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Canadian Musician’s 2019 Focus on Music Education

By Ken Kelley

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INFINITE PATHS,

INFINITE DESTINATIONS

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STARTING YOUR JOURNEYThompson Egbo-Egbo

When Toronto-based pianist Thompson Egbo-Egbo arrived in Canada from Nigeria at the age of four, music wasn’t on his radar as he adjusted to life in a new country.

Growing up in the city’s Regent Park neighbourhood, he began elementary school shortly after arriving. He recalls that it wasn’t all that long before his teacher called his mother in for a frank conversation about his performance.

“The teacher told my mother I wasn’t adjusting well to being in school and that I was too hyperactive. The teacher told my mother that I had ADHD and suggested she put me on Ritalin to help settle me down,” Egbo-Egbo says. “Thankfully, my mother didn’t think drugs were the right solution to whatever I had happening.”

Not long after that meeting, however, in a bid to help her son, Egbo-Egbo’s mother was told Regent Park’s Dixon Hall offered a music program to area residents.

Started in 1978, the school has faithfully served Toronto’s Regent Park, Moss Park, and St. Lawrence neighbourhoods in the decades since, helping to provide a musical lifeline to families

from differing walks of life.It was while his mother

was in a meeting with the school’s director that Thomp-son was left to his own devices in a room that happened to have a piano.

“I wasn’t necessarily play-ing a song, but I was playing distinctive patterns on the piano. The director asked my mother how long I had been taking music lessons when she told him that I had never seen the instrument before in my life. That’s ultimately what set me on the path to becoming a musician.”

He participated in private music lessons at Dixon Hall from the time he was six years old until he was 16. For him, music was an escape from a

relatively strict upbringing.“Both of my parents had post-secondary educations and

were a bit on the strict side. I was never one that could just hang out with my friends in the neighbourhood, so I typically searched out anything I could that would get me out of the house. With music, I not only had lessons at Dixon Hall; I also participated in music programs at both school and church. Music was the common thread through so many different aspects of my life,” Egbo-Egbo says.

The important role that both music and Dixon Hall have played throughout his life is a primary reason why Egbo-Egbo has ensured he gives back both to the school and the community that provided him such unwavering support in his formative years.

In fact, the musician was honoured to serve as the Master of Ceremonies for Dixon Hall Music School’s 40th Annual Gala this past December. His hosting duties marked the first time an alumnus had served in the role.

“There are so many different factors that go into why I give back to the school and choose to stay connected to Dixon Hall. There are a lot of programs out there that can make a big differ-ence for kids like me. While immigration can often be cast in a

While the importance of music education for children has been proven and well touted over the past several decades, a significantly less-discussed aspect of being a musician is the importance of an ongoing education, regardless of the player’s age or skill level.

Music education was once synonymous with taking lessons or studying in school, but now, with the vast possibilities of the internet and a host of music events across the country with educational programming, it couldn’t be more convenient or accessible.

In our 2019 focus on music education, we’ve sought insight from some successful Canadian artists and industry members on the subject of continual learning, how it has served them, and how others can benefit from off-stage studies.

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negative light, I’m just one of many exam-ples of the positives that can come from it, and how important programs like those offered by Dixon Hall can be in helping set people on the right path,” Egbo-Egbo says.

“To me, one of the greatest aspects of having attended Dixon Hall was the fact that it was a real community music pro-gram as opposed to being a school where you just show up for lessons and leave afterwards. I participated in choir, sum-mer day camps and musicals, and, along with each of those things, participated in many shows and productions to help raise funds for the school.”

Asked about the biggest takeaway from his time at the school, the pianist says his experience in communicating with and relating to different types of people has proven to be among the most helpful things he has learned.

“When I was younger, I used to play as part of a band that would be hired to play prestigious parties and get togethers all over Toronto. There was one party in the city that was hosting Quincy Jones, and one of Dixon Hall’s patrons took it upon herself to ensure I was ready for it, going so far as to buy me a white shirt and black tie and sending me via cab to this party. At the end of the night, I was heading back home via taxi and the cab driver wouldn’t even bring me right to my house – he dropped me off at the corner, and I walked the rest of the way. It was an interesting juxtapo-sition because hours earlier I was among some of the city’s most elite, but I knew that, deep down, we aren’t all that different from one another. Being able to relate to others is something I credit the school for having instilled in me.”

