Dec 2021 lots going on! (finally!)
Friends!
Oh so much to say. Finally. I am grateful in my little corner of the universe that musical opportunities are opening up again. I am starting to plan for summer 2022- I can say that I will be teaching at the Puget Sound Guitar Workshop! More news on that soon. I am also booking some other summer festivals and workshops which will be so wonderful to get back to.
I have been collaborating with some wonderful musicians here in the valley like Jenny Lester and have plans to work on a duo project with the ever talented Ali Romanow. Ali Romanow, Jenny Lester, Tammy Fassaert and I have also just completed a gig at Oceanside Folk Roots Club as the Sirens of the Salish Sea. SUCH a powerful and fun group to work with. So fun to play with a band and be in the presence of these powerhouse musicians. We did a full set of original music, as all four of us are songwriters. There are a few video links in the “listen” section of my site, should you be so inclined as to want to hear more! We are considering playing together again in the spring.
AND. Oh yes- in one week I am recording my album! At the barn studio with Marc Atkinson . I am so happy to say the Ali Romanow will be joining the project to sing harmony vocals and I am SO grateful to have her voice rounding out the harmonies. I’m told you can only double track your own vocals so many times. Harmony singing is one of my favourite things on this earth, so needless to say I’m happy to have such a wonderfully skilled vocalist join me. I will have a few other musicians including Marc Atkinson himself playing on the album to round out the instrumentation (bass, fiddle… maybe more!)
I’m just thrilled to be writing an update that music with others is happening again. I do hope we are able to continue on and am truly enjoying the present moment in which I am able to do what I love. I make music to collaborate with others, and I’m so glad I get to do just that.
See you all soon!
xo
Gina
Stepping in as the new Musical Director for the Comox Valley Children's Choir(s) this fall
I’m excited and humbled to announce I’ll be stepping in as the new Musical Director for the Comox Valley Children's Choir this fall! Sophie Simard has done so much wonderful work with these choirs (one for children and one for youth) and I'm lucky to be inheriting a great program. The choirs have a strong board of directors and committed community behind them. This has been in the works for a while and it has been wonderful to have it officially announced in the choir’s newsletter this week.
On zoom, socially distanced, however we need to adapt I know we will and I can't wait to get to work with these children and youth and lead them in making some beautiful music together. My favourite thing!
There are also some gears in motion to get a choral program up and running at Timberline High School in Campbell River, stay tuned… I’m always scheming ways to get high school students singing- these programs can be truly life changing for youth.
Performing with Campbell River Mirror's Isolation Palooza!
Had a big gig this week with the Campbell River Mirror's Isolation Palooza! Crowds were huge and the sound guy was amazing! Just kidding- I was at home. But we're getting music into the world and that's what matters. I contributed one of my original tunes, “Is it too early.” It’s about musical friendships and the profound joy and enrichment they’ve brought into my life.
It’s been such a hard time for musicians and folks of all stripes. I wish you and yours good health in these tough times.
Look for me at Puget Sound Guitar Workshop in 2020
See you at PSGW this summer!
I adore attending and instructing at summer roots music camps throughout the northwest. Last year I co-instructed the youth program at Beyond Trad Music Camp in Nanoose Bay, BC and this summer I’m excited to be on staff at Puget Sound Guitar Workshop in Washington State. I’ll be teaching Vocal Harmony Party and Intro to Vocal Technique (the safest space in the world to learn or work on your voice skills!) Hope to see you there!
Happy Fall!
I had the wonderful fortune to be able to go and visit my duo partner Becca Davis in Santa Cruz for a week of music making in mid October. We did so much rehearsing and writing and the highlight was getting to meet up with our friends Jordyn and Shawn of Flagship Romance. https://www.flagshipromance.com
I first got introduced to them this summer when we were both on tour and met in the tiny but magical town of Forget, Saskatchewan! Our schedules came together again and we got the chance to open for them at a house concert in Oakland. A little piece of that performance is up in the “Listen” section of the site. Looking forward to collaborating with them more and feeling so thankful to have gotten a week to work on some New Davis Sisters material!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVYw7GII0l0&feature=emb_logo
Kiwanis Apple Fest, Sunday September 22 at 3pm. Calgary, Alberta.
I’ll be performing at the the Kiwanis Club’s annual Apple Fest. Great line up of musicians and entertainment for the whole family in a beautiful rural setting.
For more info check out:
Summer!
It’s been a wonderful summer full of music! I finished up my last year teaching choir at SWHS in Seattle in late June. We closed with a beautiful spring concert featuring Eric Whitacre’s “Seal Lullaby.” The students sang with such a seamless vocal blend. I was deeply proud of their artistry and vulnerability. Also in the spring, both Dr. Geoffrey Boers and Dr. Sarah Riskind of the University of Washington Department of Choral Studies were able to come deliver clinics to my class. It was such a pleasure to workshop my conducting with them, and have the chance for my students to be exposed to what studying music after high school might be like. I came away full of new inspiration and techniques to try with my singers.
In July, I had the opportunity to work with Ali Romanow running the youth program at Beyond Trad Music Camp. I had the pleasure of playing with some amazing people and we taught “Bring me little Water Sylvie” by Moira Smiley complete with body percussion and vocal harmonies. The youth there were incredible young musicians who loved making music- so wonderful to see.
In early august I attended PSGW with my two sisters and we had so much fun making music together as The New Davis Sisters (and Jeff Nelson). I wrote several original songs, one of which we workshopped and performed as a group, and I’m looking forward to tinkering with them more.
The rest of summer and early fall I will be doing a mix of touring with my partner Nick’s circus and traveling. I’m looking forward to spending some time in Seattle later this fall, reconnecting with WoodsDay, and playing some shows there. Stay tuned for Vocal Harmony Parties (workshops) happening in the Seattle area in November/December. There are a few in the works. In the New Year I will be settled on Vancouver Island, making music and teaching music for the school district. So looking forward to moving back there and putting all the musical wheels in motion…