Former Calgarian, jazz pianist Kris Davis, receives 2023 Grammy nomination

Jazz pianist Kris Davis, who grew up in Calgary, received a Grammy nomination Tuesday. (Twitter@krisdavismusic)

No sooner did former Calgarian Kris Davis complete an appearance in her old hometown than she woke up to discover she had received a Grammy nomination.

The 42-year-old pianist, who lives in Boston, was nominated Tuesday for Best Jazz Instrumental Album.

That  accolade came hot on the heels of Davis performing as part of the Jazz YYC Festival at the Central Library on Friday night.

Davis grew up in Calgary, studied classical music at the Royal Conservatory in Toronto and attended U of T. She discovered jazz in high school, according to a 2011 New York Times article, and moved to New York in 2001 after connecting with some New York-based jazz musicians during a workshop at the Banff Centre.

The 2011 Times article, by Ben Ratliff, singled out Davis for a style he described as "dry and blunt and authoritative, and still changing.

"Her playing uses space and tension and contrast," Ratliff wrote. "It always has an interior plan and doesn’t leap at you to show you how hip it is. It’s very open, but it comes with rules."

Jazz pianist Kris Davis, who grew up in Calgary, received a Grammy nomination Tuesday. (Twitter

Davis was named a 2017 Rising Star by Downbeat Magazine. 

She is the associate program director of creative development for the Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice at Berklee College of Music in Boston.

The 2023 Grammy Awards take place Feb.5 in Los Angeles.