ADRIANNE PIECZONKA: CELEBRATED SOPRANO OPENS TORONTO SUMMER MUSIC FESTIVAL JULY 11, OBSERVES: “I HAVE BEEN SINGING PROFESSIONALLY NOW FOR 31 YEARS AND TO KEEP SINGING DECADE AFTER DECADE IS NOT SO EASY. TO HAVE A LONG CAREER IN THE OPERA BUSINESS IS HAPPENING LESS AND LESS, AND MANY SINGERS FIND THAT AFTER 10-15 YEARS, THEIR CAREERS ARE OVER, WHICH IS VERY SAD…A REVIEWER INTERVIEWS PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

JAMES STRECKER: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on or have recently completed. Why exactly do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

ADRIANNE PIECZONKA: I recently sang The Marschallin in Richard Strauss’ opera Der Rosenkavalier at the Vienna State Opera. My performance on March 21st marked the 1000th performance of this opera in Vienna. This is a huge milestone – when you consider that Der Rosenkavalier has been performed in just one European city this many times, it is really amazing.

JS: How did doing these projects change you as a person and as a creator?

AP: I’m not sure this project changed me per se – but of course it was a huge honour to be part of such an important performance which might go down in the record books I suppose. It was very inspiring of course and a few days before the performance there was a large symposium on the opera and many grande dames were in attendance – singers who had sung leading roles in the opera in Vienna in the 60’s to the present time.

JS: What might others not understand or appreciate about the work you produce or do?

AP: I think others might not appreciate just how much discipline is required to be an opera singer. I liken the art of singing to an athletic sport in many ways. You have to train your voice, keep it in shape, warm up, warm down, keep changing and adapting your technique as time goes by. I have been singing professionally now for 31 years and to keep singing decade after decade is also not so easy. To have a long career in the opera business is happening less and less. Many singers find that after 10-15 years, their careers are over which is very sad.

JS: What are the most important parts of yourself that you put into your work?

AP: I put my heart and soul into my work, in a nutshell I put everything I have into it. I love what I do and somehow I am still driven to keep doing it! I am still learning, still evolving and adapting. This process never ends.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

AP: I think my biggest challenge is that I am innately not a patient person. I want to see results ASAP and I lack the trust or patience sometimes to just go along with a creative process. I am a Type A personality which is not ideal for creative people.

JS: Imagine that you are meeting two or three people, living or dead, whom you admire because of their work in your form of artistic expression. What would you say to them and what would they say to you?

AP: I would like to meet Franz Schubert and WA Mozart. Both are Austrian composers dear to my heart. I began my career in Vienna, Austria in 1989 and to live in the city where both of these brilliant composers lived and worked was really inspirational. I might ask them about their creative process – how did their inspiration happen? Both composers were so prolific and so gifted that it boggles my mind to know just how they achieved what they achieved. Next on my list would be to meet Giuseppi Verdi and ask him about writing so beautifully for the voice.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life that helped to make you who you are as a creative artist.

AP: I suppose it would have to be way back in 1988 when I decided to leave Toronto and move to Europe to continue to study voice and enter singing competitions. Very quickly I was able to win several important competitions which led to an offer from an opera house in Vienna (Vienna Volksoper). So, I found myself at 25 moving to Vienna and starting a whole new life there. Had I remained in Canada, I think my life and career might have been quite different.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about your life as a person in the arts?

AP: I think people might not realize that it can be a lonely lifestyle – there is a lot of travel involved and often you are on the road alone for weeks or months at a time, away from friends and family. Usually people say that a career in opera must be very glamourous but I can assure you that the glamour wears off quite quickly!!

JS: Please tell us what you haven’t attempted as yet that you would like to do in the arts? Why the delay so far?

AP: My secret desire is to be in a musical either here in Toronto, NY or London. Musicals were my first love, way before I discovered opera. My idol was Julie Andrews. I recently did a Broadway hits show with orchestra and it was really satisfying!

JS: If you could re-live your life in the arts, how would you change it and why?

AP: I don’t think I’d change a thing. In fact, I do feel grateful that I am not starting out now as an opera singer. I feel the business is more competitive than ever and that talented young singers are finding it much more difficult to find and agent and find employment.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

AP: I am a firm believer that opera is not a dying art, contrary to what some critics say. People complain that it is an art form to be enjoyed by the elite/rich. Opera, which combines all three art forms – movement, text and music is, in my opinion, the “perfect” art form. It can touch us deeply and inspire and thrill us. As I mentioned above, I am concerned about the difficulty young singers are experiencing when trying to launch themselves toward a professional career. Cuts to orchestras, opera houses, even cuts to arts programs in the TDSB and throughout Ontario and Canada are affecting the health of the arts in our country and this will have a global effect. We all know that arts education and exposure to creative arts enhances our lives – it can benefit our minds and our physical health.

JS: What exactly do you like about the work you create and/or do?

AP: No one day is like another. There is a lot of change day to day in my work and change is good and exciting. I meet new people constantly and collaborating with new artists is exciting and rewarding.

JS: In your creative life thus far, what have been the most helpful comments you have heard about your work?

AP: When I receive comments like “your voice and your singing really moved me or made me very happy or thrilled”, they are the best compliments a singer can receive. To know you are touching someone through your voice/artistry is very special.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising things about you?

AP: I am an introvert and I think this might come as a surprise to people who just see me on stage. On stage I have a “stage presence or persona” but this is not who I am in private. I am not a big party person nor do I like noisy events. I love to be in nature and I revel in its stillness and beauty.

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MARYEM TOLLAR: EGYPTIAN-CANADIAN VOCALIST IS WIDELY-ACTIVE (TAFELMUSIK, CBC’S LITTLE MOSQUE ON THE PRAIRIE, WINNIPEG SYMPHONY IN CHRISTOS HATZIS’ “SYN-PHONIA – MIGRATION PATTERNS”) AND DECLARES “I HAVE TO REALLY FEEL THAT I CAN EXPRESS THE MUSIC IN AN AUTHENTIC WAY THAT IS RESPECTFUL TO THE TRADITIONS OR THE COMPOSERS” ….. A REVIEWER INTERVIEWS PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

JAMES STRECKER: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on or have recently completed. Why exactly do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

MARYEM TOLLAR: I recently finished making a CD called “Cairo Moon” with my group “Al Qahwa” (which means “The Coffee House” or just “coffee” in Arabic) with a special guest musician, Alfred Gamil, from Egypt. This project is important to me because it is a combination of the Arabic music of my roots, but it also includes some original material by myself and some of the other band members – and overall, we allow musical influences from our lives to come through in the arrangements of the music. I also have been doing collaborative projects with different arts groups including 2 multi-media collaborations with Tafelmusik, where a story is told that is set in the baroque period, but there are all kinds of connections that are made with the place and time that we are living in now. One of the projects is called “Tales of Two Cities: The Leipzig-Damascus Coffee House” and the other one is called “Safe Haven.”

JS: How did doing these projects change you as a person and as a creator?

MT: These projects and most of the projects that I have been working on over the last 3 decades have given me opportunities to collaborate with people of different backgrounds – musically and culturally – and they have helped me to grow as a person and as musician and to understand many different perspectives of what our world is about.

JS: What might others not understand or appreciate about the work you produce or do?

MT: Generally, people seem to be very appreciative and often moved by the work that is being presented in these projects, but they may not realize how much planning, rehearsal, thinking and funding have to go behind making these projects a reality. I also feel very privileged to have been able to work with other artists who are very open, which makes it a huge pleasure to see what can happen when we bring the different genres of music and different backgrounds together.

JS: What are the most important parts of yourself that you put into your work?

MT: As a singer, my body is my instrument, and I feel that whatever I am singing, or singing about, I really have to believe the messages that I’m putting across. I also have to really feel that I can express the music in an authentic way that is respectful to the traditions I am doing (if I am doing traditional or classical repertoire), or to the composers.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

MT: My biggest challenges are balancing making a living and the day to day practicalities of life with having time to work on my artistic projects.

JS: Imagine that you are meeting two or three people, living or dead, whom you admire because of their work in your form of artistic expression. What would you say to them and what would they say to you?

MT: I am by nature quite shy, so I don’t know that I would want to necessarily meet any of the artists that I really admire. The best scenarios are if I have an opportunity to work with someone I really admire so that we can just create something together.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life that helped to make you who you are as a creative artist.

