In the history of musical instruments, the questions asked are pretty standard: Who played it? What did they play? How did it evolve? Kelly Ruth’s instrument, the weaving loom, carries an entirely different kind of history. It brings to mind mythology, solitary artisans, beautiful textiles, and the dangers and exploitations of mass production in “dark,Continue reading “The Warp and Weft of Kelly Ruth”
Author Archives: Musicworks
Sarah Hennies, Linguist in the Land of Noises
Identity is a deeply personal, elusive, and complex thing, and thus, a common source of creative fuel. Yet for the endless variety of discrete identities and individual perspectives on the topic, there is a dominant set of tropes around the way that identity is addressed artistically. The supposed concreteness of narrative is often turned to,Continue reading “Sarah Hennies, Linguist in the Land of Noises”
Psiw-te npomawsuwinuwok kiluwaw yut
The first time I heard Jeremy Dutcher on the radio, I was driving my son and some of his non-Native teammates to soccer practice in Peterborough. I had tuned in to the CBC a few bars into Dutcher’s single “Honour Song,” and the fifteen-year-old boys in the car fell silent. “Holy Simpson [read Mom], a NishContinue reading “Psiw-te npomawsuwinuwok kiluwaw yut”
Vanese “VJ” Smith is Right on Time
Vanese (pronounced va-NIECE) “VJ” Smith and I are on the Spadina streetcar, chatting like old friends. Just minutes earlier we met for the first time. I arrived from up North (aka Thornhill) in a state of winter-blues petulance, but when I saw her bright smile and waving arm from across the street, I was gratefulContinue reading “Vanese “VJ” Smith is Right on Time”
Sam Shalabi and the Evolution of a Global Aesthetic
Sam Shalabi’s insightful musical take on the world can provoke both discomfort and laughter. On his numerous solo albums, he meshes guitar, oud, and field recordings into an electroacoustic collage. He leads a wide variety of small and midsize groups that encompass a who’s who of Montreal improvisers, as well as musicians of international renown,Continue reading “Sam Shalabi and the Evolution of a Global Aesthetic”
Bus Ride Home—October
Slow, manic whine of police sirens, urgent goose-call of fire engines, anxious “wait for me” of trailing first responders. All muffled under soft falling snow and crystallizing puddles and the breathing of almost three dozen passengers pressed close. And the incessant growl of city bus engine and tires and radiator, the whirring mumble not quiteContinue reading “Bus Ride Home—October”
2018 Spring & Summer Festival Preview
The usual anticipation for nice weather has been feeling like more like desperation—a longing for warmth, good vibes, and the freedom to explore everything under the sun. I am planning to fill my “no Netflix” summer with as many park hangouts, patios, concerts, and spontaneous events as possible. Musicworks’ staff, contributors, and other friendly earsContinue reading “2018 Spring & Summer Festival Preview”
Label Profile: Redshift Records
We won’t go into the details—because, frankly, we don’t understand them—but in astronomy a redshift is a way to measure an object’s placement in space, and its movement vis-à-vis the earth. “It’s like the Doppler effect, but for light,” Redshift Records mastermind Jordan Nobles tells me in a telephone interview from his North Vancouver home.Continue reading “Label Profile: Redshift Records”
First-place Winner, Musicworks 2017 Sonic Geography Writing Contest
Childhood has no single place, no secret garden, no single carousel to ride on, nor tree branch to fall from: just hours, that slip away, so similar to music, which has no place either, just passing time it tries to keep up with. In playgrounds kids run in circles, sliding down, climbing up the imaginedContinue reading “First-place Winner, Musicworks 2017 Sonic Geography Writing Contest”
First-place winner, Musicworks’ 2017 Electronic Music Composition contest
The glitchy, vaguely dystopian composition constructed from manipulated vocals is almost widespread enough now to warrant its own genre tag. Laurie Anderson is, of course, its foremother. Recent interesting entries include Holly Herndon’s Platform, Katie Gately’s Pipes, and Giant Claw’s Soft Channel. All of them delight in detaching signifier from signified, building up intricate, oftenContinue reading “First-place winner, Musicworks’ 2017 Electronic Music Composition contest”