NAVIGATING THE INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAYJosh Trager, Sam Roberts Band

Having started his journey behind the drum kit at age 11, Sam Roberts Band drummer Josh Trager knows first-hand the importance of continuous education. He acknowledges that, early in his career, he didn’t devote as much time as he could have to the educational aspects of being a drummer, and likes to think he’s now in a position to make up for lost time.

“I say to myself all the time that I should be better than I am after 26 years

of playing,” a candid Trager tells Canadian Musician. “In some ways, I feel like I’m making up for lost time, where maybe I didn’t practice as hard or as effectively as I should have when I was younger. You just don’t neces-sarily know any better about these things when you’re young-er, or at least a lot of folks don’t, but as you get older and wiser, I think you develop a deep and genuine love and desire to work harder and not let your skills and abilities go to waste. I probably work harder to hone and refine my abilities now than I ever have at any point in the past.”

Among the resources Trager uses to further bolster his knowledge is Drumeo, a Canadian drum education site catering to musicians of all skill levels in just about every topic imaginable.

Drumeo’s YouTube channel boasts more than 900,000 sub-

scribers and features a comprehensive list of videos from an array of acclaimed drum-

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mers, including Jonathan “Sugarfoot” Moffett (Michael Jackson), Harvey Mason (Herbie Hancock), Kenny Aronoff (John Fogerty), and Carmine Appice (Vanilla Fudge). And of course, we’d be re-miss to not include Trager as a Drumeo contributor as well.

While some Drumeo videos feature musicians playing along with well-known hits, others offer tips on drum tuning, learning in-

ternational drum rhythms, rudiments, and more, offering a unique and well-rounded insight into the drums as an instrument.

Trager says Drumeo founder Jared Falk had approached him a number of years back about making an instructional video for the platform, but it was his own reticence that delayed the video actually coming to life.

“When Jared first suggested contributing, I actually didn’t an-swer him for a while,” Trager recalls, laughing. “There’s already so much information and resources available for people online, and I wanted to be sure I was contributing something of value, some-thing I felt was valid enough to share with the drumming world.”

He admits that had Falk approached him about contributing 15 or 20 years prior, he more than likely would have jumped at the opportunity without giving it much of a second thought, regard-less of whether he had something of value to contribute.

“When you’re younger, I think you’re a lot more fearless and willing to put yourself out there, but as I’ve gotten older, there’s been a lot of self-doubt that’s crept in,” he shares. “In fact, the longer I’m at this, the less certain I feel that I know or understand playing drums as well as I should – but that’s also precisely why I seek out educational content online.”

Asked of the benefits that online resources can offer, Trager believes the diverse nature of video and content creators helps to ensure there’s something for almost everyone.

According to Trager, Drumeo strikes a good balance be-tween satisfying those curious about a particular fill or pattern while also appealing to those simply wanting to get to know the timekeepers themselves.

“One of the biggest benefits I’ve seen from watching these types of instructional videos is that it makes me more eager to get behind the drum set myself and put some of those theories into practice,” Trager says.

“Everyone is looking for something different, and it’s rel-

atively easy to find the content you’re looking for online. You have guys publishing online instructional videos to teach you something flashy alongside people just looking for a very specific part of one song. Chances are excellent you can find what you’re looking for online.”

GRADUATED LICENSINGBirds of Bellwoods

If there is just one piece of advice that Birds of Bellwoods mem-ber Kintaro Akiyama would like to pass on to others before they decide whether or not to set sail on post-secondary studies in music, it would be to recognize what you’re hoping to get out of the program.

As a 2013 graduate of McGill University’s Jazz Bass Perfor-mance Program, Akiyama has had plenty of time to look back on his experiences at the institution, and how it helped to shape him into the musician he is today.

“I loved my time at McGill and absolutely learned a lot while I was there,” he begins. “There were so many great students and the faculty was just amazing in its own right. What I think I liked best was the fact that the music program was relatively small, at least compared to other programs, so instead of having a couple hundred students in my class, there were maybe 30 of us. It gives the professors the opportunity to get to know you, and you them, on an individual basis.”