MT: Growing up, I was raised in a household that allowed me to participate in many musical activities at school, but the idea of becoming a performer as a profession was not something that I could consider. Because of my love and passion for performing, I did it whenever I could at school, but I didn’t major in music at university. And when I finished, with a degree in French, I still only really wanted to perform. It was a couple of years after that, that I finally had the courage to tell my family that that was my choice – and even though it was met with some resistance, I pursued that path and never looked back.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about your life as a person in the arts?

MT: It might be difficult for some people to understand my need to perform and have music as a major part of my life – and that without it, my life would be very difficult (in terms of nurturing my soul). I have a full time job as a teacher – and it is fulfilling work in its own way – and some people are surprised that I would have the energy to also pursue a career as a professional musician – but what they may not understand is that it is my work as a musician that gives me the energy and fulfillment and happiness so that I can have something to give to my students when I am teaching (or in any other aspect in my life).

JS: Please tell us what you haven’t attempted as yet that you would like to do in the arts? Why the delay so far?

MT: I guess I feel that I am very fulfilled in my artist life, so it is difficult to say if there is anything I feel that I have delayed doing. To be honest, I can’t think of anything. Of course, there are many artists that I admire, so I would love to one day work with them.

JS: If you could re-live your life in the arts, how would you change it and why?

MT: If I could do it all over again, I would have seriously pursued a career in music much earlier than I did. I knew as early as I can remember that I loved to sing, but it was my fear of telling my family that stopped me from going on a path towards music in a serious way.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

MT: I feel hopeful that more and more people are open to many different kinds of music – and that it seems that there are more opportunities to get it out there than there were when I first started performing what people refer to as “world” music. What I find depressing is that to get my music out there, we depend on funding, and I feel that lately the kind of governments, who are being elected, are not that interested in arts and culture.

JS: What exactly do you like about the work you create and/or do?

MT: I think I like that fact that I have made a name for myself of being able to work and collaborate across cultures. So I am invited regularly to be in different projects, each one very different from the last – and so I never get bored of what I am doing. I am also very interested in so many different kinds of music, I feel like with every project I get a chance to learn something new, whether it’s a deeper understanding of music I have been exploring for a long time, or it’s something totally new to me.

JS: In your creative life thus far, what have been the most helpful comments you have heard about your work?

MT: I am really moved when I hear from people that the work that I do has touched them in a deep way – and it has happened enough that I feel like I must be doing something right.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising things about you?

MT: I find it interesting that I love to perform so much – there is nothing I would rather do more – and I am so passionate about it. Yet I am so shy, and when I have to just talk on stage, I am so nervous. Luckily over the years, I have been able to conquer the fear of talking (in between songs for example) and in the last project with Tafelmusik, I was even asked to be the narrator of the show. So I have definitely come a long way.

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LIBBY DAVIES: AUTHOR OF “OUTSIDE IN: A POLITICAL MEMOIR” – AND AFTER 4O YEARS AS AN ACTIVIST AND POLITICIAN – DECLARES: “THERE’S A COMMON PERCEPTION IN OUR SOCIETY THAT WE SUBSIDIZE THE ARTS, BUT I ALWAYS HAVE THOUGHT THAT IT’S REALLY THE OTHER WAY AROUND, THAT ARTISTS SUBSIDIZE SOCIETY IN SO MANY WAYS – FINANCIALLY, PERSONALLY, THROUGH THEIR WORK AND EFFORT. SOCIETY IS INDEBTED TO THE ARTISTIC COMMUNITY FOR WHAT IT GIVES US SO GENEROUSLY.” …. A REVIEWER INTERVIEWS PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

JAMES STRECKER: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on or have recently completed. Why exactly do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

LIBBY DAVIES: I can’t quite believe I have completed a Political Memoir and it’s out there. It’s been a new and fascinating experience for me. I always loved writing from an early age and, although politics and political office has taken up most of my life, whenever I could put pen to paper, even for short articles, I found it energizing and a wondrous kind of process.

I feel that my memoir “Outside In” is a story and I hope it’s read that way – a story about how change happens; about characters and times gone by and times to come; about why it matters to all of us to be engaged with what’s happening around us and not let ourselves be counted out.

JS: How did doing these projects change you as a person and as a creator?

LD: I’ve been an activist since I was 19 and in elected office 31 years both locally and nationally. It always felt like life was rushing by at a million miles an hour – and I barely had time to stop and think. Writing a book has given me space and time to think and ruminate and look back and forward, so much so that it felt like a luxury and in many ways, it calmed me down. The process of writing, re-writing, considering, researching, and re-writing some more is an adventure of sorts because you don’t exactly know where you will go or where you will end up. It’s made me happy to follow this slightly crooked path and not always know what’s around the corner.

JS: What might others not understand or appreciate about the work you produce or do?

LD: People who know me politically or personally might be surprised I pulled it off. I said in 2016 I’m going to write about transformative change; I’m going to write about activism and the more formal world of politics and why there needs to be a better connection between the two (and why isn’t there a better connection); I’m going to write about a life of working on difficult and non-mainstream issues like sex worker rights and ending drug prohibition and homelessness and how we bring about change. No one deterred me and in fact people encouraged me – but I think there was also some scepticism that I would actually do it and produce something from it. Sometimes people looked surprised when I said I really love to write. They saw it as a chore and as something to get through – but I saw it as the freedom of an open door.

JS: What are the most important parts of yourself that you put into your work?

LD: We all have our stories and they matter to ourselves and those around us and often to the bigger world. Learning to be honest about the elements of your story is a complex thing. It’s not like you have to share every gruesome or gritty detail – so there is a process to be worked through involving honesty and discipline to sort out the elements of the story that fit together. You have to give of yourself and be willing to let yourself feel vulnerable. I’ve been in the public sphere for 40 plus years, so that’s not new to me, but somehow setting words down – committing to the story, in writing, and the ups and downs of personal experience made me feel more vulnerable. Maybe it’s actually understanding that it’s out there now, on paper for all who care to see. That makes the difference. I can’t revise it now.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

LD: I like free flow, but there is that major element – the editing process. This was a challenge for me and I was fortunate to have the help of a skillful and perceptive editor who helped me through this part of the creative process.

JS: Imagine that you are meeting two or three people, living or dead, whom you admire because of their work in your form of artistic expression. What would you say to them and what would they say to you?

LD: Michelle Obama – Your book is amazing and it teaches us so much about the struggles and successes of life. How long do you think it will take to recover from the hateful political path that followed after your husband left office?

Reply: It’s already happening. New leadership is emerging, especially amongst new racialized young women. It will take as long as enough ordinary and progressive people jump on board and say “I’m getting involved.”

Leo Tolstoy – You were an aristocrat and writer who rejected aristocratic life because you believed in the hard work of peasants who worked the land. Is peaceful revolution possible?

Reply: Most things don’t happen the way we think they should. It’s the process of change that really matters. The means don’t justify the end. And sometimes the end isn’t the end, it’s only a trial.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life that helped to make you who you are as a creative artist.

LD: I read War and Peace and Anna Karenina by Tolstoy when I was in my very early teens. After that I couldn’t stop reading the great Russian novels and not be embedded with a sense that writing could change the way people think and act. The creativity of writing and bold ideas carried through to my political work
JS: Please tell us what you haven’t attempted as yet that you would like to do in the arts? Why the delay so far?

LD: I’d like to write fiction. I have half-finished stories and bits and pieces lying around in folders, scribbles here and there. I aim to gather up the pieces and see what’s there and embark on another project and see where it takes me. Running in 15 different elections kept me occupied but it’s not too late, I hope.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

LD: There’s a common perception in our society that we subsidize the arts (through public and private grants and support) but I always have thought that it’s really the other way around – artists subsidize society in so many ways. Financially, personally, through their work and effort and as such, society is indebted to the artistic community for what it gives us so generously.

We all have artistic potential. But, of course, some people are exceptional in their talent and perception. They give us an understanding of the world around us and challenge us in our mediocre views. Creativity and art need to be nourished and treasured because we all benefit. It is very depressing that too many artists struggle to make ends meet and don’t get the recognition they are due.

JS: What exactly do you like about the work you create and/or do?

LD: Imagination is a wonderful quality and I treasure it. When I can combine imagination with life experience and my political beliefs and set it down in writing, I feel that I can contribute. A bold imagination is also an essential quality for the world of politics and for change to happen. Imagination is the art of the possible and the process of making people believe they have the power to make a better world based on the common good for people and making sure our planet is healthy and sustainable.

JS: In your creative life thus far, what have been the most helpful comments you have heard about your work?

