Tag Archives: Live Jazz monday

My Week In Pictures: Writing, Radio, and a Concert in Montreal

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2013_02_18-24This was an unusually productive week. Not to say that my weeks are not usually productive, but this week I made a life change: I stopped watching TV with breakfast. This may seem like a trivial thing but it has made a WORLD of difference for me. For starters I got my morning journal writing done every single day last week. That’s pretty big for me since I was having a lot of trouble keeping consistent. It has also helped me get my other daily activities done sooner in the day before I run out of steam, like vocal warm ups and exercising. Little changes can make a big difference.

So, other than having epiphanies, this week I had the opportunity to sit down with Mark Ferguson and get to work on new material. Of course, we love our material from Here We Go Again but we have been itching since even before the release to write some new stuff. Stay tuned because we might have some special announcements about that in April or May…

On Wednesday I went down to Carleton University and had my first day of training at CKCU, the campus radio station. I have agreed to be part of a collective that runs the show Swing Is In The Air on Sunday afternoons from 4pm – 5:30pm. This show was hosted by Jacques Émond for over 20 years up until his recent passing. I’m honoured to be a part of this collective and his legacy. I’m not sure when my formal start date will be but I sure am nervous to host a live radio show for the first time!

On Friday Mark and I drove up to Montreal for our official Montreal CD release concert at Upstairs Jazz Bar! It was a very long day but we were fortunate to have both our partners with us providing snacks and support. We had a really wonderful time playing for the people at Upstairs. Everyone was so enthusiastic and attentive. I can’t wait to come back.

Of course a summary of last week would be incomplete without mention of the CBC Searchlight Contest. Last Monday voting opened for round one of the competition and it was a whirlwind week to say the least. I am so touched by all the people who have come out in support of me that I’ve decided to offer a free download of Drinking Coffee, the song I’ve entered into the competition. To download it, right click here and click save-as.

The artists who will be moving on to round two will be announced at cbcmusic.ca/searchlight tonight at 9pm EST. I’ll be sure to announce the results on my facebook and twitter and at Live Jazz Monday tonight at the Mercury Lounge.

Have a lovely week!

My Week In Pictures: Candy, Cupcakes, Chocolates!

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My Week In Pictures: 2013 Week 7This week was SWEET. I mean that literally, it was incredibly sweet! Last weekend Craig and I went to Wed By Hand and gorged ourselves on delicious cupcakes, jams, ganache, and other terribly wonderful sweets (more on that on Thursday).

On Tuesday I attended the Council for the Arts in Ottawa (CAO) Sweetheart Cocktail for the Arts, the theme this year was “A Chocoholic’s Paradise.” This event is a fundraising event for the CAO where they announce their annual arts award nominees. I had a really wonderful time hanging out with my dad, drinking wine, and eat delicious gourmet chocolates while listening to Ottawa’s funk sensation, The Hornettes. On top of all that I was nominated for the RBC Emerging Artist Award! Talk about a great night.

I spent the rest of the week teaching, practicing, and planning awesome blog posts for the upcoming month. I’m actually really excited about some of the features and things I have planned. It’s been a great learning experience developing the skills to plan and write regular contant for you readers. I love it!

Thursday, of course, was Valentine’s Day. Craig and I don’t usually celebrate Valentine’s Day since we usually have to work. This was one of the first time’s in a long time that neither of us had to go out, so we stayed in and watched Frank & Robot on the laptop. Also, one of my students brought me a giant Hershey’s kiss! yay!

So that’s it for this week’s update! Stay tuned this week for the 3rd instalment of Book Love, a photo recap from the wedding show weekends, and other goodies! My next performance is tonight! Join François Gravel and me for Live Jazz Monday at Mercury Lounge tonight at 9pm (and if you come early, you can get a manicure for only $10!)

Have a great week, you beauties!

My Week In Pictures: Rehab Centre week 3 + a photoshoot

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Week 3 at the Rehab Centre’s chronic pain management program is complete, which means I only have one week left! If you have no idea what I’m talking about check out my updates from week 1 and week 2 where I explain all about why I’m there and what it’s all about then come back here.

Are you caught up now? Good.

This week we had some interesting sessions on acceptance of pain, weekend planning, and communication. The communication session was my favourite because it was so concrete and full of really handy tips with funny names like “fogging,”  ”broken record,” and “content-to-process shift.”

It was a good thing we talked about weekend planning this week because I had a full weekend planned. On Saturday I went and had a photoshoot with Muse Mohammed, a local photographer. I can’t wait to share the shots with you because they are so fierce and glamorous AND I got my head shaved in a funky new way!

On Sunday, I spent most of the day preparing blog posts, doing laundry, and tying up loose ends for upcoming events. There’s so many little things on the way! Next Tuesday, February 5th, I’ll be coming down to Toronto to play at Hugh’s Room (details here), I’m also preparing for Wed By Hand on Sunday, February 10th, and Canadian Music Week in March. Yay!