He shares that vying for space in virtually any music pro-gram, anywhere in North America, tends to be rather competitive, but as good luck would have it, he ended up being one of three bass players accepted into the program in the year he enrolled.

“McGill’s entire jazz program had maybe 150 people, so you definitely have to know your stuff if you plan on nabbing one of those spaces. The competition can be rather intense, too. I actually suffered a bit of a breakdown during the process of au-ditioning for various schools just because of how high-stress the audition process can be. I was confident in my abilities, but you never really know who you’re competing against and it’s those unknowns that weigh heavily on you.”

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And though he successfully graduated from the program, Akiyama believes branching out from jazz into the more alt-folk realms of Birds of Bellwoods was the natural path for him.

“By the time I was completing the program, I didn’t know whether I’d be able to stay in the field of jazz or not. I love jazz music as an artform, but opportunities to work in that community can be somewhat limited, especially in a city like Montreal where you’re just surrounded by so many great musicians. And ultimate-ly, the ideas and concepts of harmony and melody carry over to virtually almost any genre. If anything, moving away from jazz has increased my overall appreciation for music. You can sometimes forget why you’re doing what you’re doing, but I have no regrets about the way my career has played out so far.”

Akiyama’s Birds of Bellwoods bandmate, vocalist Chris Joffe, attended Bishop’s University where, despite his best-laid plans to study the guitar, he ended up taking on other instruments.

“The month before I was due to begin school at Bishop’s, I severed a tendon in my hand in a bad accident, which pretty much meant I couldn’t play guitar,” he says.

Rather than abandon his plans altogether, Joffe fell back on previous jazz trumpet playing and studied that for approximately two years before moving into piano, voice, music theory, and music history.

Somewhat ironically, Birds of Bellwoods might never have come to fruition with its current lineup had Joffe not stuck with the music program. It was while there that he accepted a role in a Toronto-based production in which he would be playing banjo.

“It was through that production that I met the guys in the band,” Joffe says. “You never quite realize where life will take you, but I look back on my studies in music with a mixture of awe and inspiration.”

MAKING CONNECTIONS AT MAJOR HUBSElise Roller, Manitoba Music

When Elise Roller joined the staff of Manitoba Music, the prov-ince’s music industry association, in 2017, her mission was rela-tively simple; she wanted to help fellow musicians avoid making the same career mistakes that she had.

Roller began performing as a solo artist years ago before joining touring rock outfit Go for the Eyes. That band spent the better part of five years touring Canada, sharing the stage with the likes of The Trews, Moist, Limblifter, and others prior to dis-banding.

“I toured and released music for several years, making mis-takes along the way,” Roller says. “A lot of what I do now is to help educate people on the mistakes I’ve made so that they don’t fall into the same traps.”

Some of the most valuable insight that Roller shares with up-and-coming musicians involves music conferences and show-case opportunities.

She acknowledges that it’s easy for a band to get caught up in the excitement of virtually limitless possibilities that a show-case in front of industry executives could present, but cautions that groups should take a step back and ask what they want – and expect – to get out of the showcase.

“Before spending the time and money getting your band to a music conference, you need to have a clear objective as to what you’re hoping to achieve or accomplish in attending,” Roller suggests.

Before setting their sights on a national or international event, she says artists should wet their feet in the waters of their pro-vincial music industry association’s programming or other more localized events.

“A local or provincial music industry association conference is a great place to start because artists are able to benefit from the experience of others without incurring the significant travel costs, and feelings of being overwhelmed, that can come with the larger festivals and conferences. A lot of people working for music industry associations are musicians themselves, so they’re able to help artists with a variety of different things that will benefit them should they go to a national conference. It’s all about first impres-sions when you’re on the national stage, and the last thing you want to do is shoot yourself in the foot,” Roller says.

“That’s something I’ve experienced as an artist, where I was just so excited to get out there and it wasn’t until my band and I were at the conference that I realized I had no idea what I was do-ing. The first year my band played Canadian Music Week, it wasn’t the actual festival that accepted us to play, but we had gotten a showcase through other means, and while we had a decent show, we had essentially driven from Western Canada to play for free for no one that could help move our career forward.”