LD: I’ve just finished the first leg of a book tour. It has been so wonderful to hear feedback from people about “Outside In”. I’ve been most happy to hear people say that the book gave them a renewed sense of hope about change for a better world where people are engaged and not cynical.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising things about you?

LD: I’ve always been politically active and I’ve spent my life in politics – yet here at age 66, I can find new doors opening, to, I hope, write about what matters.

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GLENN ANDERSON: DRUMMER WITH REDHOT RAMBLE (DUE AT HAMILTON’S ARTWORD ARTBAR ON JUNE 8) OBSERVES: “SEEING PEOPLE GET OUT OF THEIR SEATS BECAUSE THEY LOVE THE MUSIC AND CAN’T HELP THEMSELVES IS VERY REWARDING.”…A REVIEWER INTERVIEWS PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

JAMES STRECKER: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on or have recently completed. Why exactly do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

GLENN ANDERSON: Outside of my work with, and commitments to several other amazing leaders and their projects, I continue to focus my attention on our band Red Hot Ramble. RHR has been together now for over eight years and my partner singer/pianist Roberta Hunt continues to work with our wonderful band mates Alison Young, Jacek Zorawski and Jamie Stager in creating new places to play, new material to perform and write, and to continue to grow as a band.

JS: How did doing these projects change you as a person and as a creator?

GA: Working on RHR hasn’t necessarily “changed” me as a person or as a “creator”, but it is always a challenge to balance that creativity with the necessary “evils” of spending the time promoting the band and finding new and interesting venues to play … i.e. the business side of the music business.

JS: What might others not understand or appreciate about the work you produce or do?

GA: Like every occupation there are aspects of it that people who are not involved with that occupation don’t understand or appreciate. I think the basics or fundamentals of “succeeding” in anything we aspire to do are basically the same. However, I’m not sure we can expect others to necessarily “get” what we do as musicians.

JS: What are the most important parts of yourself that you put into your work?

GA: I think my love for making music with friends and other great musicians and my love for the different kinds of music I’m involved with is extremely important for me.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

GA: One of the biggest challenges is being a creative person while earning a living, especially in a city like Toronto that has become ridiculously expensive to live in for everyone that isn’t extremely well off financially. It’s also challenging to maintain the effort and persistence to keep a “band” working and together in today’s working musician’s environment.

Another challenge is getting your music heard and appreciated taking into consideration the vast amount of talent both young and not as young that are attempting to capture the attention of what has become a somewhat finite audience for live music.

JS: Imagine that you are meeting two or three people, living or dead, whom you admire because of their work in your form of artistic expression. What would you say to them and what would they say to you?

GA: Those are interesting questions. In all honesty, I have had the opportunity to meet musical artists or otherwise who I admired greatly for their work and it’s always a challenge to come up with something meaningful to say and/or ask until you’ve had an opportunity to really sit down and get to know each other. I can remember being introduced to Buddy Rich by now deceased jazz broadcaster Phil McKellar backstage at Minkler auditorium years ago. I was so in awe of Buddy, and well aware of his reputation for his sharp tongue that I basically stammered my way through a few questions and compliments. However, if I could have sat down with Buddy and had a coffee, I think the conversation would have turned to more substantial questions and responses. Listening to those you admire simply tell their stories is always informative and inspiring and can help give one that little jolt of encouragement to continue on with one’s goals.
JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life that helped to make you who you are as a creative artist.
GA: I’ll give you three examples…

I’m fond of recalling that my exposure to the music I love started with my Dad’s love of good music and the drums. He used to play piano for us at home and introduced me to big band music and traditional and mainstream jazz artists. But when we watched the ‘Gene Krupa Story’ one afternoon on television, I knew immediately what instrument I wanted to play and how I would approach the drums when I played them. That movie had a huge effect on me becoming a musician.

When I was in Grade 8, the local high school, Wexford Collegiate brought its Senior Stage Band to the school to encourage kids to go to that high school which was beginning its transition into a school for the arts. When I saw and heard that incredible band, my immediate goal was to sit in that drum chair as soon as I could. The next five years in that incredible musical environment under the leadership of J. Ross Folkes changed my life forever.

The last example is the first time I was “let go” from a band almost directly after receiving several favourable reviews both personally and as a band after several performances. I won’t go into the personalities or details; however, suffice it to say that the music that band played sparked something in my musical psyche to inspire me to look deeply into the music of New Orleans and the musicians that spawned so many styles of music that we listen to today. That experience became the catalyst for the creation of our band Red Hot Ramble almost a dozen years later.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about your life as a person in the arts?

GA: I’m not saying anything ground breaking when I say that people not involved in the music industry or in the arts continue to justify their undervaluing of musicians by stating that we are lucky because we play music for a living. They’ll nod their heads in agreement and agree we don’t get paid very much, but, “we do it because we love it” so we are blessed. I can’t argue with that; however, they fail to understand that this is a profession and each one of us is, in effect, a small business trying to keep our heads above water in a city that has become prohibitively expensive to live in. As much as we love doing it, the challenges to even survive are becoming prohibitive.

JS: Please tell us what you haven’t attempted as yet that you would like to do in the arts? Why the delay so far?

GA: Despite the fact that recording CDs have become little more than expensive business cards for many of us, I would like to record a second CD under my name. I recorded ‘Glenn Anderson Swinging the Blues’ in 2003 and would love another opportunity to record that band.

JS: If you could re-live your life in the arts, how would you change it and why?

GA: “Should have, would have, could have”? Haha!! I think there’s always things we could have all done differently and/or better in hindsight; however, here’s where I am and it’s the future I’m looking forward to.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

GA: I don’t think I can speak for the arts. However, in my musical world and that of many of my colleagues, especially those of my “vintage”, the live music scene has changed drastically over the past twenty years and not necessarily for the better. It is difficult to see so many talented musicians struggling to make ends meet and it has become a huge challenge to get audiences to come out to see live bands. There are less and less venues to perform in for an incredible amount of talent from around the world. That being said, no one told the younger musicians that it was going to be a struggle because they are out there with incredible musical talent and education and are willing and able to do what it takes to have their music heard.

JS: What exactly do you like about the work you create and/or do?

GA: There are two things that I like about my creativity. One is collaborating and creating music with incredibly talented musicians and friends. There is nothing like performing live or recording with people who are there to create interesting music and provide entertainment and a chance to “escape” this crazy world. The second is when an audience is clearly enjoying and immersing themselves in whatever musical performance I’m involved with. Seeing people get out of their seats because they love the music and can’t help themselves is very rewarding.

JS: In your creative life thus far, what have been the most helpful comments you have heard about your work?

GA: Well, on a personal level I’ve had many incredibly talented and respected musicians young and old offer comments both positive and constructively critical. It’s always valuable to listen to and consider comments from those you respect; however, there are times when I believe one has to have faith in their talent and goals and push forward to achieve what it is you’re striving for.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising things about you?

GA: Perhaps one of the most surprising things in a way is the fact that after 41 years of playing drums and being a musician, I’m still out there doing it. I’m doing what I wanted and said I would do from the age of 14 when I informed my parents that I was going to be a musician. Four decades is a long time to do anything professionally however I feel like I don’t have enough time to do everything I want musically.

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NJO KONG KIE: COMPOSER-PIANIST-PERFORMER ON HIS NEW WORK AT CANSTAGE “I SWALLOWED A MOON MADE OF IRON” – “I AM CHALLENGING MYSELF TO RESPOND TO XU LIZHI’S WORDS IN MULTIPLE WAYS, WHETHER THROUGH SETTING THE TEXT TO MUSIC, DISCOVERING WHAT MY VOICE WANTS TO DO, OR HOW MY BODY WANTS TO RESPOND TO THE POETRY”. A REVIEWER INTERVIEWS PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

  JAMES STRECKER: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on or have recently completed. Why exactly do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

NJO KONG KIE: I have a production running from May 16 to 26 at the Berkeley Street Upstairs Theatre at Canadian Stage. At its core a song cycle for voice and piano, I Swallowed a Moon Made of Iron is a musical and theatrical setting of the Mandarin poetry of contemporary Chinese poet Xu Lizhi.

In 2010, a number of workers committed suicide at the Shenzhen factory of Foxconn, the world’s largest contract manufacturer of electronics for many of our popular digital devices. In 2014, 24-year-old Xu Lizhi, working at the same plant, did the same. Xu was a poet, known as one of the most promising young writers in China’s worker-poet literary movement, comprised of young labourers writing about the working class. His death sparked headlines in China and across the globe. This news showed up on my social media feed. I was quite shocked and overcome by the tragedy, of course, and at the same time extremely moved by Xu’s words.