So that’s it for this week’s update. Only one more week of Rehab Centre updates and then it’s back to regularly scheduled programming. My next performance is tonight at the Mercury Lounge for Live Jazz Monday! 9pm – 11pm, no cover, see you tonight!

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This part 3 of a 4-part series. Click to read the rest:

My Week In Pictures: Rehab Centre Week 2

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This week, although it was my second week at the Rehab Centre, it was my first official week in the Chronic Pain Management program. That means that this week I was there from 8:30am until 2:30 or 3pm every day. At first I was a little worried that I wasn’t going to be able to function before 10am but the first thing we do every morning is an hour in the gym with the physiotherapy team and that woke me up pretty fast.

I and the other participants spent a lot of time together in group sessions ranging from sleep techniques to medication to recreation and everything in between. My favourite session of the week was the occupational therapy session in the Rehab Centre’s wood shop. We’re building a little wooden box over three one hour sessions, and it’s actually really fun.

Between gym class and wood shop it kind of feels like I’m in high school again!

I’m really happy to be in the program and I’m learning lots of helpful hints for living a happier and more full life with pain. My challenge is going to be learning how to properly pace myself. I’m the kind of person who will start a task (usually on the computer) and keep going until it’s done. Now I’m trying to incorporate a 20 minute timer into my computer time to remind me to get up and stretch or go lay down for awhile. Wish me luck with that!

In other news, last week’s Live Jazz Monday was a crazy, raucous party that I hope to imitate this week. We seriously had tons of fun. Local vocalist and trombone player Steve Berndt dropped by for a visit and him and I sang some awesome duets. Maybe he’ll come back this week??

Despite my early mornings I will definitely be continuing Live Jazz Monday through the month of January and beyond so join us tonight! We’re at the Mercury Lounge (middle level) from 9pm until 11pm and there’s noooooo cover ever! Yay!

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This part 2 of a 4-part series. Click to read the rest:

My Week In Pictures: first week of 2013

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2013 is underway and the year has started off with a bang. After a New Year’s day brunch with the fam I jumped back into work. I started writing some grant applications that are due next week and set up the last of the Indiegogo perks to be sent out. I had a nice coffee date with Nicholas Maclean, a great pianist from Ottawa who currently lives and studies in Toronto. And I had a lovely breakfast date with fellow singer, Nicole Ratté.

On Friday night I played at the Ottawa Swing Dance Society’s live band night so we spent the afternoon on Thursday rehearsing for that.

I have a tendency to overwork myself so I tried to make time for songwriting, working out, and a little bit of photography, just for fun. I actually really like that self-portrait in the middle photo. It was taken by shooting with my iPhone through the view finder of a Fujica Camera. Click here to see the higher res version of that photo.

There is so much going on in the next few months so I’m trying to prepare myself and get ahead on work. Is that even possible?!

Anyway, I’m looking forward to getting back to regular performance. Live Jazz Monday is back tonight at 9pm at Mercury Lounge so please stop on by for a cocktail and a relaxing evening of jazz standards preformed by myself and François Gravel. There’s no cover!

Live Jazz Monday is back!!

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Hey folks! Guess what!? After a few weeks hiatus due to holidays and illness, Live Jazz Monday is back! Join me and François Gravel at Mercury Lounge on Monday, January 7th at 9pm for some great music (if I do say so myself), the jazz cocktail of the week, and the usual antics. I’m soooooo happy to be back! There’s no cover ever so come on down!

PS: This cute photo of me and François was taken by my sister at our third anniversary party in November. I have a mouthful of birthday doughnut. Thanks for the pic, Emma!

My first performance with VoiceLive Touch

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It’s not much but it’s a start.

Last month I purchased the VoiceLive Touch from TC Helicon. I spent a few week’s playing with it before including in my performance. You can check out my first performance with the VoiceLive Touch in the video above, which was shot by Craig Pedersen at the third birthday of Live Jazz Monday. So far I haven’t done any looping with it, I’ve only used it to make harmonies. In this video I have lined François’ keyboard in to the vocal processor with a midi cable. The VoiceLive Touch picked up the correct harmonies to my vocals based on what François is playing.

What do you think of my first kick at the can?? Let me know in the comments below.

Photos from Live Jazz Monday’s Third Birthday

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Whoa! Last night Live Jazz Monday turned 3 years old and the party was spectacular! I decided that since we were entering our terrible threes, we should throw a party fit for a toddler, complete with colourful party hats, streamers, balloons, squiggly candles, and sweet treats to eat.

Fortunately, our audience was quick with the cameras and shared the fun through twitter, facebook, and instagram. Here are some of my favourite pics from last night.

From @pedersencraig:

From @YoxEmma (my sister!):

From @lightningloon:

From me:

Thanks so much to everyone who made this event a incredible success. François and I are delighted to have your support and we’re looking forward to the next three years of Live Jazz Monday!

My Week In Pictures: endless celebration (and gourmet doughnuts)

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This has been a luxurious, hedonistic, celebratory week. In fact, if I had to describe my week in a word, I would call it “festive.”

