Age: 38

Major Influences: Lew Tabakin, Coleman Hawkins,
Gato Barbieri, Ornette Coleman, Bill Evans, Beer

Status: Single

Born sometime in 1962, Oral began his musical training at the
age of five, starting on the piano. He studied classically for
thirteen years. Starting at the age of 12, he began his study
of woodwind instruments and by fourteen was playing clarinet
and saxophone, and had begun experimenting with jazz.
Age the age of 15, he became the youngest ever member of the
National Youth Band of Canada, selected mostly from promising
musicians in Canadian Universities.

He began his professional career at the age of 16, jobbing in the
Toronto area, leading his Jazz Quintet, working with young local
talent including the likes of Brendan Davis, Doug Cook
George Taylor and Graham Kirkland.

Having looked at further education in the classical field,and having
been offered a scholarship to study Bassoon, he turned instead to
York University, where there was a thriving Jazz environment.

Within three years, he was playing in several local groups such
as the Cayenne Jazz trio, Blue Monk Jazz Ensemble, Rainbow
Garden Jazz Orchesta, Swing Revival Band, YJO and others, gaining
experience with players like Jerry Toth, Eugene Amaro,
Phil Nimmons, Richard Underhill, David Mott and others.

It was during this time that he first crossed paths with the legendary
Jethro T. Nuraw. While on a trip to New York, he wandered into a
seedy but infamous after hours club in Harlem, and became
entranced with the fiery stylings of Jethro's deceptively simple
yet blisteringly complex guitar style. Between sets, they got to talking
the blues, and found a common bond ... an amazing thing between one
man nearly a century of age, and another yet to see 20 years ... and Oral
ended up as a guest artist in the predawn set. Rumour has it that
a recording was made of this evening's music, but unfortunately, it
appears to have been lost.

Oral played in several musical orchestras including How to Succeed
in Business without Really Trying, Guys and Dolls and Hair. Such
venues provided rare opportunities to perform on less mainstream
instuments such as piccolo, bass clarinet, bassoon and oboe.

By the mid 90s, he had played and/or recorded with many groups
around Toronto, such as Blue Peter, Billy Butt and the Barnstormers,
Hand Coloured, Grant Fullerton, Rant and Rave, the Bottle Devils,
Rick Washbrook, 3BAs, What about Bob, Klaatu, the Andrew
Heathcote Band, Harry Rocks, the Slamming Buddhas and ...
most importantly ... Nuraw Blooze.

He joined Nuraw Blooze in 1982, and although he continued to
perform with many other bands, he soon came to feel a close bond
with the band, a bond that has continued to this day.