An Interview with 2011 Honens ProAm Competitor Colin Edie

When I was with Suite101.com, I had the chance to speak with Colin Edie, one of the recreational pianists who participated in the 2011 Honens Piano Competition for Amateurs in Calgary, Alberta last month. A petroleum engineer for Encana by day, Colin discussed his piano lessons, the Honens ProAm, continuing education and observations about music.

Colin Edie on Early Music Lessons

“I'm the youngest of three siblings,” Colin explained. “My older brother and sister, they took piano lessons for a year. I took them at the same time. I was probably five-years old. That only lasted a year, for all of us.”

Colin couldn't stay away from the piano for very long. “When I was in Grade 2, I was sitting down at the piano and playing around,” he said. “I asked my mom if I could be put back into piano lessons. She was almost crying for joy.” He re-enrolled in piano lessons with Mr. Reisecamp, starting with group lessons and graduating up to private lessons.

Colin studied with Calgary-based piano teacher Joan Bell from Grade 6 school (Grade 4 piano) up to high school. He really connected with Joan Bell's approach: “Focus on the music. Focus on the enjoyment of it.”

Piano gave way to sports and school in high school “I stopped at the beginning of Grade 12. I just didn't really feel like practising that much anymore.”

Colin Edie on Playing the Piano Between Lab Experiments

After graduating from high school, Colin Edie studied engineering at Queen's University. As luck would have it, one of his classes presented him with an opportunity to play around on the piano. “In fourth year is when I really started getting back into it,” he explained. “I had a lab thesis, an undergrad thesis. Mine was a lab one where you can always spend time in the lab and the type of experiments where you set it up, then it takes an hour and a half to run.” After a pause, he added, “It's excruciatingly time intensive.”

While his experiments were running, Colin wandered over to the music building next door. “There were some practise rooms, so I got a key to that and started, saying, “Well, I was terrible at technique when I was younger, so I'm just going to drill all my Hanon and get good at that.”

After rebuilding his piano technique, Colin set his sights on a bigger challenge: learning and memorizing Frédéric Chopin's first Ballade, no easy feat to tackle on his own. “I'll be very clear here – it was terrible musically,” he said. “Looking back, yes, there were lots of things wrong with this, but I was very happy with it. It just shows that I could go for it.”

Colin Edie on Piano Lessons as an Adult Student

Colin didn't return to piano lessons immediately after graduating. An avid athlete and former captain of his high school football team opted to pursue sports first. “With a friend, I did judo for a year,” he said. “On a couple of challenges, I did an Olympic triathlon and I did a marathon.”

However, Colin soon felt drawn to the piano once again. “I had been fooling around a little bit. I had wanted to get back into it.” He borrowed his parents' upright piano and in 2009, started looking into piano instruction. His previous teacher, Joan Bell, recommended her colleague Allen Reiser.

“Little did I know that she matched me up with one of the best teachers of the province,” Colin said. Allen is sought after as a piano instructor, clinician, adjudicator and pianist. Many of Allen's students have won medals on their music examinations, at festivals and piano competitions.

Colin appreciates Allen's focus on proper piano technique.“It's very apparent, even with the very young children that he's into focusing on hand motions and technique from the very beginning, he said.

“He just blows my mind away in his musicianship, he added. “The thing that killed me is that I'm playing my piece that I've practised for so much and then he's like, “Oh play it like this,” and he plays it, and all these things throughout the piece – perfectly, flawlessly.”

Colin Edie on the Honens ProAm Competition

The Honens ProAm is a competition turned fundraiser to raise funds for the Honens International Piano Competition. Colin attended the first Honens ProAm back in 2008.

“I had been dating this girl for two weeks,” he recalled. “The ProAm is pretty much sold out and it's like two months away, so it's like, “Should I buy tickets, should I not?” I bought tickets and that girl turned out to be my wife.”

Watching that piano competition inspired him to get back into piano lessons. “It was in the back of my mind, that a couple of them were playing Grade 10 repertoire that I had played way back,” he said.