Writing very plainly in a way but with astounding imagination, Xu gives us a vivid glimpse of life on the assembly line and gives voice to millions of workers worldwide. What he describes is not just the story of one factory, but of many factories and not only in China but all over the world. And the hopelessness and purposelessness he speaks of in his poetry is not limited to the experience of only factory workers either, workers in white-collar jobs experience it too. And I as a freelance artist, experience it as well. His poetry resonates greatly with me, and prompted me to create this work. I think the audience would appreciate discovering this poet and finding out what he has to say.

JS: How did doing these projects change you as a person and as a creator?

NKK: Despite the immeasurable differences of our circumstance, I really resonate deeply with Xu’s longing for home and family, his desire for love, his lament of the drudgery of jobs, and his questions around the meaning of life, and the relevance of artistic pursuits.

Reading Xu’s insightful, haunting and often gut-wrenching words reminded me how global and inter-connected our lives are. Working on this piece reminds me constantly of the innumerous people, near and far, whose struggles, often unseen, unheard and forgotten, provide the amenities for our modern-day life. It is easy to get complacent in the relative comforts of our day to day. The work made me ponder the role, however small we think it is, each of us plays in this world.

When writing this work, I am mindful of the song cycle tradition of Schubert and Schumann, but of course of Mahler, whose Das Lied von der Erde set music to German translation of Tang Dynasty’s poems that speak of life and solitude and melancholy and yes death. And the moon figures as prominently in Xu Lizhi’s poems as in the Tang poetry, except now it takes on a completely different poetic association. In my mind are also songs of Jacques Brel and Chinese traditional music as well. This work certainly embodies different aspects of the cultures that I have lived.

The biggest challenge of the work comes in the decision to stage this work as a solo performance. Conceptually, I do see a parallel between being alone on stage and Xu’s solitary journey as a poet. Doing it in this form, I am shadowing the poet’s creative journey in my own. Just as the poet had found his own way to his artistic expression, I am challenging myself to respond to his words in multiple ways, whether through setting the text to music, discovering what my voice wants to do, or how my body wants to respond to the poetry. I have been coaching with Stacie Dunlop on vocal and William Yong on movement to bring out the artistic impulses in me that I have not previously explored.

I hope that echoing Xu’s solitary experience in the form of a solo-performance allows the work to resonate more authentically and with much more immediacy, spontaneity and fragility.

JS: What might others not understand or appreciate about the work you produce or do?

NKK: Haha, “others” is such a broad group of people to summarize.

We do of course make assumption of people but I have been proven wrong many times. So, anything I can name would all be insecurities (and there are many) that I feel about my own work and much less about what this large group of “other people” may feel about them.

JS: What are the most important parts of yourself that you put into your work?

NKK: Empathy and a sense of play.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

NKK: The fear of making mistake is quite strong. I long for perfect solution. But in the end, I tend to take the first decision I make despite having spent lots of time weighing the options over and over.

Not taking enough risks. I take only calculated risks. While this may have helped to protect my ego, it may also have slowed down my progress.

I need to be way more organized so that I am not always racing against the clock and actually have the peace of mind to enjoy the process. But after so many years of doing just the opposite, I have kind of convinced myself that this is just how I roll and that I should just trust that things would happen. While some things do get done, other things do fall by the wayside. And so, I am always racing to catch up.

I don’t schedule time off for myself, and many freelancers will know this challenge, we have really blurred boundaries of work and leisure. We feel un-productive when taking time off.

JS: Imagine that you are meeting two or three people, living or dead, whom you admire because of their work in your form of artistic expression. What would you say to them and what would they say to you?

NKK: Right now, the person I would most like to speak to is Xu Lizhi. I would thank him for sharing his life experience with us with such beauty and profundity. I hope he would be happy with our effort.

As for people in my own artistic expression, I would love to meet Jacques Brel and his arranger(s). I just love their work. I will ask them about their creative process.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life that helped to make you who you are as a creative artist.

NKK: Early on in my work with La La La Human Steps, which was my first experience as a musician on a big stage, I discovered that the nerve I experienced on stage, although quite palpable, was also manageable. I realize the importance of choosing the right repertoire for yourself, preparing sufficiently and committing to the tasks at hand.

When Wayne Strongman of Tapestry Opera accepted me into the LibLab program as a composer, he gave me the encouragement to work towards being one.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about your life as a person in the arts?

NKK: This is of course standard for many freelance artists – that we can live with so much uncertainty – with hugely fluctuating income, no safety net whatsoever, always having to hustle for opportunities, always being evaluated for our work and always dealing with “rejections” (by granting bodies, presenters, peers, critics, audience and yes, by ourselves even), dealing with imposter syndrome, not being able to separate our artistic identity from that of our person, having to do so much admin and producing work ourselves (say a good 80% of my time) in order to get anything up on stage…

JS: Please tell us what you haven’t attempted as yet that you would like to do in the arts? Why the delay so far?

NKK: I should like to learn to write for a larger ensemble. I have mostly stuck to writing smaller size work so that I can self-produce and tour them. Funding, even when they are available, is never sufficient. So, I remain small and nimble in order to make things happen. Working on a large-scale project does really rely on major institutions to step forward and that just has not happened yet. I should also like to write a proper pop song, or a piece of electronic dance music. But as long as I get to write, I am thankful.

JS: If you could re-live your life in the arts, how would you change it and why?

NKK: If I ever discovered the moment and circumstance that made me such a cautious person, then I would like to change it.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

NKK: I often engage in hybrid form, so pitching them to presenters and the audience can be challenging. Finding the right vocabulary to describe the work is difficult. But interdisciplinary approach is not new and audience is finding ways to receive it for sure, so that is hopeful.

But in general, pitching anything is challenging. There are so many choices, and only 24 hours a day. And we all have limited energy. Diversifying our audience is so necessary but getting people to engage in unfamiliar activity is difficult. Adding distance to it and you have a very steep hill to climb. I Swallowed a Moon Made of Iron can serve the Mandarin speaking community quite well, but getting the audience to come from the Greater Toronto area to a downtown venue to see a production in an uncommon form by artists they don’t know is a big challenge.

And given our limited resources, there is no way to do a major campaign. So, we put our outreach focus in the downtown community, but over time, I would really like to attract the audience downtown. But transit between the suburbs and downtown is really difficult. I had friends performing with the Hong Kong Ballet a while back and they were performing in Markham, and on those particular days, I just couldn’t spare the 3+ hours on transit to go see them perform. That’s frustrating.

JS: What exactly do you like about the work you create and/or do?

NKK: What I generally like in other people’s work and what I aspire to create are works that offer both a visceral and cerebral experience at the same time.

JS: In your creative life thus far, what have been the most helpful comments you have heard about your work?

NKK: Simple works do not need to be simplistic. This ties back to the work of Xu Lizhi. His poetry may consist of simple and ordinary words, but they offer the most profound meaning.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising things about you?

NKK: That I have somehow managed to make and produce work at all.

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RON KENNELL: ACTOR-WRITER, NOW AT 2019 STRATFORD FESTIVAL (IN HENRY VIII AND NATHAN THE WISE), EXPLAINS “MY MIND EXPLODES WITH IDEAS. I AM A STRANGER IN MY OWN DREAMSCAPES AND IN THEM I SPEAK IN LANGUAGES I DON’T EVEN KNOW. I WANT TO WRITE ABOUT IT ALL BUT I DON’T WANT TO MISS ANYTHING WHILE I AM HOLED UP IN MY ATTIC. IT IS A JOYOUS PROBLEM; A CURSE AND A BLESSING.” …A REVIEWER INTERVIEWS PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

 

JAMES STRECKER: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on or have recently completed. Why exactly do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

RON KENNELL: I have been doing a lot of writing lately. I wrote a screenplay about the Komagata Maru incident for First Take Entertainment. As it often goes, I am still awaiting word about when it will go into production. I am also working on several plays including a play about Vera McNichol a renowned psychic who lived just outside Stratford, in Milbank Ontario. I gratefully received a grant from The Ontario Arts Council to bring that story to light.

JS: How did doing these projects change you as a person and as a creator?

