Presenters
2Cellos
2Cellos, the partnering of Luka Šulić and Stjepan Hauser, have
earned their claim to fame playing covers of pop and rock
songs. Playing pop music, they have toured with Elton John, and
made appearances on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and Glee, as
well as performing classical music with several orchestras. They
released their debut album in May 2011 which features cello
covers of artists ranging from U2 to Nirvana.
Cory Arcangel
Cory makes work in different media, including drawing, music,
performance, and video game modifications, for which he is
best known. He often uses the artistic strategy of appropriation,
re-using existing materials to create new works. Best known
work includes Super Mario Clouds, Punk Rock 101, Springsteen
Glockenspiel Addendum. He has exhibited at the Barbican
Center, MOMA, Whitney, Miami Art Museum and Neue
Nationalgalerie. In his current project, he uses Twitter to curate
and re-tweet others' posts that include the phrase "working on
my novel."
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Presenters
Ronna Bloom
Ronna Bloom is a poet with five published books, a
psychotherapist who worked at the University of Toronto for
more than a decade, and a writing coach.
Brian Brushwood
Brian Brushwood is best known for his extreme magic including
fire-eating, escapes, and mind-reading, along with his alarming
(and painful!) use of cinder blocks and nails. He believes in
sharing his knowledge and offers up online lessons on how to
breathe fire and other ‘party tricks’.
2
Presenters
Christopher Butterfield
Christopher is a composer who also occasionally works as a
performance artist and rock guitar player. His music has been
played around the world, and is recorded on the CBC and
Artifact labels. He has taught at Concordia and Simon Fraser
Universities, and is currently an Assistant Professor of
Composition at the University of Victoria.
Uri Caine
Uri is a classical and jazz pianist and composer, best known for
his wildly imaginative (some say outrageous) versions of work
by Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Schumann and Wagner. He also
continues to explore musical boundaries including drums 'n'
bass, jungle and hip-hop in composition and performance with
his band Bedrock. He is a United States Artist Fellow.
3
Presenters
Angus (Jock) Carroll
Jock Carroll published a book entitled Glenn Gould: Some
Portraits of the Artist as a Young Man, a collection of photos of
Gould on holiday. The trip resulted in a collaborative film
created and directed by Jock Carroll and Glenn Gould.
Brent Carver
Best known for his performances on Broadway in Kiss of the
Spider Woman as Molina, for which he won both the Tony and
Drama Desk Awards for Best Leading Actor in a Musical, and
Parade as Leo Frank Brent has also created a lifetime's worth of
astonishing performances at Soulpepper, the Stratford Festival
and in many TV and movie roles including The Event, Lilies,
Sleepy Hollow, and Atom Egoyan's Ararat.
4
Presenters
Canadian Opera Company Children
Founded in 1968, the Canadian Children's Opera Company
develops and produces operas for children, featuring 200 girls
and boys. The company works with the Canadian Opera
Company, Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Soundstreams
among others.
Marie Chouinard
Marie has lived in New York, Berlin, Bali and Nepal. Her travels,
her curiosity, her eclecticism all allow her to explore the body in
different ways. This surprising and important choreographer
has created more than 50 solo and group works, many
reflecting her view of dance as a sacred art, her respect for the
body as a vehicle of that art, her virtuoso approach to
performance and the invention of a different universe for each
new work. Awards include Chalmers, Bessie, SACD, Governor
General's, Order of Canada, Gemini, and Prix de Quebec.
5
Presenters
Katerina Cizek
Kat Cizek is a Canadian filmmaker and web creator who is
described as an "interventionist" in her approach to
documentaries. Best know for her web doc Out My Window,
winner of the IDFA DocLab Award for Digital Storytelling at the
International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam and an
International Digital Emmy for One Millionth Tower. She is
currently Filmmaker in Residence at the National Film Board.
Adrienne Clarkson
The Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson PC, CC, CMM, COM,
CD, FRSC(hon), FRAIC(hon), FRCPSC(hon) is a journalist,
producer, broadcaster and stateswoman who served as the
26th Governor General of Canada. Clarkson who has received
fourteen honorary degrees, four honorary military
appointments, and multiple awards as a broadcaster, is also the
founder of the Institute for Canadian Citizenship which works to
ensure new citizens are welcomed and included as equals.