Before striking off for any conference, Roller suggests art-ists acquaint themselves with the industry pros they’re hoping to meet. Equally or even more important is being prepared with reasons why you believe those people could be key players in your career trajectory.

“You should know who you want to talk to or meet before you even set foot in the city. Take the time to research presenters or speakers and see how what they’re doing can possibly align with what you’re doing. It’s not enough to say you love the bands they work with; have concrete reasons why you love their acts, and

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have some talking points ready, but it’s also a delicate balance because you don’t want to approach it solely from a business pitch standpoint. You should strive to get to know them as a person.”

And should you not find your Cinderella at the music con-ference, don’t sweat it too much; instead, consider every new friendship or business contact you make as one packed with possibilities.

“What I’ve found most helpful is seeking out people that you vibe with,” Roller offers. “Those genuine artistic and personal con-nections can serve you well in the long run. If you play in a heavy metal band and you’re getting along famously with someone that works exclusively with electronic acts, just go with it. People in the industry all know one another, and an endorsement or recom-mendation from an industry professional can go a lot further than cold calling.”

CREATIVE CARPOOLINGFWLR

When someone mentions the word “education,” chances are your mind takes you back to a classroom, sitting at a desk facing a chalkboard. But as New Brunswick electronic artist FWLR (nee Nick Fowler) would discover, education can also come in the form of new experiences.

In October 2017, Fowler was given the opportunity to partic-ipate in a songwriting workshop sponsored by the Songwriters Association of Canada. What made this situation unique was the fact he was being grouped with songwriters that he hadn’t previ-ously met each day and expected to collaborate on new output.

Riding high on a successful solo career that has seen him issue both his own work in addition to composing for television shows, including Daily Planet and The Social, Fowler was by no

means a stranger to the world of collaboration; however, this ex-perience offered some all-new insights.

“I’ve worked with a lot of different folks throughout my ca-reer,” Fowler says. “Usually, I’ll write with others once a week or so, whether it’s for their projects or something of mine, so collab-oration isn’t something that’s foreign to me, but being paired up with people I hadn’t previously met was something new.”

Ultimately, the goal of these workshops is to bring together some of Canada’s best talent for intensive co-writing sessions hosted in major cities throughout the country. The sessions provide writers with the opportunity to develop long-term relation-ships with other songwriters and artists while also collaborating on artist-driven projects.

“I was definitely nervous going into the camp, if only because I didn’t know what to expect,” he says. “But I think the concerns were almost universal though, because we were all in the same boat where we headed into a room with two other people we’d never met and were expected to have a finished song by the end of the day.”

Given the somewhat tight time constraints of the songwrit-ing workshops, Fowler says they were given little choice but to dive headfirst into the process right off the bat.

“Funny enough, all my worries about how the sessions would go essentially vanished once we got in the room together. We’d spend the first hour sharing ideas, seeing what could work and what wouldn’t,” he says.

“What I found to be the biggest challenge was the three of us in each session coming from different backgrounds trying to reach a consensus on how to move a song forward. Because of the pressure we were under to have a finished product at the end of the day, it wasn’t the kind of situation where we had to tiptoe around one another in order to save someone’s feelings, but there wasn’t any friction, either. We were there to write good music to-gether, and having the deadline looming over us at all times was probably the best thing that could’ve happened.”

Admitting he was somewhat over-prepared in terms of the amount of ideas that he had at his disposal in the time leading up to the songwriting workshops, having others express excitement or present ideas that may have complemented his original song sketches went a long way.

“We never started from scratch in any of the sessions; we al-ways had something to build from. And having those other voices in the room was a big help to each of us. I have a good ability to not be married to any of my ideas. I think it’s important to be as open minded as you can in these kinds of situations because it’s that willingness to be open to others’ ideas that will help produce the best songs you can.”

Ken Kelley is a freelance writer based out of Moncton, NB. In addition to writing for various media outlets in Canada and the U.S., Ken is also a founding member of Moncton rock band The Monoxides.

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