RK: Writing the Komagata Maru incident called upon my love of history. It demanded to be told with very little creative fiction, but we didn’t want it to be a documentary either. It became a puzzle. I had to keep the integrity of the broad epic story while keeping intimacy of the characters and their intentions very clear. Happily, it gave rise to an incredible character who more than peripherally bears witness to the incident and allows the story to continue when it looks like it is done. It is exciting to write this way because, as an actor, I have been given a keen insight into motivations and drives of people and characters and the secrets they keep and the power of seeing them revealed. The play about Vera McNichol ties my family heritage to a local legend. My grandmother visited Vera on several occasions and Vera would “charm” for my grandmother and actually heal her. Melding the personal with possibility is the creative world in which I thrive.

JS: What might others not understand or appreciate about the work you produce or do?

RK: I am a character actor. People who meet me, tend to see me in a certain way. I think this is especially true for those who work in casting. I am not knocking them but it is hard to feel categorized. Our first instinct is to make assumptions about a person when we see them. Who we are is primarily defined by our looks. I personally think many would think it worth crossing to the opposite side of a dark street – to avoid me. In my career it has meant that I play some really dark characters – especially in film and TV. As a character actor in Shakespearean plays, I have played Benvolio, Oswald, K=Launcelot Gobbo, Lucullus, Macduff, and Caliban. But I have a Romeo inside me; a Hamlet; a Petruchio; and a not always tempered Richard III, too. It would be fun to delve into larger roles as deeply as I am able to explore a character part.

JS: What are the most important parts of yourself that you put into your work?

RK: I sometimes wish I was a painter. Then I could see the vision and create it. Because I am by nature a sharing person and theatre as a perfectly imperfect collaborative art it is the best place I could have hoped to have landed. I need other people to express myself. We create paintings together. I never forget that. If the show has a social commentary; if it helps the underdog or casts a new light on an old trope, I am in! Even writing requires meeting and expressing all types of people; and especially the ones that we don’t understand and may not like.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

RK: One of my biggest challenges as a creative person is focusing on one thing at a time. My mind explodes with ideas. I am a stranger in my own dreamscapes and in them I speak in languages I don’t even know. I want to write about it all but I don’t want to miss anything while I am holed up in my attic. It is a joyous problem; a curse and a blessing.

JS: Imagine that you are meeting two or three people, living or dead, whom you admire because of their work in your form of artistic expression. What would you say to them and what would they say to you?

RK: I would ask Laurence Olivier if he ever really felt like he gave a definitive performance of a role: Hamlet, for example. He would likely say “Yes, of course darling I was a brilliant Hamlet. But what I hope I would hear is that we all fail beautifully as artists. We all win too. We continue to tell these stories because each person resonates differently with the role. There is no such thing as definitive. I would ask Fellini how theatre inspired him and how it failed him? He would likely tell me that it neither failed him nor inspired him, that humanity inspired him and failed him. Art is the way of focusing the lens of chaos. And I would ask Madeline Khan how I could be more funny. She would likely say., “You can’t force it. You are funny or you are not.” But what I think she would mean is “Clowns have all survived the most terrible of tragedies.”

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life that helped to make you who you are as a creative artist.

RK: I did a play called Aurash at the International Theatre Festival in Tehran, Iran in 2002. It was a Persian story told in English. It was a very physical show and a part of the legacy of Persian drama that lives in the heart of Iranian culture. The way they know their mythology, tell stories, absorb theatre and appreciate artists gave me an entirely different perspective on theatre and its relevance as a social construct for change and freedom of expression.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about your life as a person in the arts?

RK: Sometimes I despair as an artist when I am told that “celebrities” should keep their mouths shut when it comes to politics. We are citizens too and like a chorus in any Greek drama we are looking for a leader who is going to represent our ideals too. It is almost as if because we are mercurial in our ability to change characters and to alter our own perspectives, it makes us untethered, unmanageable.

JS: Please tell us what you haven’t attempted as yet that you would like to do in the arts? Why the delay so far?

RK: Well, I have never directed a play. Not because I don’t want to, but because I know how much work goes into directing a play. I have stretched myself in other ways with my writing and directing screenplays. So, I want to honour my own limits. That’s not to say I don’t want to direct. I have been honoured by being asked to direct, but the time was just not right.

JS: If you could re-live your life in the arts, how would you change it and why?

RK: I would have studied dance at an early age, for the discipline and for the minute expression that dancers can access. I would build a movement vocabulary for theatre through dance. And I would have started writing sooner.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

RK: We still do not have status of the Artist legislation in Canada legislation. We are easily dismissed as elite. We are dismissed as glorified waiters. We are rarely considered artists. We were often told as young artists, “If you can do anything else, do it. It’s hard. Success is rare. Fame is fleeting.” We are an army of fighters – battle worn, dismissed before we started. And we are still here. Yet we rise. I have vowed to never dismiss a child with an interest in the arts. It is viable if we MAKE it viable, important if we make it IMPORTANT. not if we dismiss it.

JS: What exactly do you like about the work you create and/or do?

RK: I love finding choices that are not obvious ones. I look for the writer’s sense of irony. I love finding a song that will express my character. I love meeting new people all the time and sharing intimate stories with them, on and off the stage. In theatre we hug each other a lot. We are like a family in many ways. We are dysfunctional at times. Sometimes we are passionate about the wrong things. But there is always love to be had. We are playing with emotion. It is real. It is delicate. I remember being told by Paddy Crean – ‘Hold the handle of a sword as if it is a bird. You don’t want it to escape but you want it to still have its freedom.” That’s like theatre emotion too.

JS: In your creative life thus far, what have been the most helpful comments you have heard about your work?

RK: When people tell me, “I didn’t recognize you in that role”, or when they say, “I didn’t know you did that kind of theatre.” I am always excited that they have seen a different aspect of who I am. I try not to let praise inflate my ego. When you believe the praise, you have to believe the criticism too.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising things about you?

RK: I am not ashamed to say I am a really good cook and I am a good listener (which has helped me immensely in my work and life). I am certain my fascination with Quantum Physics has wrought an incredible amount of infrastructure to my sub-conscious Dreamwold. Some might call it madness and it may very well be, but I know what it is like to breathe underwater with the whales; to fly like a bird in the sky and to navigate my latitude and longitude by picking out constellations reflected on the surface of a still lake in southern Spain. It’s the artist’s life for me.

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ALEXANDER DOBSON: “THE PIECE HAS MANY LAYERS THAT ARE REVEALED THROUGHOUT THE EVENING” SAYS BARITONE APPEARING IN “AGAINST NATURE,” JAMES KUDELKA’S BLEND OF MOVEMENT AND VOICE, AT THE CITADEL: ROSS CENTRE FOR DANCE, 304 PARLIAMENT STREET, TORONTO, MAY 22-25, MAY 29-JUNE 1, 8PM…A REVIEWER’S INTERVIEW WITH PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

JAMES STRECKER: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on or have recently completed. Why exactly do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

ALEXANDER DOBSON: The project that is consuming me right now is preparing for the upcoming production of Against Nature with Citadel + Compagnie and performers Laurence Lemieux and Korin Thomas choreographed by James Kudelka. We are re-visiting the piece and I am very excited to play such a complex character again.

What is wonderful about this piece is that it incorporates movement and voice. This is a new medium which James Kudelka has created and I am thrilled to be a part of.

JS: How did doing these projects change you as a person and as a creator?

AD: As a classically trained singer, movement has always been secondary to the voice. In Against Nature they are harmoniously intertwined.

JS: What might others not understand or appreciate about the work you produce or do?

AD: Since the performances take place in a Performing Dance space, audiences might be expecting a purely dance piece. This is far from what it is. The piece has many layers that are revealed throughout the evening.

JS: What are the most important parts of yourself that you put into your work?

AD: Honesty. It is the hardest thing to be honest on the stage, but when an artist lets the audience see their sincerity, art is taken to a new level. This is what I strive for every time I am on stage.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

AD: Preparation. I spend many hours alone getting ready for a production. Once in the creative process with other collaborators, it is pure joy. It is the preparation that is so important so that the fun can happen, but unfortunately, this can be quite lonely.

JS: Imagine that you are meeting two or three people, living or dead, whom you admire because of their work in your form of artistic expression. What would you say to them and what would they say to you?

AD: I have been very fortunate to have worked with many people whom I admire. I find it best to just absorb as much as possible and thrive off their creativity while in their presence.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life that helped to make you who you are as a creative artist.

AD: Meeting my fiancée Jimin. She is the grounding force that I need in my life that frees me up for my creative projects as well as being the love of my life.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about your life as a person in the arts?