6
Presenters
Ann Cooper Gay
see: Canadian Children’s Opera Company
Alan Cross
Canadian radio broadcaster, music writer and "professional
music geek" Alan Cross is the creator of The History of New
Music and The Secret History of Rock, radio programs broadcast
throughout the world. He also publishes his music expertise
through his weekly TOP 11 Playlist and books about Nine Inch
Nails, Indie rock and Alternative rock. In his spare time, he
actually listens to the stuff! Alan Cross is the creator of The
Ongoing History of New Music and The Secret History of Rock,
radio programs broadcast throughout the world plus his weekly
TOP 11 plus books about Nine Inch Nails, Indie rock and
Alternative rock.”
7
Presenters
Michael Cumella
Michael Cumella is an expert on period phonograph music. But
better yet, he DJs lacquer 78 RPM discs from 1900-1929. The
music ranges from ragtime to dance bands, and features both
instrumentalists and songsters. Better even yet, he has created
an iPhone app that recreates the phonograph.
Johannes Debus
Johannes Debus is the Music Director at the Canadian Opera
Company. He obtained his musical education at the Hamburg
Conservatorium before working at Oper Frankfurt, English
National Opera, Bayerische Staatsoper Munchen and Opera
National de Lyon.
8
Presenters
Cory Doctorow
Cory Doctorow is a Canadian-British blogger, journalist and
science fiction author who co-edits the weblog Boing Boing and
is a regular contributor to Popular Science, Make and Wired
magazines. As a copyright activist he advocates for Creative
Commons licensing and flexible intellectual property legislation.
Notably, he makes free digital versions of his fiction at the same
time as the print versions are published. He was the Canadian
Fulbright Chair for Public Diplomacy from 2006-2007. His fiction
has won White Pine, Sunburst and Prometheus awards and he
is also the recipient of the Electronic Frontier Foundation
Pioneer Award.
Robert Douglass
From the Orchestra pit to the pinnacle of open source web
software, Robert Douglass has built his career on the ideas of
collaboration and sharing. As Director of the Open Goldberg
Variations project, he brought together talent (Kimiko Ishizaka),
technology (MuseScore notation software), and a worldwide
fan base (via the fundraising website Kickstarter.com) to
produce a new public domain version of the Goldberg
Variations.
9
Presenters
Atom Egoyan
Atom Egoyan is a Canadian stage and film director best known
for his films Exotica, The Sweet Hereafter, Ararat and Chloe. The
two-time Oscar nominee has won several awards at Cannes, the
Toronto International Film Festival and the Genie Awards.
Egoyan is an Officer of the Order of Canada. He received the
Dan David Prize for Creative Rendering of the Past in 2008.
Eve Egoyan
Pianist Eve Egoyan specializes in interpreting new works by
Canadian and international composers. She has collaborated on
interdisciplinary projects in the fields of dance, film, sound
installation, and she is also known as an improvisor. Egoyan
performs internationally as a solo recitalist and has released
seven critically-acclaimed solo discs of contemporary music, as
well as one of music by Erik Satie.
10
Presenters
Bob Ezrin
Bob Ezrin, a music producer whose career has spanned four
decades, has worked with artists including Alice Cooper, Kiss,
Pink Floyd, and Nine Inch Nails. He co-founded several
production companies, as well as the Nimbus School of
Recording Arts in Vancouver. He is an inductee in the Canadian
Music Hall of Fame and the Canadian Music Industry Hall of
Fame.
Brett Gaylor
Brett Gaylor’s award-winning documentary Rip! A Remix
Manifesto along with his Open Source Cinema project put him
on the map as a copyright activist. He now works as the director
of Mozilla’s Popcorn project, a laboratory researching online
video.
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Presenters
Chilly Gonzales
Chilly Gonzales the self-proclaimed musical genius has traveled
quite a road to his new album and show Solo Piano II. Producing
Grammy-nominated albums and breaking a Guinness world
record jump-started a period during which Chilly Gonzales
returned to the stage after several years behind a studio
console working for others. With his own albums and
supporting tours, Chilly drew attention to his versatility as a
performer and to his virtuosity as a pianist. Rare is the artist
that can make people dance to the trendiest electronic beats
and then turn a symphonic orchestra into a back-up band for a
rap concert. At the same time, Chilly became the "go to guy" for
piano compositions with Drake, Feist, Daft Punk and even the
late Steve Jobs, all calling upon him. But that was then, and Solo
Piano II is now. Indeed, it is the mark of a true entertainer to
recognize that time when the greatest respect one can show his
fans, is, as Chilly himself noted on his 2011 release The
Unspeakable Chilly Gonzales, to simply "shut up and play the
piano."
