Mary Halvorsson Amaryllis Sextet

The American guitarist Mary Halvorson's slightly seasick guitar tone has become a regular and almost essential feature of the concert program at Victoria.

And few are as consistently interesting as Halvorson. Every single time she visits Victoria—whether it's in a duo with Bill Frisell, with one of her many bands, or for example together with Myra Melford—she delivers musical nourishment that lingers long after the house lights have come on.

From the very beginning, she has shunned clichés like the plague and instead shaped guitar jazz in her own image, with a semi-acoustic sound, lightly distorted—sometimes flowing and gentle, other times hard and angular.

Halvorson is also a significant composer and bandleader, something that comes through clearly in the Amaryllis sextet, named after the group’s debut album released in 2022. In the sextet, she has assembled a true dream team of improvisers from the forefront of New York’s jazz scene.

The music is melodically accessible, the performance a showcase of improvised interplay. The follow-up Cloudwards came in 2024, and this summer Halvorson is ready with the sextet’s third album: About Ghosts. Reportedly, it features more horns, denser harmonies, and—if it makes the tour cut—a pocket synth.

Mary Halvorson – guitar
Patricia Brennan – vibraphone
Jacob Garchik – trombone
Adam O’Farrill – trumpet
Nick Dunston – bass
Tomas Fujiwara – drums