I’ve decided lately that I want to spend a little more time, energy, and money on fashion, makeup, and accessories. I’m fortunate that I get the opportunity to get on stage and perform for people all the time. Lately I’ve felt that I’ve been neglecting this aspect of performance. I decided to take myself shopping on Tuesday where I bought myself some collared shirts with nice hardware like the middle picture, as well as some glittery loafers. I’m pretty excited about these things. I’m super new to the fashion/makeup/accessories world though so if you have any tips, please leave them in the comments below. I could really use the help.

On Wednesday it was Halloween! Craig and I took turns handing out candy while the other taught but I still managed to catch him in our living room bed covered in all the candy! We had quite a few trick-or-treaters this year. Our friends at the Bytown Beanery came around and their children were dressed as a coke machine and a strip of bacon! So awesome.

Aside from Halloween parties, I’ve spent the week preparing for the Gershwin tribute concert I’ll be playing at on November 10th at Knox Presbyterian on Elgin at Lisgar. Preparing the music for this project has been a really interesting process. I realized that I know way more Gershwin tunes than I thought I did, just as a function of listening, but I still had to spend time finding keys and writing charts. And since I’m a ludite (only when it comes to chart writing) it’s a process that I can take a while. On Thursday I decided to power through these charts at the Carleton Tavern. Lesson learned: Sometimes work involves beer.

On Friday I popped down to the party supply store and got party hats for the Live jazz Monday’s third birthday! I’m so excited, I got a multitude pf colours and some with balloons on them! I can’t wait for this party. On Sunday I picked up the doughnuts from SuzyQ that I’ll be giving out. It’s going to be a hoot and half and I just can’t wait.

On Saturday we had our Saturday Afternoon Jazz Jam at Pressed which was a really fun and relaxed way to spend the afternoon. We had a couple of splendid vocalists come and join us, as well as a mitt-full of horn players. Our next one is November 17th.

On Sunday I spent the day wedding dress shopping in Moose Creek with my BFF. She’s a lovely, nerdy, science-woman who’s marrying a lovely, nerdy man and I couldn’t be happier for them. It was such a treat to be there when she picked the dress she’s going to wear to walk down the aisle. After launching Play I Do in February, I’ve had the opportunity to attend many weddings as a musician. I’m really looking forward to attending this one as a bride’s maid.

After shopping I picked up the doughnuts, packed them up for tonight then headed down to IMOO where we celebrated Craig’s 29th birthday.

Between birthdays, weddings, halloween, new shoes, new clothes, concerts, beer, and gourmet doughnuts I’m surprised I’m not sick of celebrating. To tell you the truth I can’t wait for Live Jazz Monday’s birthday tonight and I’m totally ready to keep the festivities happening right on through until January.

I hope to see you out at the Mercury Lounge tonight. If you come down you’ll have a chance to win tickets to my CD release on December 7th! Check out the video below for all the details and see you tonight!

My Week In Pictures: concerts, coffee, and carnivorous plants

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I better start posting more things on this blog or it’ll turn into nothing but summaries of my week!

I tried to take it a little easier this week than other weeks. As other self-employed people can attest, it’s easy to work yourself into ill-health. After a busy Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of teaching, performing, and appointments, I was ready to end the week early. I decided to take a mental health day on Thursday. I cancelled my students (sorry Nicole, Trish, Chris, and Adrian!) and spent the day sitting quietly, having a good cry, and drinking coffee. It was nice and very much needed. I took a walk and found that lovely little piece of typography on Gladstone. Then I got my hair cut, made dinner, and then went out to a movie with Craig. Sometimes it’s the little things.

I started out Friday equally slow, my new computer arrived so I spent a couple of hours setting it up with all my files. In the evening I played a gig at Casino Lac Leamy for McEwan Petroleum’s client appreciation dinner. Unfortunately I didn’t get any pictures while I was there, that was a really beautiful space.

On Saturday we had our bimonthly Saturday Afternoon Jazz Jam at Pressed. It was a spectacular success! The cold weather brought a bunch of new jammers in to meet us. It was lovely to see beginners jamming with more experienced players and everyone learning in the process. Our next one is this coming Saturday, November 4. That evening Craig and I scooted off to a science-themed Halloween party. It was so cool to see everyone in lab coats drinking out of beakers. They even made little carnivorous plants!

Today I found myself back in the studio! I met with the JP Allain Trio to begin the process of  recording My Pal Frishberg: the music of Dave Frishberg. It’s exciting to be back in the studio but I kind of can’t believe it. If you had told me last year that I’d be doing two full-length recording projects in 2012 I would have called you a liar, but here we are!

On Sunday evening I went to IMOO #62 – Hat & Beard at Umi Café. I’m the communications director for IMOO (Improvising Musicians of Ottawa/Outouais) so I go to most of the concerts and work the door. This concert was an incredibly funny and engaging Thelonious Monk tribute. If you live in Toronto you should definitely check those guys out.

So that’s it for this week! For more photos updated throughout the week, follow me on instagram (you don’t need an iphone.)

My next performance is Monday, October 29th at the Mercury Lounge for Live Jazz Monday – 9pm to 11pm, no cover. See you there!