Grammy-nominated and JUNO Award-winning singer-songwriter and pianist Laila Biali returns to Banff Centre on December 2 with Wintersongs, a captivating musical celebration of the season inspired by the snowy Rocky Mountains. Reserve your seats now to enjoy a very merry holiday show.
“Masterfully mixes jazz and pop, bringing virtuosity and unpredictability to songs that are concise and catchy.” — The Washington Post
Performance Details
Blending jazz sophistication with the comforting glow of the season, Wintersongs features reimagined holiday classics and luminous originals, all delivered with Biali’s rich vocals, sparkling piano work, and heartfelt artistry. Known for her graceful stage presence and expressive storytelling, Biali transforms familiar seasonal music into something intimate, fresh, and deeply moving. It’s a beautifully reflective concert—perfect for slowing down, taking a breath, and letting the music light up the winter night.
Biali’s Wintersongs has a special connection to Banff Centre. The album was conceived and composed during a creative residency at the Leighton Artist Studios, where the solitude and beauty of the snowy Rocky Mountains became a source of inspiration for the work.
“I’ve learned—and I think Wintersongs helped me connect with this—how to embrace the gift that actually comes during winter, and from winter alone,” she says. “That winter is actually not something to fear. I think that there is a beauty to be found in the cold, in what sometimes might feel like barrenness or harshness. We grow through it. And I think it’s a more meditative and reflective time, and that can lead to an amazing harvest in the months that follow. I’ve really learned to appreciate winter for the season that it is in our lives.”
Wintersongs received a 2026 Grammy nomination for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album, where Laila Biali went up against names like Lady Gaga, Elton John, Brandi Carlile, Barbara Streisand, Jennifer Hudson, and Laufey.
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Learn more about Laila Biali
Laila Biali
Multi award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter, pianist, CBC Music national radio host and 2026 GRAMMY Award nominee Laila Biali has headlined festivals and venues spanning five continents from New York City’s Carnegie Hall to Beijing’s National Centre for the Performing Arts, and supported international icon Sting. Her JUNO-nominated 2023 album, Your Requests, featured a stellar cast of guests and received a 4.5 star rave review in All About Jazz. Her previous release, Out of Dust, was also JUNO nominated (in 2021) and won Laila spots on “Best Album” lists around the globe. In 2020, Laila was honoured by SOCAN Music with the Hagood Hardy Award for Excellence in Songwriting. The previous year, Laila’s eponymous release won her a JUNO for “Vocal Jazz Album of the Year” and top prize at the Canadian Songwriting Competition in the Jazz category. Laila was the youngest-ever double winner at Canada’s National Jazz Awards when she was named “SOCAN Composer of the Year” and “Keyboardist of the Year”, and she received her first JUNO nomination for Tracing Light in 2011. When Laila isn’t on stage or in the studio, she’s busy hosting CBC Music’s national radio show, Saturday Night Jazz – a weekly program broadcast to millions of listeners across Canada. And while she continues to earn high honours in the jazz world, Laila’s signature sound transcends genre – “masterfully mixes jazz and pop, bringing virtuosity and unpredictability to songs that are concise and catchy” (Washington Post). Her highly anticipated seasonal album, Wintersongs, was nominated for a 2025 JUNO Award and a 2026 GRAMMY alongside heavyweights Lady Gaga, Barbra Streisand, Elton John & Brandi Carlile, Jennifer Hudson and Laufey.
“Masterfully mixes jazz and pop, bringing virtuosity and unpredictability to songs that are concise and catchy” – The Washington Post
“Biali’s voice – spanning registers – is pure and warm. She’s also fearless on piano and, above else, in her imagination.” – DownBeat Magazine
“There’s no boxing Laila Biali in … Capable of making you laugh and cry all at once.” – All About Jazz
“Biali provides the positive, come-together messaging we need in these challenging times.” – Parade Magazine
“… moving, inspiring, and life-affirming songs.” – SOCAN Music