Paul Hoffert
Paul Hoffert is a musician, media developer, author, and
popular speaker. He performs regularly as a jazz pianist and
with award-winning rock band Lighthouse, which he co-founded
in 1969. He studied mathematics and physics at the University
of Toronto, founded CulTech Research Centre at York
University, and has authored best-selling books on the Digital
Age.
12
Presenters
Dafydd Hughes
Dafydd Hughes is a Toronto-based pianist who makes music,
art, and computer programs.
Billy Iannaci
Billy Iannaci is a Toronto-based music producer and the CEO of
the SandBox Music Group.
Anshuman Iddamsetty
Anshuman curates sound and chases stories for Spark, a
national show on CBC Radio One exploring the intersection
between emerging technologies and culture. Before that, he
directed the sound of such CBC programming as the political
investigation Know Your Rights and the live variety hour GO. He
was also a syndicated technology columnist for the CBC regions,
a blogger for CBC Books, and their web developer at large.
13
Presenters
Kimiko Ishizaka
For German-Japanese pianist Kimiko Ishizaka, the study of Bach
starts at the kitchen table where she reads the manuscript
score and listens to the music in her head, pausing on a chord
or isolating a theme, always seeking to understand the intricate
relationships between the notes. Only when every question has
been answered do her fingers touch the keys of the piano. This
approach produced the Open Goldberg Variations recording,
released in 2012, as well as her interpretation of the Well
Tempered Clavier, to be played at the Glenn Gould Variations.
Norman Jewison
Norman Jewison is a celebrated film director and producer, and
founded the Canadian Film Centre. His films are known for their
treatments of controversial social and political questions, and
include The Cincinnati Kid, In the Heat of the Night, Fiddler on
the Roof, and Jesus Christ Superstar. He holds a lifetime
achievement award from the Canadian Film Centre, and from
the Academy.
Mark Kingwell
A professor of philosophy, Mark Kingwell is associate chair at
the University of Toronto's Department of Philosophy. He
specialises in theories of politics and culture. Widely translated
and published, Kingwell's work on philosophy, art, and
architecture has appeared in many leading academic journals
and magazines.
14
Presenters
Kitagawa Chiho
An English Rakugo expert, Chiho Kitagawa is a university lecturer
based in Japan.
Camellia Koo
Camellia is an installation artist and theatre designer. Recent
work includes sets for plays at the Shaw Festival and Tarragon
Theatre. She is the recipient of four Dora Awards and shared
the 2006 Siminovitch Protégé Prize. Camellia will present
Macrophone, an installation on the greens in front of
Convocation Hall at GGV.
Johann Olav Koss
Four-time Olympic Gold Medalist and President, CEO and
Founder of Right to Play, Johann Olav Koss is a pioneer in the
field of Sport for Development. Johann has worked with on
sports advocacy with UNICEF, the World Anti-Doping Agency,
and the International Olympic Committee. He holds degrees in
medicine, business, and law from the Universities of
Queensland, Toronto, Brock and Calgary.
Daniel Kötter
Daniel Kötter is a director and video artist who works in
alternate concert formats and multi-channel video and whose
work explores the art system in the public sphere. Kötter's work
has been shown internationally, and includes the video- and
opera-performance trilogy Arbeit und Freizeit and his awardwinning short Film für übers Sofa.
15
Presenters
Lang Lang
A classical music star, Lang Lang has performed to sold-out
houses around the world. In 2009, Time Magazine listed him in
their annual ranking of the 100 Most Influential People in the
World. He performed in Beijing's Olympic opening ceremony,
and was a featured performer at the 2008 Grammy Awards.
Jean-Jacques Lemêtre
Jean-Jacques Lemêtre taught himself how to play a variety of
instruments as a child before undertaking a comprehensive
academic training. He has performed with several French
symphonic orchestras but also performs rock, plays jazz and
free jazz, European folk music, as well as traditional music of
the Middle East.
16
Presenters
Lemon Bucket Orkestra
LBO was started in Toronto by a Breton and Uke over Balkan
music and Vietnamese food. Tired of music “scenes”, they hit
the streets, busking by day and crashing parties by night,
creating and living folk music in the city. With their folkeverything attitude and tendency to pop up everywhere, it
wasn't long before they hooked up with other lemons who
wanted in the bucket...
Nicole Lizée
Nicole Lizée is a composer, keyboardist, and sound artist based
in Montreal. Her compositions range from works for orchestra
and solo turntablist, featuring DJ techniques fully notated and
integrated into a concert music setting, to other unorthodox
instrument combinations that include the Atari 2600 video
game console, omnichord, stylophone, reel-to-reel, Simon and
Merlin hand held games, and karaoke tapes. She has twice been
named a finalist for the Canada Council Jules Léger Prize, most
recently for This Will Not Be Televised, scored for chamber
ensemble and turntables. This work was selected as a top ten
recommended work at the UNESCO International Rostrum of
Composers. In 2002 she was awarded the Canada Council for
the Arts Robert Fleming Prize and in 2004 she was nominated
for an Opus Prize.
Lombard Twins
Martin and Facundo Lombard, world-renowned Argentinean
artists and performers, wield an expressive palette that extends
from dance to film-making. Their recent film work includes
playing the Santiago Twins in the Disney film Step Up 3D. They
also wrote, directed, produced and composed the music for
their autobiographical theatrical show DREAMERS which toured
around the globe.
17
Presenters
Tod Machover
Tod Machover is a widely-recognized composer who is
celebrated for inventing new technology for music, including
Hyperinstruments. He is a professor at the MIT Media Lab and is
Director of the Lab's Opera of the Future Group.
Megumi Masaki
Award-winning pianist Megumi Masaki has established herself
as an international artist renowned for her warmth and rapport
with audiences and her superb musicianship. Her multi-faceted
career as acclaimed soloist, chamber musician, champion of
Contemporary music and pedagogue has taken her across
Canada, the USA, Europe and Asia. In 2006, she made her film
debut with musical performances in the CBC Documentary Film
“Appassionata: Eckhardt-Gramatté. Recently, she was selected
as Artistic Director of the Eckhardt-Gramatté Competition. In
2005, she founded the International Virtuosi Concert Series in
Frankfurt Germany. In 1999 Masaki co-founded the annual
Waterford Summer Music Festival in Utah where she acts as
artistic co-director, conductor, pianist and coach. She is the
recipient of numerous scholarships, awards and grants from the
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
Government, Canada Council, Manitoba Arts Council, and
British Council. Masaki was awarded the Willi-Daume Prize from
the Deutsches Olympisches Institut and German National
Olympic Committee for her project “Music and the Olympic
Games”. Masaki is presently Associate Professor of Piano at
Brandon University, School of Music where she coaches solo
and collaborative pianists and teaches undergraduate and
graduate piano pedagogy
18
Presenters
Mani Mazinani
Mani Mazinani is a multidisciplinary artist who works in video,
installation, music, painting, photography, printmaking,
performance and sound. His recent installation work has been
shown regularly at international festivals and exhibitions and
his improvised and composed music is frequently performed
live.
Rick Miller
Rick Miller is a Dora and Gemini award-winning writer/director/
performer who has played in five languages on five continents.
As artistic director of WYRD Productions, he has created and
performed shows such as Art?, Slightly Bent, Into the Ring and
MacHomer, which is part of Stratford's 2012 season. His two
latest WYRD Productions have been co-creations with director
Daniel Brooks and Necessary Angel: Bigger Than Jesus and
HARDSELL. Rick is also a frequent collaborator with Robert
Lepage, on such plays as Géométrie des Miracles, Zulu Time (cocreated with Peter Gabriel), Lipsynch and on the film Possible
Worlds. He recently starred as Brian Mulroney in the satirical
film "Mulroney: The Opera" and is hosting a new TV doc series
called Canadian Made. Rick is currently developing various
projects, including a solo documentary play called BOOM!, a
Bigger Than Jesus film, a HARDSELL TV series and a reimagining
of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea. He is also involved
in several educational, environmental, and youthempowerment initiatives. Rick lives in Toronto with his wife
Stephanie Baptist and their 2 daughters.