AD: Financial Instability. In France artists receive a stipend from the government when they are between Projects. This helps let them be creative without having to worry about necessities. In Canada we need to go from gig to gig hoping to make ends meet. I have been extremely fortunate to have been performing professionally for almost 25 years but that does not mean it has always been easy.

JS: Please tell us what you haven’t attempted as yet that you would like to do in the arts? Why the delay so far?

AD: I have always wanted to start an Opera Company. I have had various ideas about it over the years but it has not yet come to fruition. Luckily, I have been quite busy performing so I have not been able to give this much focus. I do however hope to in the future.

JS: If you could re-live your life in the arts, how would you change it and why?

AD: I am actually living my dream as a performer. I feel very blessed and am extremely happy with every Opportunity that comes along.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

AD: There is so much creativity around. Against Nature is a pure example of this melding of art forms together. This is an exciting time in the Arts and to be an artist, the fact that nothing is Taboo. The flip side is that there is a lot going on and with Netflix and home entertainment being what it is, it is harder and harder to convince people to go out to enjoy live theatre. There is nothing more satisfying for me than being in a theatre and experiencing a silence that is deafening. The collectiveness of people all experiencing the same emotion at once is unmatchable.

JS: What exactly do you like about the work you create and/or do?

AD: Every Character I play there is always a little bit of me in them. With each role, I discover something new about myself.

JS: In your creative life thus far, what have been the most helpful comments you have heard about your work?

AD: I once had a teacher who told me “You are only as good as your last performance” This statement, though quite sobering, keeps me on my toes and helps me to aspire for excellence each time I am on the stage.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising things about you?

AD: I am introspective by nature but once on stage, something deep down comes pouring out; I feel completely alive and invincible, which often catches me by surprise.

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STEPHEN SITARSKI: VIOLINIST/CONCERTMASTER, WHO PERFORMS PROKOFIEV’S 2ND VIOLIN CONCERTO ON APRIL 27 WITH HAMILTON PHILHARMONIC, EXPLAINS, “SINCE PROKOFIEV WAS NOT A VIOLINIST (HE WAS A VERY FINE PIANIST), MUCH OF THE VIRTUOSIC PASSAGEWORK IS NOT IDIOMATIC FOR A VIOLINIST. SO, I WAS FORCED TO BE A REAL PROBLEM SOLVER AND HAD TO PUSH MYSELF TO ‘THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX’. MANY OF MY SOLUTIONS FOR SOME OF THE TECHNICAL CHALLENGES TOOK MONTHS TO DEVELOP” … A REVIEWER INTERVIEWS PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

JAMES STRECKER: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on or have recently completed. Why exactly do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

STEPHEN SITARSKI: I’m currently preparing to perform the Prokofiev 2nd violin concerto on April 27th with the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra. It’s a big deal for me because I have not played this particular piece in public before. It is always a challenge and ultimately a thrill to push oneself to achieve something new. The concerto is a wonderful piece and I’ve gained so much technically and musically learning it.

As for why it may be important to others…Needless to say, great music (or any music for that matter) doesn’t just exist on paper – it must be presented live to an audience in order for the composer to be able to communicate directly with listeners.

Also, because I am the concertmaster of the HPO, it is of interest to the other orchestra members and especially the HPO patrons what their leader can do. It is important to put my reputation to the test to retain my credibility as a leader.

JS: How did doing these projects change you as a person and as a creator?

SS: It is always a little scary accepting a project that requires learning something new, especially a difficult work. At the beginning of the process many questions abound: am I capable of overcoming the hurdles inherent in the music? Will I rise to the challenge? Will I do justice to the composer? Can I convincingly portray the musical essence? Will I be favourably compared with the myriad of violinists who have performed and recorded this concerto before me?

So, aside from the technical challenges, there are self-confidence issues as well. But I believe that part of the experience of being human is to constantly push oneself beyond a safe, comfortable place. This is the area in which one can grow and develop – regardless of the level of success or failure.

JS: What might others not understand or appreciate about the work you produce or do?

SS: Playing a musical instrument is very similar to being an athlete in terms of the discipline required – the rigour of physical repetition under strenuous conditions, plus the mental toughness to be your own harshest critic. Success requires the constant striving to find better practice techniques, to find outside channels for learning (listening to recordings or watching videos of other musicians performing the same music, and/or seeking the advice or coaching from an experienced expert who can see/hear issues that we may miss ourselves.

And lastly, music inspires a personal, spiritual kind of vulnerability from each artist. When we perform, we expose part of who we are, for better or worse. It takes a lot of courage to summon the strength and energy to stand in front of both musical colleagues and an audience of hundreds or perhaps thousands of people. The rewards can be huge, but the failures can be devastating. Almost every other medium of artistic expression allows for the artist to correct, edit, and revise their work before exhibiting it before peers and public. Live performance happens completely in ‘the now’. One cannot take back any one moment…

JS: What are the most important parts of yourself that you put into your work?

SS: With this particular project, it has been a challenge overcoming many of the technical problems built into the music. Since Prokofiev was not a violinist (he was a very fine pianist), much of the virtuosic passagework is not idiomatic for a violinist. So, I was forced to be a real problem solver and had to push myself to ‘think outside the box’. Many of my solutions for some of the technical challenges took months to develop. Sometimes what works on a particular Monday doesn’t work on the subsequent Thursday and it’s ‘back to the drawing board’ until a solution is found that is reliable in as many different situations as possible. Just a few days before my performance and I’m still ‘tweaking’ some details.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

SS: Trusting my instincts. When you are an interpreter, unless you are playing a piece that no one has ever heard before, there are resources available of other musicians who have performed that music before. And while it is tempting to just copy a particularly strong interpretation, it is far more interesting to bring to an audience ‘your’ feelings about the music. Therefore, while one can learn certain things from studying someone else’s ideas, it is incumbent on one to discover how YOU wish to tell the musical story.

The musical score ‘on paper’ is basically a composer’s blueprint for the structure of the composition. Basic elements must be followed quite accurately for the integrity of the musical structure. In other words, there are weight bearing pillars, exact proportions to be followed, and specific materials used or the structure is wobbly, or even worse, cannot stand.

As an interpreter, the decisions are more cosmetic: painting the front door green, putting drapes in the front window, having an area rug in the living room, etc. These design features are what distinguishes different performances. Imagine if every house on a street had exactly the same architectural specs, but then ALSO had the exact same decorating features. Not too interesting…

JS: Imagine that you are meeting two or three people, living or dead, whom you admire because of their work in your form of artistic expression. What would you say to them and what would they say to you?

SS: I think first and foremost I would like to meet Beethoven. He was arguably the most revolutionary composer in Western classical music history. He dealt with all sorts of personal strife and outside challenges and yet remained completely uncompromising in his creative output right until the very end. I would love to understand more about his inner drive in aspiring to such heights of creativity.

Among living artists, I would love to spend time with the great violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaya. She is among the most innovative and inspiring performers in the whole world. Carrying on the tradition set out by violinist Gidon Kremer, she refuses to take any piece of music for granted. She is constantly striving to reinvent the way a piece of music can be approached and ultimately presented. Some of what she does could be considered eccentric, nevertheless her creative process is fascinating to me.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life that helped to make you who you are as a creative artist.

SS: I can’t think of one watershed moment. I consider myself as always learning and always believing that there is no end to self-improvement. I try to be inspired by as many things as I can be, musical and nonmusical. I almost never turn down a challenge or opportunity, even if it is in unfamiliar territory.

Seven years ago, I quit a full-time concertmaster position with the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony. I had been doing the job there for 15 years and I felt that I needed different stimuli and different environments and colleagues in order to keep learning and pushing myself. This decision has certainly led to countless opportunities that I may not have been able to do otherwise.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about your life as a person in the arts?

SS: One thing that is not often understood about a professional artist is the level of training and discipline that is required to even have a CHANCE of being successful. The physical training usually begins when one is quite young (4-6 years old) in order to begin developing the neural pathways and small muscles that are necessary to perform the complex functions inherent in playing a musical instrument. Most professional musicians have the equivalent training and practice as doctors and elite athletes. If you’ve heard of the idea that mastering a skill takes 10,000 hours of practice, most musicians have completed their 10,000 by their mid-teens. And they are still not even close to being fully fledged professional musicians. And yet, the great majority of highly skilled musicians don’t earn even a small fraction as professional scientific and sports people. And we are required to provide our own instruments (many of which cost tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars), our own concert clothing and other accessories. It is very difficult to earn a living as a full-time professional musician.

