Matt Sellick in Concert: Flamenco Guitar!

Well, we’re finally at the end of our glorious 47th Concert Season! Excitement has been building for the greatly anticipated return of charismatic, Thunder Bay born-and-bred flamenco guitarist and composer Matt Sellick! We’re in for a real treat as he will mesmerize us with his unique approach to traditional flamenco. His performances are “heartfelt…passionate… hypnotic.” Renowned Canadian guitarist and winner of multiple awards Jesse Cook declared: “I think Matt is one of Canada’s finest flamenco artists today.” Together with world-class Portugal-born percussionist Marito Marques, Matt will sweep you away with his renditions of his most popular compositions, drawn from several of his solo albums.

Matt appears as a soloist, accompanies flamenco singers and dancers, gives private guitar lessons, tours internationally with renowned Canadian guitarist Jesse Cook, and won the hearts of our Consortium audiences on two previous occasions. With Jesse’s band, Matt has performed across Canada, in over twenty U.S. states, and in eight European countries. Check out his website at www.mattsellick.com.

Matt and Marito met in 2019 when they joined Jesse Cook’s band. They performed together at the Festi Jazz Rimouski in 2024, and they also perform regularly in Toronto. Marito has recorded on Matt’s two most recent albums, including Watching the Sky, which they recorded together with the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. 

Check out their full bios on our website: https://consortiumab.org/artists/

Matt Sellick and the TBSO will perform Watching the Sky live, along with other original compositions, on the Symphony’s Northern Lights series, conducted by Jeff Christmas. That will take place on Friday, October 23, 2026, 7:30 PM, at the Italian Cultural Centre. Mark your calendars and plan to attend!

I have invited Matt, who is thrilled to be performing for us again in his hometown, to speak about his concert for Consortium. He offers a very personal and enlightening account of his musical life, with words about what we will hear. Please enjoy!

Those of you who have attended a typical flamenco show may know that flamenco ensembles are traditionally made up of singers, dancers, and a guitarist. The guitarist’s role is usually to provide the rhythmic and harmonic foundation. We get our moments in the spotlight, but the singers and dancers are the main attraction.

At the same time, flamenco guitarists have a history of pushing for their instrument to be recognized as a solo instrument, one able to take on a much more prominent role in an ensemble. Such performances are what maintained my interest in playing the instrument, past the initial spark of curiosity. My interest in guitar began with Dire Straits and Jesse Cook, but a crucial detail is that my motivation to pursue it largely came from seeing Flamenco Caravan perform locally, at Chapters, when I was 15.

I’d never seen anyone use those techniques up-close before. Eventually getting to play with them was how I discovered the joy of playing in a band. Until leaving home to study flamenco at the source, and then moving to Toronto, where I could meet more flamenco artists, my interest in this international art form was encouraged locally. I’m very grateful to my hometown for that. 

Even today, the rhythms and tonalities of traditional flamenco provide the framework for my music, but the most prominent inspiration for what I write is the shoreline and wilderness north of Lake Superior. Sure, sometimes it’s Spain (specifically Andalucía, the flamenco’s source), so you might hear the excitement of a teenager stepping out into the streets of Granada for the first time. Sometimes it’s the little pockets of green space in Toronto where I now live. But most of all … I like to write “about” Northwestern Ontario.

It’s been eight years since my last in-person performance for Consortium Aurora Borealis, and I’m really looking forward to coming back to Thunder Bay for this one. This time, I’ll be joined by a great percussionist and great friend, Marito Marques. 

The music will mostly be my own original compositions, with selections from each of my albums (I’ve produced two new ones, since my last Consortium concert). We’ll also play pieces by some of my favourite flamenco guitarists, namely, Vicente Amigo, widely considered the successor to Paco de Lucía (the greatest flamenco guitarist of all time, and it’s not really up for debate) and one of those composers whose material I find myself constantly wanting to learn. 

The other, Nicolas Hernández, a Toronto guitarist, was one of my early favourites, and now a friend and colleague. Both Nicolas and Vicente are guitarists with unique strategies for going their own directions with flamenco, in a way that encouraged me to find my own voice and style. During the concert, I’ll give you a bit of context for why these selections are meaningful to me and how they fit in with my musical journey. I think you’ll find that the journey looks like a bunch of circles, going to Spain, Toronto, Montréal, to anywhere we go on tour,  but it always comes back to Thunder Bay.

Marito is a brilliant percussionist from Portugal, now living in Toronto. We met in 2019 when we joined Jesse Cook’s band around the same time. Outside that project, we work together pretty regularly these days. He’s recorded on my two most recent albums (including the orchestral album I recorded with the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra last year), we’ve played at Festi Jazz Rimouski, and we’ve just finished performing at Toronto’s F for Flamenco Festival. He’s an incredibly accomplished musician, with a list of achievements that could quite easily fill this entire write-up; I’m very lucky to play with him. 

In our duo, the cajón is usually the percussion foundation, but I never know exactly what he’ll bring with him. When we did the TBSO recording, he found a cajón and an udu in my mom’s basement, so, maybe those will make an appearance, too? I get much enjoyment hearing how other musicians interpret and run with my material. Every performance can be a chance to experiment and to develop the music, even (or perhaps especially) the older material.

I hope you’ll join us for this concert on May 9th. My hope is that we can put on a show where, just maybe, some among you could feel the same excitement I did seeing Flamenco Caravan perform for the first time some 20 years ago. Looking forward to seeing you there!

By Matt Sellick, flamenco guitarist

Matt Sellick’s concert is generously sponsored by the Margaret & Arnold Westlake Endowment for the Arts, through the Thunder Bay Community Foundation.

As a special year-end treat, we have two ballot draws at intermission, one for a $75 gift certificate to Bight Restaurant and Bar, donated by owner Bianca Garofalo, and one for a $200 gift certificate to Wabakimi Wilderness Lodge, courtesy of Bruce Hyer and Margaret Wanlin. 

NOW is the time to sign up for your SEASON PASS for our 2026-27 concerts! We really need as many subscribers as possible to share in the beauty of what we offer. Please order now, either at Matt’s concert or through the means outlined below. Musicians really appreciate seeing a large audience. Many thanks!

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!

48th Season Passes 2026-2027 may now be ordered.
Celebrate 48 Years of Fabulous Music-making!

Become a Subscriber & Save!
Passes are completely transferable. Pay later if you wish.
No price increase: 7 exciting concerts for $150; students $90.
That’s one free concert!

Purchase by June 30 to be entered in a draw for a $100 gift certificate to Bight Restaurant and Bar. You might be a winner!

To order:

Call 807 768-7420, sign up at a concert, speak to Hilda Postenka, or write to us at: inquiries@consortiumab.org

Pay by cash or cheques payable to Consortium Aurora Borealis (for Season Pass).

If you prefer to pay by credit card, please order through PayPal on our website. Go to www.consortiumab.org/passes and scroll to the bottom to pay.

Consortium Aurora Borealis 48th Concert Season

Artistic Director: Elizabeth Ganiatsos

St. Paul’s United Church, 349 Waverley St., Thunder Bay

Saturdays at 7:30 PM

Admission at the door: $25; $15 students; 11 & under free

ANNOUNCING OUR 2026-2027 CONCERTS!

* At Trinity United Church, 30 Algoma St. S.

Thanks as ever to all of you for your interest in our musical offerings, your continued

devotion, and your fantastic support! Looking forward to seeing you next season!
It will be very special!

Warmly,
Elizabeth