OPERAS

In addition to my work writing songs and other music for t.v. shows, I've also had the pleasure of writing music for the stage, including two operas composed with librettist and Canada's Poet Laureate George Elliott Clarke. Here are some excerpts:

TRUDEAU: LONG MARCH/SHINING PATH
 

This opera was originally commissioned by the Harbourfront Centre in Toronto and ultimately performed in a full stage production in Halifax (produced by Vocalypse Productions) in 2010. It focused on the life of Canada's current Prime Minister's father, the late, great Pierre Elliott Trudeau, and particularly on his adventures as roving cultural ambassador and world wanderer (which afforded lots of opportunities for exotic musical references!). It was also my attempt at a more "operatic" vs. "jazzy" sort of style (with elements of minimalism, classical music, plus still a little jazz thrown in here and there:-))). Here are a few excerpts:

Here are a couple of the original demos, recorded earlier in the process of the opera's development with John Lindsey-Botten as Trudeau and Janice Jackson:

Trudeaumania

"I Have Merely Been a Traveller":

This scene is the penultimate of the opera in which Trudeau reflects on his life, while canoeing (including on the loss of his son in a tragic accident). It  features John Lindsey-Botten as Trudeau and Janice Jackson as Margaret, with myself on all other instruments:

The next excerpts were originally recorded by CBC radio's "The Signal" from the Halifax production (2010):

"JFK of Montreal"

This piece features librettist (and Canada's official Poet Laureate) George Elliott Clarke's fast-paced words and is one in which I took a deliberately more "jazzy" approach (with a nod to Bernstein :-)):

"Falling Stars"

This piece features Janice Jackson as Margaret Trudeau and was one of the first written for the opera: