[Type here]
Clara Shandler, Sidewalk Cellist
Biography (3 formats)
Complete
What can I say? I got lucky - born into a musical family. My mom was a singer and
music-librarian and my father (his parents both musical) played violin, piano, and
cello, eventually getting ARCT Diplomas in all three instruments. My oldest sister
played flute, my second sister played cello, guitar, and clarinet, and my younger
brother took up the violin.
I started taking regular lessons with John Doerksen when I was 8, though I had
picked the cello as my ‘weapon of choice’ when I was just three years old. Through
his guidance I completed my Grade 10 RCM exam and was introduced to chamber
music, going on to study with Reg Quiring, Martina Smazal, and Joel Stobbe.
Throughout my adolescent years it was chamber music that kept me connected to
classical music because like many young adults, I discovered punk and rock’n’roll.
The raw, energetic, and chaotic sound of bands like Nirvana, the Clash, the
Ramones, and local bands like D.O.A. made me think about my cello in a whole
other way. Could I, a cellist, play music like that?
I began jamming with friends from school, exploring the world of improvising, and
writing my own songs. I quickly learned that bands like Nirvana often used cello in
their songs and that there already were a lot of cellists crossing over from Classical
music. There’s the Finnish heavy-metal, all-cello group Apocalyptica, the FrenchCanadian cellist Jorane that sings as well as plays cello, Zoe Keating – a looptrack-cellist extraordinaire, and a local cellist named Cris Derkson who writes her
own music embracing her First-Nation roots.
While the exciting and rebellious world of rock’n’roll threatened to take me away,
Elliot Vaughan, an eccentric violist and composer in my ongoing chamber music
program, introduce me to Dmitri Shostakovich. If you don’t already know
Shostakovich’s Eighth String Quartet, please click here to take a listen.
My “discovery” of Shostakovich and other modern composers created a bridge
between that of classical and non-classical genres. Although classical music is often
summarized in main-stream culture as the works of Bach, Mozart, Beethoven,
Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi, and the like, there are dozens if not hundreds of composers
(male and female, alive as well as dead) that have a vastly different aesthetic and a
CLARA SHANDLER – SIDEWALK CELLIST – BIOGRAPHY | © 2013
[Type here]
widely different approach to musical composition (Debussy, Borodin, Gubaidulina,
Rachmaninoff, Glass, etc.). So, from the age of 15 I set out on a mission: to show
the world that classical music can be just as cool as rock.
I took my cello out onto the noisy streets of downtown Vancouver and started
busking. I played everything from Bach to Nirvana, Debussy to AC/DC, Brahms to
the Beatles. Once I had a small audience around me I would play a few excerpts of
Shostakovich and ask the group if they thought it was heavy metal or a classical
piece. After they inevitably guessed wrong I would encourage them to go to the
symphony, particularly to hear the works of obscure composer that they did not
sound familiar.
Through busking, teaching cello, and the odd job, I paid my way through a
Bachelor of Music degree at the University of British Columbia. Before embarking on
the last year of my degree, I wanted to give back to my community, one that has
helped me so much. In the summer of 2011 I recorded and released my first fulllength album “Sidewalk Cellist”. While I was busy recording, I organized and
performed my first “Free Outdoor Cello Concert Series” which ran every Saturday
2:00-4:00 (weather permitting) from May-August at the Britannia Greenway on
Commercial Drive. I often got rained-out but nonetheless attracted hundreds of
listeners from all walks of life and released the album at the summer’s last concert.
It was such a great success that after I graduated I decided to do it again – only
bigger. I organized, promoted, and performed a free outdoor cello concert every
weather permitting Saturday in Vancouver from May to June and then I took the
series on tour. I visited and performed in: Kelowna, Jasper, Edmonton, Calgary,
Lethbridge, Regina, Winnipeg, Thunder Bay, Thessalon, Toronto, Montreal, Boston,
New York, Washington, Richmond, Knoxville, Nashville, Memphis, and New Orleans
– that’s 19 cities – in 45 days travelling exclusively by Greyhound and finding free
accommodation through couchsurfing.org. All by myself, with a cello.