JS: Please tell us what you haven’t attempted as yet that you would like to do in the arts? Why the delay so far?

SS: I would eventually like to run a concert series of some sort, probably chamber music. There is so much wonderful music for smaller ensembles that I would love to explore.
The delay is simply being too busy doing other things.

JS: If you could re-live your life in the arts, how would you change it and why?

SS: Tough question. All I can come up with at this point is that I wish I had listened more to my teachers and practiced more diligently when I was young. I have spent too much time subsequent to my youth correcting technical mistakes and playing ‘catch up’ with fundamental issues.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

SS: The single most hopeful thing about the state of the arts currently is that there is now overwhelmingly conclusive evidence of how important the arts are in childhood development, especially studying a musical instrument. Plus, as our society continues to become more automated and ‘robotized’, the arts will become even more critical in the continuing development and evolution of the human spirit and condition.

As for depressing elements of the arts, the push by conservative minded politicians to designate the arts as ‘frivolous’ and ‘expendable’ is robbing more youth of this critical experience in their education.

And even as the arts in general generate much more revenue for the government than it pays out in the form of grants, the perception is that the arts are ‘elitist’ and therefore not eligible for public support. Take the CBC for example – that network used to be a world leader in creative artistic projects, and now it has been gutted to such bare bones that there are almost no resources to produce anything original.

There’s a wonderful quote from Winston Churchill from the Second World War era. When the British parliament was discussing where to siphon money from various departments to help pay for the war effort, eventually the department dealing with the arts and culture budget was under consideration.

Allegedly Churchill said that if this department was cut, then what were they fighting for? The artistic expression of people is what make all of us human.

JS: What exactly do you like about the work you create and/or do?

SS: I live and breathe music. Fortunately, it has worked out for me that I am involved in many different projects with many different ensembles and organizations. I am constantly challenged by new things to discover, and new people to understand and respond to. As I’ve said earlier, I try to learn from as many experiences as possible. Right now, I have very few predictable or ‘dull’ moments in my musical life.

JS: In your creative life thus far, what have been the most helpful comments you have heard about your work?

SS: Perhaps that I practice what I preach? To be a good leader you must be consistent, reliable, and open to the needs of those that follow your leadership. I have been told that I am very sensitive and conscientious about providing the messages and cues that are helpful to others. I’ve never forgotten that an effective leader must always be HELPFUL.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising things about you?

SS: I guess that what surprises me is that I continue to possess a deep drive to keep improving and learning. To what end? I don’t know yet.

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HEATHER DALE: CELTIC SINGER-SONGWRITER DESCRIBES 20TH CD: “SPHERE FOCUSES ON STORIES OF WOMEN BREAKING FREE FROM SILENCE — THEY FIND THEIR OWN POWER, THEIR OWN VOICE….: LAYERING THE OLD WITH THE NEW MAKES ME FEEL CONNECTED TO MY CELTIC ROOTS, EVEN AS I’M LIVING MY LIFE IN THE 21ST CENTURY. …. A REVIEWER INTERVIEWS PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

Photo by Bruce Zinger

JAMES STRECKER: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on or have recently completed. Why exactly do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

HEATHER DALE: I’m just about to release my 20th album Sphere, which coincides with my 20th year as a recording artist. In many ways those years have flown by: spent circumnavigating the USA several times in a station wagon, singing in 12th century Welsh castles, and driving through the Australian outback doing live concerts. Throughout these twenty years, each time I’d have a few weeks in one place I would condense all those experiences into a new recording. Each song I write is very deeply personal. And fairly uniquely in the music world, every one of them is twinned in my own mind with a similar Celtic legend, Greek myth, Russian tale or some other story. Layering the old with the new makes me feel connected to my Celtic roots, even as I’m living my life in the 21st century. Sphere focuses on stories of women breaking free from silence — they find their own power, their own voice.

All of these old stories survive through the ages because they have some pearl of wisdom, some resonant element that persists from storyteller to storyteller. Cinderella is about having to stay silent in an abusive environment; Medusa refuses to back down even though she is shunned; King Arthur is willing to lead ethically even if it means personal sacrifice.

JS: How did doing these projects change you as a person and as a creator?

HD: My partner Ben Deschamps and I have moved back to Toronto after a full decade of being on the road, and so we had much more time to devote to making Sphere. We consciously put aside our regular ‘go to’ instruments (guitar, piano) and wrote this project without those overly familiar tools. I’m delighted by the epic percussion- and strings-driven scope that the album has. We also had the luxury of including a fresh artistic presence in the form of our co-producer Dave MacKinnon, whose specialty is creative tape looping and other audio manipulation. He really brought out the spirit of songs like Sleeping Beauty and Three Axes.

JS: What might others not understand or appreciate about the work you produce or do?

HD: My music always has at least two layers of meaning, sometimes more. I never write a flat story, where everything is on display on first listen. I work to create something nuanced, three-dimensional, deep — something you can dive into and experience multiple times. If something sticks in my memory or imagination, I do my best to figure out why and then use that underlying truth as a springboard for songwriting. I’m a very intuitive creator. Each song hints at something very personal, while also connecting the listener to other tales people have told about the same issues.

My music requires one big leap of faith: you have to accept that fairytales are not silly. You can have them in your life, without losing your adult status. Once you take away the Disney stereotype, old stories suddenly become rich with humour and wisdom.

Another personal element that isn’t always noticed: I write gender ambiguity into a lot of my work. I write love songs that work equally well for untraditional relationships. I sing first-person songs that might be from either a man’s or woman’s perspective; this isn’t accidental. I’m always drawn to telling stories that aren’t being told anywhere else. If they surprise people, then I’m doing something right.

JS: What are the most important parts of yourself that you put into your work?

HD: I have always pushed the envelope where creation is concerned, though in a ‘work within the system’ kind of way. I will bend the rules as far as possible, and distort them without completely abandoning them. I aim for an end result that is oddly fascinating yet still a tiny bit familiar. Some people might be disappointed that I haven’t made the same album 20 times over, but I would disappoint myself if I played it safe. It’s important for me to always be trying new things. Each of my fans seems to gravitate toward a different song from my recordings; that’s ideal in my opinion.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

HD: I invest as much time managing my own record label Amphis Music as I do making music. I see business and art as equivalently creative activities: each is a complex thing made up of daily creative impulses. When I was a teenager, I looked at the independent career that Loreena McKennitt was crafting for herself, and I realized that I wanted to start building the same kind of entrepreneurial life; there would be no sense of accomplishment in waiting for some studio executive to magically discover my music and make me a star. I much prefer building strong things slowly, than having a moment of flash-and-dazzle that fades quickly.

The only drawback of keeping complete control over my art is that (amusingly) it becomes increasingly difficult to carve out time to make that art. I’ve learned to do find that balance reasonably well over the years, but it certainly doesn’t come naturally.

JS: Imagine that you are meeting two or three people, living or dead, whom you admire because of their work in your form of artistic expression. What would you say to them and what would they say to you?

HD: If I can approach this question sideways: I’ll start with someone I’ve actually had the privilege of meeting: Moya Brennan from the Irish supergroup Clannad (who is also Enya’s sister). I saw her show at Hugh’s Room almost 15 years ago and managed to get her autograph, which was a total thrill… but it struck me 2 weeks later, as I was headlining the same venue, that all the people lining up to meet me were feeling much the same. It caused a sudden and permanent shift in my own mind: musicians are normal people, whose art creates an excited sort of glimmer in the minds of others. Now, if I had the chance to meet Moya again, I’d love to simply say thank you, give her a cup of tea, and leave her to some peace and quiet. She’s a person under all the stardom, and it would be nice to give her a moment where she didn’t have to be ‘on’. Similarly with Loreena McKennitt — though it would take me a lot much more self-discipline not to absolutely melt in the presence of my fundamental artistic inspiration. Of course, if I were to ever meet the enigmatic Enya, I think I would simply ask if I could live in her coach house. I’d be very quiet and not be a bother, cross my heart.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about your life as a person in the arts?

HD: I think there is a fair bit of confusion over what being an introvert really means. I am most assuredly an introvert, but I have no problem being the life of the party if that’s what’s needed; after 1400 concerts where I was both the event hostess and the on-stage personality, I don’t think there’s any question about that. But while I like social activity, it doesn’t leave me energized… rather I require a lot of recovery time where I’m absolutely alone afterward. I really treasure the friends who understand that odd mixture of “lively” and “reclusive”.

