassist and Composer Ashley Summers has collected musical experiences and opportunities that reach well beyond her years. With her musical family as her earliest inspiration, she began to play the acoustic bass at the age of fifteen, and two years later moved to Toronto to study with Canadian luminary Don Thompson at Humber College, where she completed her Jazz Performance Degree.
Ashley's performance and composition talents have brought her to stages all over the world, including such local favourites as the Rex Hotel and Vancouver's Jazz Cellar. In 2003, she was selected to be a member of the Sisters In Jazz All-Star Quintet, an International Collegiate Competition sponsored by IAJE and BET on Jazz. The group performed at the annual IAJE Conference, the Mary Lou Williams Women In Jazz Festival at the Kennedy Center for the Arts in Washington, DC, and also completed a tour of Europe, playing such legendary festivals as Jazz a Vienne in France, the North Sea Jazz Festival in Amsterdam, and the Umbria Jazz Festival in Italy. More recently, Ashley has been busy touring with Cleveland-based saxophonist Bobby Selvaggio, playing such legendary clubs as Chris' Jazz Cafe in Philadephia, Andy's in Chicago, Twins Jazz in Washington, and The Bop Stop in Cleveland. The group will be touring again in 2008.
Aside from keeping a busy performance schedule, Ashley is also an in-demand educator. In April 2007, she served as director for IAJE Canada's Jazzmobile, which places professional jazz musicians in Toronto schools to motivate, educate and inspire young musicians. This year, she has been invited to adjudicate at the Brandon Jazz Festival in Manitoba.
Currently, Ashley is busy planning Jazzmobile's 2008 tour and reflecting on the time she recently spent exploring the music scene in Paris, France. Ultimately, she plans to follow the spirit of the music, wherever it takes her.