Canadian Musician - September/October 2020 | Page 49

IN UNPRECEDENTED TIMES
PHOTO: HEATHER POLLOCK
hundreds of artists live and on
record over time – also dropped a
solo album during the pandemic.
Called Oma, it’s his first collection
of original solo piano songs with a
strong focus on anchoring melodies
that draw the listener in.
With his gig schedule on
hold, he’s had to find other work.
“My partner is a contemporary
dancer, so we’re struggling to be
creative, maintain our existence
as artists in our respective fields,
and take care of our 10-monthold.
I’m working with cantors who
sing in synagogues across the U.S.
They’re doing choral music individually
and sending it to me to
mix, edit, and make it sound as if
they’re singing together.” While it’s
definitely not business as usual,
he adds: “It’s a ton of work and it
is keeping me going.”
For bilingual Winnipeg-based
singer/songwriter Rayannah, the
pandemic hit after the release of
her debut full-length record, Nos
Repaires, but at a time when she
was hoping to expand her reach
and capitalize on some industry
recognition and accolades. In
2019, Rayannah was awarded
Western Canadian Music Awards
for Francophone Artist of the Year
and, with co-producer Mario Lepage,
Producer of the Year, together
becoming the first francophones
ever to receive the latter.
When the pandemic was first
declared, she says: “I was learning
how to set my space so I could do
live videos. It was that first kneejerk
reaction of feeling that you
Blue Rodeo’s
Mike Boguski
have to respond and do something.
Now that that’s
passed, my team and
I are starting to design
other performance
opportunities that play
into this situation and
come at it from the
place of, ‘Let’s just be
super creative, see
what we can do, and
how we can involve
other people.’ I was
also thankful that a lot
of the organizations
I was working with
found ways to honour
contracts. But now, I’m
going to be doing a
little less digital performing
so that I can
do some writing.”
“My team and I are starting
to design other performance
opportunities that play into
this situation and come at it
from the place of ‘Let’s just
be super creative, see what
we can do, and how we can
involve other people.’”
-Rayannah
Of course, how well we cope
largely depends on our individual
circumstances.
“I’ve been pretty isolated,”
says Matthew Cardinal, keyboardist
and bass player for Polaris
Prize-shortlisted trio nêhiyawak. “I
do have a roommate and I’ve seen
friends for [socially-distanced] visits
and had a lot of long phone catchups
with musician friends from
across the country, but it’s intense. I
had a bunch of summer solo shows
and nêhiyawak gigs canceled, but I
have been busy doing livestreams,
pre-recorded videos, and some
scoring as well.”
While the band’s stunning
2019 LP nipiy continues to garner
well-earned accolades, Cardinal
is also currently at work on a solo
record. “I’ve been gigging under
my own name since 2012 or 2013,
so I’m used to making and writing
music on my own, but I really miss
performing in a room with people.”
In short, everyone that Canadian
Musician spoke with is
finding ways to remain productive
and creative, which begs
the question: Given the amount
of time we spend alone with our
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