creativity

Neel, Phil, and Andrea

Writing a long song with Civil Wray

Sparkle. It’s exactly what Civil Wray does on her brand-new single, appropriately entitled “Sparkle”.  Civil Wray, the nom de plume of Toronto singer songwriter Andrea de Boer, worked with producer Matt DeMatteo (Danko Jones, Big Wreck, Ashley MacIsaac) in creating an ethereal, dreampop song, that may remind listeners of artists like Fiona Apple, David Bowie, and Tame Impala. It’s a song about …

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Neel, Phil, and Amanda

Writing to the big picture with Amanda Sum

Canadian artist Amanda Sum has recently released her brand-new debut album “New Age Attitudes” and was quickly featured as one of Exclaim! Magazine’s picks of the week. Blending musical elements of Indie-Pop, Jazz, and Alternative Folk with incredibly thought-provoking lyrics, Amanda’s work has received critical acclaim from major media outlets including CBC, Exclaim! Magazine, and …

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Neel, Phil, and Alex

Alex Whorms writes her first original Christmas song

While some artists work to master their chosen genre and others may even manage to define one, Alex Whorms crafts music that is essentially a genre unto itself. Seated at her beloved keyboard, the young vocalist and composer flows freely and flawlessly between styles and sounds, gracefully blending classic singer-songwriter pop, jazz, soul, rock, classical, …

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Neel, Phil, and Joey

The Laws of Creativity with Joey Cofone

Joey Cofone is Founder & CEO of Baronfig and an award-winning designer and entrepreneur. His work has been featured in Fast Company, Bloomberg, New York Magazine, Bon Appétit, Quartz, Mashable, Gizmodo, and Print, among others. Joey was named a New Visual Artist and, separately, Wunderkind designer, by Print magazine. He is the author of the new book, The Laws of Creativity: Unlock Your Originality and …

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Neel, Phil, and Susan

Getting Past Writer’s Block with Susan Cattaneo

Singer-songwriter and music educator Susan Cattaneo joined us once again, this time to talk about tips for overcoming writer’s block for songwriters. We talked about: writing in a different mode, on purpose a great video on understanding modes – The Modes Ranked by Brightness – YouTube lists of contemporary songs using modes, courtesy of Susan …

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Neel, Phil, and Angela

Angela Saini on developing songs past their initial ideas

Indian-Austrian Canadian country folk-pop artist Angela Saini is all about second chances and empowering others. She uplifts and inspires audiences with sing-alongs and storytelling about courage and finding joy in surprising places. BBC Radio has called the positive and upbeat songstress “massively talented”. Angela is most known for her sunshine-soaked song “Living on the Bright …

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