My world was getting bigger, but it was still pretty small. Due to a connection that I
had made through Elliot Vaughan, I was presented with the opportunity to perform,
teach, and share chamber music in Cambodia and Burma through a local, non-profit
organization called “The Singing Tree”. Linda Kuttis, a remarkable pianist and
mother to the world, opened my eyes and expanded my group of friends into the
third world – an experience that changed my life forever. I am no longer hell-bent
on promoting the ‘coolness’ of classical music but rather the power of music to build
bridges and connect us all. Music makes the world a smaller place, one in which I
hope we can all become friends and neighbors.
CLARA SHANDLER – SIDEWALK CELLIST – BIOGRAPHY | © 2013
[Type here]
Medium
What can I say? I got lucky - born into a musical family. My mom was a singer and
music-librarian and my father played violin, cello and piano. I picked the cello as
my ‘weapon of choice’ when I was just three years old and started taking lessons
with John Doerksen when I was 8.
During my high-school years the exciting and rebellious world of rock’n’roll
threatened to stray me from the path of the classical musician but Elliot Vaughan,
an eccentric violist and composer in my chamber music group, introduce me to
Dmitri Shostakovich. I realized that although classical music is often summarized as
the works of Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi, and the like, there are
dozens if not hundreds of composers that have a vastly different aesthetic and a
widely different approach to musical composition (Debussy, Borodin, RimskyKorsakov, Rachmaninoff, Glass, etc.). So, from the age of 15 I set out on a
mission: to show the world that “Classical” music can rock!
I took my cello out onto the noisy streets of downtown Vancouver and started
busking. I played everything from Bach to Nirvana, Debussy to AC/DC, Brahms to
the Beatles and I paid my way through a Bachelor of Music degree at the University
of British Columbia. Before embarking on the last year of my degree, I wanted to
do something more significant for my community, so I organized my first “Free
Outdoor Cello Concert Series” (weekly from May-August 2011).
It was such a great success that after I graduated I decided to do it again – only
bigger. I organized, promoted, and performed a free outdoor cello concert every
weather permitting Saturday in Vancouver from May to June and then I took the
“series” on tour. I visited and performed in 19 cities in 45 days travelling
exclusively by Greyhound and couch-surfed. All by myself, with a cello.
My world was getting bigger, but it was still pretty small. Due to a connection that I
had made through Elliot Vaughan, I was presented with the opportunity to perform,
teach, and share chamber music in Cambodia and Burma through a local, non-profit
organization called “The Singing Tree”. Linda Kuttis, a remarkable pianist and
mother to the world, opened my eyes and expanded my group of friends into the
third world – an experience that changed my life forever. I am no longer hell-bent
on promoting the ‘coolness’ of classical music but rather the power of music to build
bridges and connect us all. Music makes the world a smaller place, one in which I
hope we can all become friends and neighbors.
CLARA SHANDLER – SIDEWALK CELLIST – BIOGRAPHY | © 2013
[Type here]
Short
What can I say? I got lucky - born into a musical family. I picked the cello as my
‘weapon of choice’ when I was just three years old and started taking lessons with
when I was 8. As a young adult I embraced the world of chamber music but was
equally seduced by the world of rock’n’roll. After discovering the composer Dmitri
Shostakovich I was inspired to build bridges between the world of classical music
and as many other genres as possible through busking and community outreach.
During and after completing my Bachelor of Music at the University of British
Columbia I organized two consecutive summers of “Free Outdoor Cello Concerts”
the second of which I took on tour to 19 cities all across North America – all by bus
in 45 days. My world got a little bigger, but it was still pretty small.
When I was presented with the opportunity to perform, teach, and share chamber
music in Cambodia and Burma, I pounced. The experience changed my life forever.
Music makes the world a smaller place, one in which I hope we can all become
friends and neighbors – across all boarders and surrounding all oceans.
Press:
Named one of Vancouver’s “Top 24 Under 24” by 24 Hours Newspaper in 2011.
"[she] breaks the music out of the stuffy mold so many people ascribe to classical music" - Musetta Stone
"her informal and relaxed concerts ran the gamut from Shostakovich and popular melodies to the music of
Bach" - CBC Radio 2
"she's in my iTunes - in between Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and The Clash" - Johnny Bolton, Opus 59 Films
CLARA SHANDLER – SIDEWALK CELLIST – BIOGRAPHY | © 2013