David Bertrand Musician - All About Jazz

Updated: January 16, 2024

David grew up in the Trinidadian neighborhood of Cocorite, four lanes of highway from the sea. Growing up, he played a wide range of classical and folk music before a chance BBC jazz broadcast at midnight through his grandmother’s GE radio forever changed his relationship with music. Encouraged by the artistry of Joe Farrell and Kent Jordan, he was determined to join the fraternity of musicians who have championed the flute as a credible jazz instrument.

His own voice has been deeply influenced by the world of jazz tenor saxophone, the instrument he’d always felt connected to which was simply not available in his band program at the time. Initially drawn to the iconic figures of John Coltrane and Joe Henderson, his ear also turned to the voices of players active in his lifetime: in the days of dial-up internet, a young David would patiently wait upwards of a hour just so he could hear the likes of Mark Turner, Chris Bacas and John Ellis for the first time.

Since moving to the US and graduating from the MA jazz program of Queens College, David has steadily and quietly become a distinctive voice in the New York jazz scene playing multiple flutes and woodwinds with a constantly expanding community of artists, having performed at venues and festivals the US, Caribbean and Latin America.

David has also crafted a singular voice as a composer/bandleader. His group, the David Bertrand Quartet, is driven by an interest to find organic, personal intersections between modern jazz and the folkloric rhythms and song forms of his homeland. Together since 2013, they have performed at Twins Jazz (Washington D.C.) and several notable venues in NYC including The DiMenna Center, The Village of Mamaroneck concert series, Shapeshifter Lab, The Cornelia Street Cafe, Club Bonafide, Caffè Vivaldi, Nublu, Spectrum, the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music Concert Hall and the Whynot Jazz Room.

David was invited by Downbeat Magazine to write the editorial for the September 2020 edition that focused on the impact of systemic racism within the jazz world. He is a 2021 recipient of a City Artist Corp grant through the New York Foundation of the Arts and was invited to accompany the speakers and presentations at the 2022 Mine Action symposium of the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS).

Awards

2021 City Artist Corp grant through the New York Foundation of the Arts

Tags

Flutist David Bertrand teams up with Rafal Sarnecki/eg, Rus Wimbish/b and Carter Bales/dr for a lovely collection of lively compositions. Guest soprano saxist Chris Bacas joins in for lovely unison lines on a dreamy “South 1st,” but the rest of the time Bertrand links with Sarnecki’s guitar for rich intertwining melodies, as on the flowing “Lexington 63rd” and a nimble take of “Solar.” The team cooks up a Caribbean dish on “Palmyra” and gets a bit of Afro Funk for the grooving “Wood Slave.” Bluesy woodwinds created a rich texture for the backbeat of “Claude’s Nariva” with Bales giving a sensuous samba for “Fire Island.” Satisfying and richly relaxing.

George W Harris, April 26th 2018, Jazz Weekly

The flute, in jazz music, has a less prominent place than the saxophone or trumpet, but in this new album New York-based Trinidadian flautist David Bertrand makes a sincere attempt to expand the repertoire of the instrument. Seven of the eight tracks of sublime quartet playing are new compositions by Bertrand: the listener is given an opportunity also to revel in the studied application of jazz language to the inherent native vernacular of Trinidadian rhythm and tone. The titles of the tunes also suggest the idea that this is a subliminal musical autobiography: “Palmyra”, “Claude’s Nariva” and “Wood Slave” recalling Bertrand’s home island’s habitat and fauna; “Lexington and 63rd” and “245 South 1st” offering a survey of his New York present. The result is testament to the continued strides made by musical émigrés from the Caribbean to an American diaspora, inspiring art that takes no prisoners.

Nigel Campbell, March/ April 2018, Caribbean Beat Magazine

This is the premiere release from David Bertrand (flutes, bass clarinet), a native of Trinidad now residing in New York. All but one of the songs on this disc are Bertrand’s compositions. Bertrand is accompanied by Rafal Sarnecki (electric guitar), Rus Wimbish (bass), and Carter Bales (drums) with the addition of Chris Bacas (soprano sax) on one song. While initially a player of Trinidadian music, Bertrand has also been influenced by jazz musicians Joe Farrell and Kent Jordan. The overall performance is fresh and quite appealing and the interaction between Bertrand and Sarnecki is fantastic.

Dave Rogers, February 12th 2018, WTJU 91.1 FM

Jazz flute hasn't been this much fun since Hubert Laws was a young blood. The Trinidadian took on New York and a lot of good rubbed off on both of them. A modern, angular set, this is anything but background music and commands your full attention when you are sitting down to enjoy it. A tasty work that pushes everything forward nicely, it has a vibe you just can't resist.

Chris Spector, January 30th 2018, Midwest Record

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Primary Instrument

Woodwinds

Location

New York City

Willing to teach

Intermediate to advanced

Credentials/Background

M.A in Jazz Performance - Queens College

Available Monday - Thursday afternoons/ evenings

$90 per hour

Clinic/Workshop Information

A comprehensive discourse on the history of jazz flute along with insights/ considerations on developing an improvisational voice on a member of the flute family (of particular interest to those whose primary instrument is saxophone).