19
Presenters
Christopher Mokrzewski
Pianist, vocal coach and conductor Christopher “Topher”
Mokrzewski is a steadily rising figure in the worlds of Canadian
opera and chamber music. A 2008 graduate of the Canadian
Opera Company Ensemble Studio and current Music Director of
Against the Grain Theatre, he was recently described by John
Terauds of the Toronto Star as “one of those bright, eager,
whip-smart young artists who could give even the most
hardened cynic a jolt of optimism about the future of classical
music and opera.”
Jordan O'Connor
Jordan is a musician, composer, audio engineer, and film editor.
He plays electric and double bass.
20
Presenters
John Oswald
In the '80's John Oswald shook the recording industry with a
genre of music he coined Plunderphonics. Although much
attention was paid to his revision of the look and sound of
Michael Jackson, Oswald also at this time introduced the first of
several radical transformations of a performance by Glenn
Gould of the Goldberg Aria. Then in 2000 he scored a ballet (for
disklavier piano, orchestra and Gould voice) focused on Gould,
for the National Ballet of Canada, with choreographer James
Kudelka. He has since personally choreographed another Gouldobsessed solo for dancer Sean Ling. Otherwise, he has directed
diverse works in aural and visual media and performance. He
became a Governor General's Laureate in 2004.
Tim Page
Tim Page is a Pulitzer Prize-winning music writer, editor, music
critic, producer and professor who has worked for the New York
Times and the Washington post, among others. He has
produced shows at Carnegie Hall and New York's notorious
Mudd Club. He has written extensively on Glenn Gould.
21
Presenters
Dennis Patrick
Dennis Patrick is a member of the Theory and Composition
Division of the Faculty of Music, University of Toronto where he
also directs the Electroacoustic Music Studio. His interests
include musical acoustics, music technology, and computer
applications in music. He has composed music for several award
winning CBC radio dramas by Canadian authors, Timothy
Findley and Michael Ondaatje including The English Patient, The
Trials of Ezra Pound, In The Skin of a Lion, and Famous Last
Words as well as music for The Final Hour, a live radio drama
commemorating the 60th anniversary of D-day.
Sandy Pearlman
Sandy Pearlman, the producer and writer for the iconic band
Blue Oyster Cult, helped establish the genre of Heavy Metal and
still produces albums for paradigm-shifting bands. In
recognition of his work, Pearlman has received 17 gold and
platinum records. He is currently the chair of the Schulich
School of Music at McGill University and is one of the leading
experts on the intersection of multimedia and music.
22
Presenters
Sam Perreira (DJLRS)
By playing for the biggest celebrities at top nightclubs in
Toronto, LRS has built a resume that stands out amongst the
rest. Not only does this young talent have style, but he has the
formula and presence that keeps him in high demand. In
Toronto, LRS currently holds the biggest live-to-air broadcast in
Canada: Z103.5 every Saturday night from Time Nightclub. His
weekly listenership ranges between 500,000 and 1,000,000. At
23, LRS has already achieved playing for recording artists such
as; Drake, LMFAO, Justin Bieber, Travis Barker, and The cast of
MTV’s Jersey Shore. His professional DJ collaborations include
DJ White Shadow (producer of Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way
Album”) Sak Noel (Producer of “Loca People”) and DJ Jazzy Jeff,
to name a few.
Jordan B. Peterson
Dr. Jordan B. Peterson is a clinical psychologist who does
experimental work on achievement, creativity, personality,
narrative, and motivation. His clinical assessments can predict a
wide range of personality traits and types. After teaching at
Harvard, Dr. Peterson has returned to Canada as a tenured
professor at the University of Toronto.
23
Presenters
Joseph Phillips
A native of Toronto, Joseph Phillips is a Double Bassist who has
worked with orchestral groups across Ontario, and who also
collaborates on cabaret, pop, folk, country, jazz recordings with
Canadian artists like Ian Tamblyn, Sarah Slean, and The Wailin’
Jennys.
Damiano Pietropaolo
Damiano Pietropaolo is an internationally celebrated writer,
translator, producer, director, and teacher. He has produced
documentary and drama at CBC Radio, has had his work
published internationally, and is a lecturer at the University of
Toronto where he teaches drama and cinema. His most recent
work, The Love Song of Ovid, a two-hour cultural documentary,
was broadcast nationally on CBC radio's Ideas in January 2010.