In 2010 when Honens began searching for pianists to participate in the 2011 Honens ProAm, Colin didn't hesitate. “I volunteered, straight up,” he said.

The ball got rolling in the summer of 2011. Each participant was responsible for raising $5,000. Honens worked with the pianists to organize a series of home and corporate performances that the four participants performed in. In addition, Honens staff made an appeal for corporate and individual donations.

“Honens was fantastic with it,” said Colin.“They lined up twice as many of the big individual donors. People who just wrote $5,000, $10,000 cheques, which was very impressive to me.”

“Individually, I got $8,000, that was from friends and family,” he said. One-quarter of that amount came from five friends who donated $400 each if Colin would wear his unorthodox suit when he performed at the ProAm. “With all the Honens donors, the total on my site was over $20,000. I consider that a resounding success.”

Colin really enjoyed programming his own home concert for family and friends. “I completely didn't do the format that you're supposed to do,” he said. “It was five minutes about each piece, talking about the history of it, things I think about, what I'm trying to bring out and then play the piece.” It was a hit. “People were very interested, so it turned into another 15 – 20 minute question and answer about my musicality, how did I get into music, what do I think about, all those types of things.”

Colin Edie on David Dixon, 2011 Honens ProAm Champion

Colin has a tremendous amount of respect for this year's ProAm Winner, David Dixon. “He's definitely the most musical of us,” he said. “Just the pure accompanying that he does. He's very much into jazz as well. I don't think I ever heard him play a wrong note.”

He is pleased with the jury's decision. “I absolutely think it was best that he got the weekend in Banff for training as a musician because he's going to use it the most.”

Colin Edie's Observations About Studying Music

Colin has noticed several changes since resuming piano lessons. The first is that giving work presentations has gotten easier. “I always tell this to lots of people at work is that I consider performance music ten times more difficult than any kind of presentation,” Colin said.

Another observation he's noticed is increased mental acuity. “I never thought I had lost it, but I found I was getting mentally sharper again,” he commented.

Colin Edie on Future Plans

“I try to balance myself with personal and professional goals,” said Colin. “After I do my ARCT, I will probably will think about doing some kind of program or degree related to work. Everybody toys with doing an MBA as an engineer. It might be a CFA or CMA or something like Project Management Professional which comes up a lot in the industry. “ With a smile, he added, “And of course, trying to fit in as much as possible before children because that's going to come up pretty soon.”

That isn't to say that Colin will stop playing the piano. “When I was younger and someone was playing really well, and really bringing out the music, there's just something really special and magical about it,” he recalled. “Usually, those are in home settings, not in a concert setting.” He wants to continue playing in small, intimate settings. “I like to play the Christmas music at Christmastime. I like to play something that someone else finds fascinating.”

Source

Personal Communication with Colin Edie, October 29, 2011.

Photos were taken by Boon Ong Photography. Photo permission was granted by Honens.

Originally published on Suite101.com on December 1, 2011. Updated July 13, 2013.

An Interview With 2011 Honens ProAm Champion David Dixon

When I was a Contributing Writer for Suite101, I had this opportunity to speak with David Dixon, the winner of the 2011 Honens Piano Competition for Amateurs. A reservoir engineer for Nexen Inc., David immerses himself in music after hours. This talented pianist discussed his musical studies, the Honens ProAm, jazz music, composing and life lessons gained from music.

I also interviewed Linda Kundert-Stoll, David's piano teacher, via email. Linda shared her thoughts about David's musical development and talent.

Photos were taken by Boon Ong Photography. Photo permission was granted by Honens.

David Dixon on Music Lessons and Musical Influences

“I was diddling around on the piano before I had any official lessons,” David said. Formal piano lessons began at the age of eight, under the tutelage of his mother.

