Today, I’m doing something for the 14th time in my career…releasing a new album! You might think that with so many albums out there, it must be old hat. Au contraire, it’s always very exciting! From the time an album is conceived to the day you release it, it’s usually a very lengthy process. But it’s a gratifying process and every time I go through it I learn something more about myself as a musician and as a person.
This latest release, Project Dovetail, is special because of all the obstacles we faced in making it happen. When the Canada Council for the Arts graced me with funding to make this album all the way back in March 2019, we thought the album would be released the following spring. Then COVID happened. We couldn’t get back into the studio to finish it. Recording sessions were literally spread out over a 1.5 year timespan. Other albums (Happiness in a Troubled World & Music for Self-Isolation) were released before this one because it felt more appropriate based on the state of the world at that moment. But to conclude 2021 with Project Dovetail feels right. This is a passionate album. It’s bold. It takes risk. It’s adventurous. It’s everything that we need to be to move forward.
Every composition on the album is inspired by some other art form…film, literature, visual art. That’s something else we all need…to be inspired. And to take that inspiration and be the best we can be because of it. When I listen to Project Dovetail, that’s what I hear and see in myself. I am very proud of the result.
Please listen to the album. Let me know what you think.
I owe a thousand thanks to the amazing musicians who played on the album (Edwin Huizinga, Kathryn Ladano, Elizabeth Reid, TorQ Percussion Quartet, Elixir Baroque Ensemble), to the Canterbury Music Company where we recorded it, Dennis Patterson for mastering it, the Canadian Music Centre’s Centrediscs label for releasing it, Canada Council for the Arts and FACTOR for their financial support and to my fellow creators who inspired me to compose these pieces including Suzanne Desrochers and Lorna Livey.