24
Presenters
Steve Raegele
Steve Raegele is a Montreal guitarist and composer. His debut CD
as a leader is entitled “Last Century” on the Songlines label. It
features drummer Thom Gossage and bassist Miles Perkin as
they interpret 11 Raegele compositions that straddle the lines
between improvisation and organized sound. Steve has studied
with Rod Ellias and Justin Haynes as well as with faculty at the
Banff Centre for the Arts. (Dave Douglas, Ari Hoenig, Joe Lovano,
Tony Malaby) He has performed with Thom Gossage, Drew
Gress, Frank Lozano, Lori Freedman, Jean Derome, Isaiah
Ceccarelli, Remi Bolduc and others.
Sandrine Revel
A native of Bordeaux, Sandrine Revel is an artist and illustrator
whose comics have been seen in print around the world. In
2001 received the prestigious Prix Alph-Art Jeunesse for her
work Un zoo à New York. She is also a musician and a
passionate reader.
Anastasia Rizikov
Thirteen year old pianist Anastasia Rizikov is already performing
numerous solo concerts in major cities. In 2009, she performed
as guest soloist with the Northwest Chicago Symphony
Orchestra conducted by Michael Holian and in 2010 with the
Plymouth Symphony Orchestra in Michigan conducted by Nan
Washburn.
25
Presenters
David Rokeby
David Rokeby has been creating interactive sound and video
installations with computers since 1982. Rokeby was awarded a
Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts, the Prix Ars
Electronica Golden Nica for Interactive Art and represented
Canada at the Venice Biennale of Architecture.
Eddie Schwartz
Eddie Schwartz was born and raised in Toronto and graduated
from York University in 1974, where he studied music and
English literature. Since the late 1970s, Eddie has had some 200
songs recorded and performed by artists such as Pat Benatar,
Joe Cocker, The Doobie Brothers, Rascal Flatts, Carly Simon,
Martina McBride, Peter Frampton, America, Meatloaf, Donna
Summer and April Wine, among others. He's received multiple
Juno, BMI and SOCAN awards including the prestigious Lifetime
Achievement Award. His songs can be found in millions of
games, dozens of movies and television shows, and currently on
Broadway in the Tony nominated production of Rock of Ages.
As of 2009, Eddie’s career sales exceed 65 million units.
26
Presenters
Djanet Sears
Playwright, director and actor Djanet Sears came to
international attention with her work Afrika Solo. More
recently, her Harlem Duet was the winner of the Dora Mavor
Moore Award, Chalmers Award and Governor General's Award.
She is an adjunct professor at the University of Toronto and is
the editor of a two-volume collection of African Canadian plays,
Testifyin': Contemporary African Canadian Drama, and Tellin' It
Like It Is: A Compendium of African Canadian Monologues for
Actors.
Jennifer Snow
Dr. Jennifer Snow is currently Senior Director of Academic
Programs at The Royal Conservatory (RCM) and The Carnegie
Hall Royal Conservatory Achievement Program in the U.S.
Previously, Jennifer was a member of the keyboard faculty at
the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music where she taught piano,
collaborative piano, and pedagogy. She has presented at a wide
range of conferences including Music Teachers National
Association (MTNA), European Piano Teachers Association,
College Music Society, World Piano Pedagogy Conference,
National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy, Canadian
Federation of Music Teachers’ Associations, and numerous
state and provincial music teacher conferences. Jennifer is a
member of the Canadian Adjudicators Association, Chromatic
Music Board, the CMS National Committee on Music in Higher
Education, and the editorial board for American Music Teacher
magazine. She is also actively involved with integrating
technology and innovative curriculum design for long distance
learning. In addition to her passionate commitment to teaching
and teacher education, Dr. Snow is a versatile performer who
has appeared as a collaborative pianist throughout Canada, the
United States, Asia, and Europe. Jennifer is heard on CBC and
NPR and has recorded for Marquis, Amberola and Phoenix
Records. Her performances include projects with international
soloists, and members of such orchestras as the Chicago
Symphony, LA Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, New York
27
Presenters
Philharmonic, Toronto Symphony, and the Montreal Symphony.
A native of Corner Brook, Newfoundland, Jennifer lives in Los
Angeles, California.
