What and Why...
In the last decade I have seen Alberta, and more specifically, Edmonton’s music scene flourish beyond expectations. Every time I think of leaving, I discover a new venue, a new festival, or a new artist. The sense of community is what keeps me here.
In 2010 I was asked to be a part of a yearly 10 day gathering of authors, composers, and singers in Astaffort France. The goal of the retreat was to allow the artists (from France, Canada, Belgium, and Switzerland) to come out of their usual solitary working environments in order to create new bonds, new working relationships, and to explore the different roles in music. We were asked to work with each other in varying combinations: strictly lyricist; strictly composer to someone else’s lyrics; strictly singer of someone else’s song; writer and composer so that someone else could sing the song. At the end of each day, we would present the newest creations in concert, no matter how it had turned out.
At one point during this retreat, I wrote lyrics that I then gave one of the male composers. He put the lyrics to music and presented it in concert. It had a lasting impact on me. The fact that it was performed by a member of the opposite sex put a different spin on the meaning of the lyrics, it changed the way the images were delivered and received, and as a creator it allowed me a more objective perspective on what I had created. I was able to better see the value in what I had written and to have a clearer sense of what needed to be changed or improved. Gender aside, even the simple fact that someone else is singing your song, allows you to see it in a new light. Many musicians have somewhat solitary creative lives and do not necessarily have the time or the chance to take a step back and examine their work.
For these reason, over the last year I have been approaching writers and composers to work with me to explore different writing and composition styles and approaches... the extra question in this particular project being: how much does male-female aspects influence and affect the collaboration and the end result...?
As you browse the site and listen to the excerpts from the sessions, keep in mind that these are all works in progress.
In 2010 I was asked to be a part of a yearly 10 day gathering of authors, composers, and singers in Astaffort France. The goal of the retreat was to allow the artists (from France, Canada, Belgium, and Switzerland) to come out of their usual solitary working environments in order to create new bonds, new working relationships, and to explore the different roles in music. We were asked to work with each other in varying combinations: strictly lyricist; strictly composer to someone else’s lyrics; strictly singer of someone else’s song; writer and composer so that someone else could sing the song. At the end of each day, we would present the newest creations in concert, no matter how it had turned out.
At one point during this retreat, I wrote lyrics that I then gave one of the male composers. He put the lyrics to music and presented it in concert. It had a lasting impact on me. The fact that it was performed by a member of the opposite sex put a different spin on the meaning of the lyrics, it changed the way the images were delivered and received, and as a creator it allowed me a more objective perspective on what I had created. I was able to better see the value in what I had written and to have a clearer sense of what needed to be changed or improved. Gender aside, even the simple fact that someone else is singing your song, allows you to see it in a new light. Many musicians have somewhat solitary creative lives and do not necessarily have the time or the chance to take a step back and examine their work.
For these reason, over the last year I have been approaching writers and composers to work with me to explore different writing and composition styles and approaches... the extra question in this particular project being: how much does male-female aspects influence and affect the collaboration and the end result...?
As you browse the site and listen to the excerpts from the sessions, keep in mind that these are all works in progress.