News

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Oct 13 2020

Weekly Streams

 I've been trying to get back into the groove by performing a weekly set of covers and originals. Since I began, I feel my hands and my voice have been gradually finding their way again. It's important for musicians to…Read more

Oct 13 2020

Weekly Streams

I've been trying to get back into the groove by performing a weekly set of covers and originals. Since I began, I feel my hands and my voice have been gradually finding their way again. It's important for musicians to…

Read more
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Aug 17 2020

Porch Concert

On Friday August 14, I was invited to perform the last set of a local porch concert. It was a lovely summer evening. Unfortunately, I have no photos to share. There were three other acts that were very different. The…

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Jun 15 2020

Unfocused

Hi everyone, I thought I'd check in. I've been quite unfocused for the last three months. It's hard to stay motivated without shows to prepare for, or not playing with other musicians. I played my sax for about 30 minutes…
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May 29 2020

Covid Reset

I'm focusing on learning my original tunes really well this month. You'd think I'd know them because I wrote them, but that's not the case! I'm developing an original set with guitar and voice. Top of mind is good singing.…
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Feb 23 2020

New Role For Me

This afternoon, I hosted the grand opening of the new branch office of the musicians' union. I'm donating my office space to do this. The union local in my city, Peterborough 191, amalgamated with Kingston 518 in 1992. There hasn't…Read more
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Feb 20 2020

2020 So Far

The first six weeks of 2020 has been surprisingly active for me as a musician. In early January, I gave a one-hour solo concert at a retirement residence using my loop pedal. At the beginning of February, I was saxophonist…Read more
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Jul 26 2019

Another Crossroads

I feel like my career is once again at a crossroads. Every so many years, I make a major life decision when my wheels are spinning and my life is stagnating. In the past, it has meant returning to school,…
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Jul 3 2019

Long Day In The Studio

My goal is to release at least one song this summer. Today I managed to record the guitar part, although it was with great difficulty. The part has a sixteenth-note funk rhythm, but I could not get it locked into…Read more
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May 11 2019

New Song Recording Finished

This week, I completed my first polished recording since I released Interaction in 2002. Seventeen years. That's a long time. I've done so much since then.

I have another album's worth of material in me, but I've decided to release…Read more
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Apr 13 2019

Changing Focus

My last gig two weeks ago was playing solo with my guitar, looper, voice, sax, and flute. Since then, I've put my energies back into my tenor sax so I can get in form for a jazz quartet gig tomorrow…Read more
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Mar 27 2019

Split Brain

Even after my attempts to focus on one area of music, jazz keeps pulling me back in. Last night, I played one last jazz gig at the venue where my old band The Sean Hully Jazz Group played once a…Read more
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Feb 9 2019

My Completed Renovation

I'm still settling back in to my renovated studio, but it's been complete for a couple of weeks. It's 10 am, and I have to leave for sound check soon for my matinee gig with the Peterborough Pop Ensemble. I'm…Read more

Jan 3 2019

Getting Through The Holidays

I have had no serious performances for a couple of months, so I've been turning my attention to recording songs and renovating my studio Bird House Music.
My "office" is currently in the cold basement of an old house,…
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Nov 25 2018

Struggling With A Descriptive Term

A well-know term that quickly and accurately describes my music act has been bothering me. It's a term that rolls off the tongue beautifully and has been around for perhaps a century. The term is "one-man band."

What bothers me…Read more
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Sep 15 2018

Transitions

My career is in a state of flux. I now have a full night of covers after tweaking and adding tunes over the summer. There is still more refining to do for sure, but my show is more or less…Read more
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Jul 9 2018

Creativity Strikes At Unexpected Times

It's a quiet time for me with nothing on the horizon until the end of July. I've noticed many of my musician friends have been quite busy. I said aloud, "everyone is gigging but me."
My mind went to the…
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Jun 3 2018

Incremental Discovery Tonight

Practicing music is a little like doing science. You must experiment, repeat, experiment, repeat...until something goes right and a breakthrough is made, even if it is miniscule. Every realization makes a performer better. Sometimes, the breakthrough happens when not searching…Read more
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May 1 2018

Getting Back At It After Three Weeks

April was a crazy-busy month between my own lesson studio, giving lessons at two high schools, coaching saxophone at a community band, and being on a committee for organizing a mini-jazz festival honouring International Jazz Day. My own contribution to…Read more
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Oct 29 2017

A Small, Meaningful Act Can Lead to Great Things

I haven't done anything great that has had any kind of impact, except for one time. I did something small and easy, yet important. Several years ago, city council was going to cut funding to local transit. I was opposed…Read more
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Sep 4 2017

A New Year

I woke up thinking about new beginnings this Labour Day. For me, the first Tuesday in September has always been a new year. School resumes, I'm refreshed after the summer, and ready to get back into a routine.

I then…Read more
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May 13 2017

The "Simon" Method of Practising a Lick

I was working on a melodic phrase on the guitar today. I was getting a bit frustrated because I could play the phrase intuitively on the saxophone but not on guitar. Intellectually I knew it, but the guitar mechanics were…Read more