Jayme Stone
Two-time Juno-winning banjoist Jayme Stone makes music
inspired by folk traditions from around the world. His albums,
most notably Africa to Appalachia, defy and honour the banjo's
long role in the world's music, turning historical connections
into compelling art.
Max Streicher
Max Streicher is a sculptor and installation artist from Alberta,
now residing in Toronto. He has worked extensively with
inflatable technology in kinetic sculptures and installation works
that have been shown widely across Canada and
internationally.
28
Presenters
Katsura Sunshine
A native of Toronto, Sunshine is Japan’s only foreign
professional Rakugo storyteller. In 2008 he was accepted as an
apprentice to the great Rakugo Master, Katsura Sanshi, and
received the name Katsura Sunshine. Rakugo is a tradition of
Japanese comic storytelling with a history of almost 400 years,
which enjoys immense popularity even today.
Mark Surman
A community activist, Mark Surman currently serves as the
Executive Director of the Mozilla Foundation, makers of Firefox.
From 2005 to 2008, Mark served as the first Director of
Telecentre.org, a $26M initiative to connect 1000s of
community technology centres around the world. Mark is also
the recipient of a Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship, where
he explored the application of open principles to philanthropy.
Andrew Testa
Andrew Testa is the drummer for alternative Toronto-based
band Stuck on Planet Earth.
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Presenters
Joshua van Tassel
Not unlike most plants and animals, drummer/percussionist/
electronic musician/producer Joshua Van Tassel has been
making sounds since he was born. Raised in rural Nova Scotia,
Joshua studied rmusic at St. Francis Xavier University,the Banff
Centre for the Arts, and Humber College. He is the recipient of
the Zildgian Cymbals Scholarship Award, and numerous Toronto
Arts Council and Ontario Arts Council Grants. While best known
for his sideman work with multiple ECMA award winner David
Myles, Joshua Cockerill, Royal Wood, Doug Paisley, Justin
Rutledge, the Kate Rogers Band, Ronley Teper, Selina Martin,
Valery Gore, The Outlanders, and many others, Joshua has an
active solo career as a producer/composer/ multiinstrumentalist as well. His music is featured on the Outdoor
Life Network shows Departures and Descending, while his
newest self titled album (released Sept. 2011) has received
critical acclaim from the CBC, the Toronto Star, and NOW
magazine, and has been chosen as one of the top albums of
2011 by CBC Radio 2′s “The Signal”.
Jeff Warren
Jeff Warren is an award-winning writer, broadcaster, public
speaker and meditation teacher. He is the author of The Head
Trip: Adventures on the Wheel of Consciousness, an acclaimed
travel guide through sleeping, dreaming and waking
consciousness. He is also the recipient of the Webster
McConnell Canadian Journalism Fellowship at the University of
Toronto's Massey College.
30
Presenters
Garnet Willis
Garnet Willis is a Canadian composer, sculptor, audio-engineer,
and instrument builder. He combines his disparate skills as
artist, wood and metal - worker, engineer, designer and
electronics geek to produce multivariate artworks – all of which
orbit around sound in some form or other. He has written/built
many commissioned works including the “flux” series of selfplaying electromagnetic sound sculptures. He has garnered
prestigious international awards for his compositions and has
had his work exhibited and performed in the USA, UK, France,
Germany, Mexico, the Netherlands, and Colombia.
Robert Wilson
An icon in the world of theatre, Robert Wilson is best known for
his form-breaking opera collaboration with composer Philip
Glass, the monumental Einstein on the Beach. His landmark
original works have been featured regularly at the Festival
d'Automne in Paris, Der Berliner Ensemble, the Schaubühne in
Berlin, the Thalia Theater in Hamburg, the Salzburg Festival, and
the Brooklyn Academy of Music's Next Wave Festival.
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Presenters
Nora Young
Producer, broadcaster, and writer Nora Young was the original
host of CBC Radio's Definitely Not the Opera. In 2007, she
launched Spark on CBC Radio One, a show that she hosts which
explores the way technology affects our lives.
Jean-François Zygel
Jean-François is a celebrated composer, performer and
educator whose project has been to make music accessible to
younger people. His music lessons have been delivered on
television and radio as well as on street corners in Paris. JeanFrançois has released two solo albums.
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