Dave Ottenbrite is on a mission to Jazz up Galt's core

Dave Ottenbrite is as comfortable talking '80s alternative music as he is talking jazz, but mention any current and past artists of the genre and it's clear where his passion lies.

The 70-year-old founder of Galt Jazz is excited to discuss all that's happened in the three years since he, his wife Ruth and friends Brian and Margaret Duggan, launched a summer music series as part of the Main Street closure.

It all started after Ottenbrite retired and moved to Cambridge from his home in Mississauga five years ago.

"I looked at the downtown and it needed a little bit of help," he says, adding it's not like where he came from was exactly a hot spot for live music.

"Mississauga rolls up its sidewalks."

But there, Ottenbrite was close enough to downtown Toronto that jazz wasn't hard to find.

In Cambridge, things were different, and at the start of the pandemic, there wasn't much for recent retirees to do. So, he and Ruth came up with the idea to bring music into Galt's core, draw in crowds and help with the downtown revitalization.

He quotes urban planner and activist Jane Jacobs when he talks about density in cores being the eyes and ears that help push crime and other unwanted elements out of downtowns.

"That's a really big part of what we do. A lot of people think we're music first, but actually our mandate is more social," he says. "It's working bit by bit, plus there are a few housing options happening here."

Once more people realized the goal of Galt Jazz wasn't simply about the music, momentum began to build with the brand and support began to come in from the Downtown BIA and local businesses.

That led to the food bank fundraisers and the organization's second mandate, to battle food insecurity.

Their first Dinner on the Grand held last year, raised $6,300 for the Cambridge Food Bank.

This year, the Melville Café will play host for Galt Jazz's next food bank fundraiser on Sept. 1 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

But what about the music?

Cambridge, as Ottenbrite discovered soon after moving here in 2019, is known more for its interest in folk and country. The popular Mill Race Festival of Traditional Folk Music had wrapped up its last show the year before and Ottenbrite never had a chance to experience it.

Jazz was missing from the spectrum of music people in Cambridge play and enjoy.

"So, I though, let's fill the void," he says.

It started with a plan to provide "accessible jazz," which re-imagines popular contemporary music in a way that incorporates the more fluid elements of jazz.

Ottenbrite says he often asks people what kind of music they like to listen to and he can easily connect almost anything they say to the genre. Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston, all contain elements of jazz, he says.

"People tend to pump into jazz whether they know it or not. I think people are surprised when they come to a jazz show that they know all the music. Then it kind of grows from there."

Thirteen Food & Beverage owner Matt Rolleman was an almost instant fan after seeing how popular Galt Jazz's Main Street shows had become, so he offered Ottenbrite the second floor tap room for shows over the fall and winter last year.

Ottenbrite calls the wonderful space "a blessing and a curse" because while the acoustics are good and it's just the right size, it's on the second floor and can only be accessed by a steep staircase that prevents some music lovers from enjoying the experience.

That being said, they're not looking to move anytime soon. Rolleman, he says, has been a loyal supporter of Galt Jazz, offering the tap room for free so money generated from the cover charge can support the musicians and promotion.

The shows have become so successful, selling out its 50-seat capacity for every performance, that Galt Jazz will hike the cover from $10 to $15 this fall to help pay the musicians the going rate they get at other venues like the Jazz Room in Waterloo, which charges a $25 cover for most of its shows. 

"We offer some of the very same talent," Ottenbrite says of the connection to the Jazz Room and the eagerness of musicians to come to Cambridge to play.

Support from the business community has been a bit more of a struggle, but some regular supporters and major sponsorships have come in as the gradual changes Galt Jazz and other cultural offerings bring to the core get recognized.

"Culture and arts are really the fabric that holds a community together," Ottenbrite says, repeating what he often tells executives about his goal to elevate Cambridge with the music he loves. 

He'll take that message to the Waterloo Jazz Festival next weekend where the busy retiree will hit the stage between performances to promote all things Galt Jazz.

Donations have also helped the organization with as much money coming in from their free Sunday shows on Main Street as their shows in the Thirteen tap room.

"For every single show we can pretty much depend on a nice little bump and that helps us a lot to not need to be totally sponsor dependent," he says.

Tickets for Dinner on the Grand and details about the summer music series, including the July 28 Main Street performance from Lora and the Jazz Cats can be found at www.galtjazz.com.