And while I may appear to wear my heart on my sleeve, I feel very much that “Capital H, Capital D” (me as a working artist) and my private side are very different. They are both facets of my true self… but honestly, I’ve been on stage immediately after losing a friend to suicide, and no one in that audience had any idea. My small private family get to know those things, while I let my fans see the parts of me that feel strong, confident, mellow, and joyful. I delight in being HD, but it does sometimes surprise people to discover that they’re not seeing all my vulnerabilities.

JS: Please tell us what you haven’t attempted as yet that you would like to do in the arts? Why the delay so far?

HD: I am building up to performing with an orchestra or large chamber ensemble. There is such a dramatic sweep in my music that having a full sound palette would be brilliant. I’ve started touring with the Amphis Chamber Strings, and I adore it — the quartet adds so much to the emotional landscape at our concerts. I really look forward to the day when I am singing with a giant ensemble of musicians at my back.

JS: If you could re-live your life in the arts, how would you change it and why?

HD: Ben and I have both, at times, been too shy about promoting ourselves. Being Canadian is a such a big source of pride: of course, no culture is perfect, but we grew up in an environment where difference was turned into interest rather than fear. Canadians generally try to get along peacefully with people. Unfortunately, part of that is that Ben and I are so culturally polite when we’re working in America or Europe, it feels rude to talk loudly about what we have for sale, or trumpet our achievements. It just feels gauche to us. Of course, we do it anyways (otherwise we’d starve), but I think that many of the people at our concerts over the years were unaware of how popular we’d become online and overseas.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

HD: Honestly, I’m quite happy about it all. Evolution is natural. Nothing will be the same as in the past; that’s just not how humanity works. There are brilliant artists of all ages trying new things, reviving and maintaining old forms, and creating art using tools that didn’t exist a decade ago. I am able to access pop music from Mali, devotional music from Bangladesh, opera from Canada, heavy metal from Sweden, and watch a Maori modern dance troupe — all on the same afternoon. Whereas 20 years ago, I had to go to the local library to learn how to start a small business. I don’t deny that traditional sources of funding are waning, but crowdfunding is on the rise. Recording studios are closing, but my nephew is podcasting at his kitchen table. There is negative and positive in almost everything, and I do my best to stay with the positive.

JS: In your creative life thus far, what have been the most helpful comments you have heard about your work?

HD: I can actually point to a very important piece of advice that I utterly ignored — and I was glad I did. In 2005, a well-established label approached me and made me a great offer where I’d retain 100% creative freedom and get all the benefits of national representation. But when the negotiations were nearly complete, the label owners very seriously looked me in the eye and insisted that two songs be dropped from the album, before they’d release it. They didn’t like them. After blinking a few times, I put the pen down before signing anything, and left. I released “The Road to Santiago” on my own, and 14 years later it’s still seeing strong sales. Their advice made me realize that I already had 100% creative freedom, and all they could offer me was a more complicated life. If autonomy comes with the responsibility of keeping my own company going from year to year, then I consider it a great exchange.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising things about you?

HD: Many people are surprised to learn that I actually enjoy heavy metal music. I knew nothing about it until I started touring with Ben… but now I sing along with Nile and Candlemass, I’ve been right up front at two Iron Maiden concerts, and I can differentiate between Viking Folk Metal (which is a real thing) and Scottish Pirate Metal (also a thing). I see a lot of similarities to early opera: it’s wildly dramatic, deliberately larger-than-life, and intended to make you feel strong emotions. Art is a many-splendored thing, indeed.

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CLAUDETTE LANGUEDOC: AUTHOR OF COURAGE AND COMPLICITY EXPLAINS, “I FELT DEEPLY ASHAMED OF JUST BEING WHITE… THE RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL SYSTEM ROUTINELY USED SHAME TO SUBJUGATE THEIR STUDENTS, SO PERHAPS IT IS USEFUL FOR MY WRITING THAT I FELT THIS WAY.” …A REVIEWER INTERVIEWS PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

JAMES STRECKER: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on or have recently completed. Why exactly do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

CLAUDETTE LANGUEDOC: The book I have recently completed, Courage and Complicity, is the fictional story of a young white woman who, in the late 40s, travels north from Toronto to teach at an Indian Residential School. Mary begins her time at Bear Lake Indian Residential School as a wide-eyed neophyte eager to prove herself and excited to meet her students. When the underbelly of the school becomes impossible to ignore, her attempts to make changes are met by a wall of indifference and submission. Outside the school, she gets her own life lessons from people on both sides of the tracks that divide the town of Bear Lake, literally and figuratively, into white and “Indian”.

I believe that we, as a country, need to face up to our past. But the legacy of residential schools, both as a trigger and as a symbol of Canada’s attitude toward the Indigenous people who live here, has created an anger and frustration that has co-opted many attempts at meaningful dialogues. Issues relating to Indigenous people living in Canada are seldom raised without strong emotions from both sides which makes meaningful dialogue difficult at best.

I think that part of the problem is that most non-Indigenous people cannot hear the residential school story without hearing the anger and blame. Emotions they believe are directed at them, which they feel is unfair. So instead of listening, they build their own walls. What I want to do with this book is to present, to non-Indigenous Canadians, a story that they can engage in. I want to show the insidious nature of bigotry and racism, without the anger, and to encourage those who believe they are not racist, to look more deeply into the beliefs and biases that most of us in the white world unknowingly buy into. I want people who have never had any personal connection with residential schools to get a personal perspective, through Mary and her experiences.

JS: What might others not understand or appreciate in the work you produce or do?

CL: I am curious to hear what Indigenous people think of this work. It is a sensitive and topical story. I hope I have presented it sensitively.

JS: What are the most important parts of yourself that you put into your work?

CL: I went through a phase where I felt deeply ashamed of just being white. Shame is not a pleasant place to be. The residential school system routinely used shame to subjugate their students, so perhaps it is useful for my writing that I felt this way. But the most important part of myself that I put into this book, was to try and look honestly and how I would have dealt with residential school had I been a young teacher there. I trust that this honesty comes through and makes the book more believable. My protagonist is no heroine.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

CL: My biggest challenge, in this work, was to be objective and to avoid preaching.

JS: Imagine that you are meeting two or three people, living or dead, whom you admire in your form of artistic expression. What would you say to them and what would they say to you?

CL: I would love to meet Rumi, and just sit in his presence. His writing, even translated brings together joy and wisdom, humanity and divinity in a way few others have mastered.
I would also love to meet Shingwauk. He was an Anishinaabe leader in the early days of residential schools. He supported the idea of young people getting a western education. I would love to have the chance to talk to him and to understand his vision.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life that helped to make you who you are as a creative artist.

CL: Being part of a writing group has made a huge difference to me as a writer. It has meant that I am constantly being asked to write, with a deadline. Hearing other people’s interpretations of the same prompt has been very influential as well, and helped me look at whatever I write more objectively.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about your life as a person in the arts?

CL: That writing is a job.

JS: Please tell us what you haven’t attempted as yet that you would like to do in the arts? Why the delay so far?

CL: A children’s book. I need to find an artist!

JS: If you could re-live your life in the arts, how would you change it and why?

CL: I would read more, and give more value to sitting down with a good book. In our/my busy life, sitting with a book is something I still see as the last thing on my list, something to do when everything else is done. It’s rare that “everything else” is ever done, so reading happens in bits and pieces.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

CL: At the depressing end is the short attention span that seems to be prevalent today. And especially the lack of time many people have to just think. Even the trip to work, walking the dog or a trip on the bus, is occupied with podcasts and games.
At the hopeful end is the acceptance of any and all types of artistic expression. We are seeing large scale works such as performance arts, and interactive installations. “Graphic novel” sounds much more legitimate than “comic book”. Macramé around lampposts and murals on the sides of building provide us with a view of artistic expression without ever entering an art gallery.

JS: If you yourself were a critic of the arts discussing your work, be it something specific or in general, what would you say?

CL: Many people have told me, in response to the book, that it is well balanced. I’m not sure if an Indigenous person would feel the same, but I think that as a general critical comment, I would agree. Many of those same people have said that it was the first time that they were able to empathize with survivors of residential schools and the intergenerational trauma it produced. So, specifically, I would say that using a white woman as a protagonist was a unique device to make the residential school story accessible to non-Indigenous readers.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising things about you?

CL: I think that what most people would not expect, is that, at 66, I am still doing canoe trips. What continues to surprise me about myself is that, at 66, I still care about what people think of me. And I haven’t learned to read their minds, although sometimes I like to think that I have!

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