The Early Years
— How it all began
My junior and senior high school years were very productive musically as I moved from piano to drums to guitar. I remember how difficult it was to play on my Kay guitar as the neck was bowed and I had a heckuva time pressing down on the fretboard. I persisted though and moved on to more accessible guitars.
As a drummer, I worked with 3 other high school musicians. We played a variety of gigs in Winnipeg and in the smaller country towns. It was my real introduction to live music. I then moved on to just playing guitar at the university level with another guitar player and a vocalist. We continued to tour the folk market in Manitoba and disbanded when the vocalist left to get married.
The Middle Years
- My years as an educator
Once I received my teaching degree, I formed a variety of high school groups and once again toured the city schools and the small country towns. Many of my students are still playing to this day. A few are playing professionally.
One of my priorities as an educator was to ensure that my students were appreciative of all kinds and style of music, from metal to jazz to pop and world music. So I spent the better part of those years providing opportunities and creating experiences that would benefit them the most including guitar classes, live performances and writing poetry and lyrics for their songs. Not all of them were great lyricists, but a few continued to write as published poets and songwriters.
It was as a junior high school teacher that I put together a band of students called Soleil. They were the first group of 14 to 16 year olds to record an album. They were also invited as guest artists of a local television show and had the opportunity to tour Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Eastern provinces.
That was followed by the creation of Mainstream, a compilation album of Manitoba artists supported by Q 94, a local radio station. The album was available in all of the local record stores and sold well.
Another band that I managed and produced a album for was Catch 22, a high energy pop band that received some airplay and toured Manitoba and Wester Canada.
Shortly hereafter, I founded the first Manitoba Music organization entitled MARIA, the Manitoba Audio Recording Industry Association. One of its highlights was the creation of the very first music conference in the province’s history. It was well-attended and offered members a series of workshops and performances in the local venue. The organization became the precursor to Manitoba Film and Sound.
I left the high school program and moved on to the university and college level as the director of the new media program. It was at that time that I had a recording studio built and produced some of the most eclectic music I had ever encountered.
Turn of the Century
— Moving On
After leaving the Université Saint-Boniface, I created a company called cafesonique.com for which musicians worldwide could showcase their material in a 3D website. Besides winning a Canadian New Media Award, cafesonique.com provided the opportunity for me to travel to cities such as Paris, Cannes, London, Berlin, Copenhagen and Sydney, Australia to showcase the website and to meet with musicians worldwide. I even had the opportunity to organize a cafesonique showcase at a venue in Berlin with the artists who were a part of the worldwide cafesonique team. Furthermore, we set up a booth at the MIDEM music conference for 3 years in Cannes, France, at which time cafesonique artists performed in front of international labels representatives, managers and agents.
My business dealings took me to Costa Rica where I met with land developers who were looking at a compilation CD is part f their promotional activities. Café Chill was created and was showcased at the MIPIM conference in Cannes, France.
My inherent love of Blues morphed into my participation as a singer songwriter and vocalist in 3 Blues bands: The Saturday Night Basement Blues Band, The Overnight Parking Band, and Oliver Stakz, the latter for which I recorded a first album in my home studio.
Later on, I tried my hand as the guitar and bass player for Marlyborne, a local jazz band. During the 4 years with the group, I produced and recorded two EPs, the latter for which I composed Waitin’ for the Party, reminiscent of the 1930s Swing Era dance tunes.
During the latter part of 2022, I joined the Stephanie Westdal Band, a local group that played regularly at many of the Winnipeg venues, for which I played bass and guitar.
The Next Chapter
— New Directions
In 2024, I started a new chapter in my musical journey. I decided to concentrate more on writing, producing and recording my own material. Because I’ve always been fascinated with electronic music, I began experimenting with different styles and plan to launch a first vinyl recording in the latter part of this year.
Furthermore, I plan to produce a 4-song EP of my French songs and a 4-song EP of my Blues material.
On my list of priorities is to cooperate with like-minded musicians, singers and songwriters and to join a pop, jazz or blues band as a means to perform live in downtown Winnipeg venues. I’d also be open to play guitar or bass for a vocalist or duo as an opening act in the local jazz or pop scene. Lastly, I plan to return to Paris where I had the opportunity a few years ago to play with international musicians in a local venue.
Stay tuned!