When he was approximately 10 years old, David's mother began teaching him intermediate-level repertoire. “She said, 'Well, he's in Grade 5 in school, so I'll try and teach him a Grade 5 piano piece',” David reflected. “She bought the Grade 5 RCM (Royal Conservatory of Music) books and taught me a few pieces.”

David quickly progressed to more challenging repertoire. “She taught me Für Elise. I learned that in a weekend,” he said. “I learned that pretty quickly, so I just kept on going with it.”

Perhaps another contributing factor to David's rapid development were the ingenious challenges his parents gave him when began studying piano. “My dad said that if I could learn the middle movement of the Pathetique Sonata, he'd pay me a hundred dollars.” With a chuckle, he added, “Now that's some encouragement there!”

After a brief hiatus from lessons, David resumed his piano studies as a teenager. He studied with Calgary-based instructors Dr. Peter Jancewicz, Dr. Lana Henchell and Mila Brandman. For the past three years, David has been studying piano with Linda Kundert-Stoll.

David Dixon on the Honens ProAm Competition

David first became involved with the Honens ProAm in 2008, when he was declared the alternate competitor in the event of a competition withdrawal. “I got to play in a bunch of the events and enjoyed it,” he recalled. When event organizers asked David whether he would like to participate in the 2011 Honens ProAm, he eagerly agreed.

David drew from pieces he prepared for his associateship through the Royal Conservatory of Music. “I did my ARCT back in August, so I already had the repertoire learned,” David said. “I already had them at a high level so I thought I might as well keep on playing them.” For his Honens recital programme, David performed Claude Debussy's La Danse de puck and Frédéric Chopin's Scherzo in E major, op. 54, no. 4.

The Honens ProAm is a fundraiser for the Honens International Piano Competition. It is named after philanthropist Esther Honens.

David Dixon on Life Lessons Learned from Music

There are numerous life lessons that David Dixon has learned through his musical studies. “Obviously discipline,” he said. After a few moment's thought, he added, “Appreciating subtleties and nuances of music...attention to detail.”

David is quick to admit that learning music has helped him enjoy music all the more. Music lessons help him “understand it enough to better appreciate it.”

David Dixon on Jazz Music and Creative Music

“I've always improvised at the piano,” David said. “That's what drew me to it [jazz] – being able to be more creative.”

David has also composed music for piano and small chamber music ensembles. “It's just a different way to express yourself,” he remarked.

David Dixon on Musical Outlets

David is involved with several musical projects. He plays in a jazz big band called Southern Stardust and accompanies the One Accord Choir. “That's a good outlet,” he said.

David also performs in several smaller music ensembles in Calgary. “I like the smaller groups,” David admitted. “You get a bit more freedom, a little bit more soloing space and communicating a little bit more dynamically.”

As the 2011 Honens ProAm Champion, David gained another musical outlet. His performance earned him a weekend residency at the Banff Centre.

Piano Instructor Linda Kundert-Stoll on David Dixon

In August 2011, David Dixon successfully completed his ARCT in Piano Performance from the Royal Conservatory of Music. David earned First Class Honours with Distinction.

“He played several ARCT programs while he was working to complete his theory,” commented Linda Kundert-Stoll. “From a playing level, he could have taken his ARCT earlier, but we thought it best that he finish the theory first.”

As a teacher, Linda couldn't be any happier. “I have enjoyed having him in my class immensely,” she said. “He is a huge talent: great ears, excellent facility, he learns fast and he has a great memory.”

Just how good is David? “He has what it takes to be a professional musician, should he choose to go that route,” added Linda.

David Dixon's employer can rest easy. For now, David is quite content to stick with his day job. He is even contemplating working on his MBA.

Musically, he's open to new challenges. “I'm just trying to figure out what to do next.”

Originally published on Suite101.com on November 9, 2011.

THWOMP Interview: On Fun and Food

In Part Eight of this exclusive interview originally published for Suite101.com, Brad Stanton and Dave Marshall of the Nintendo® cover band THWOMP chat about fun and food.

Inspired by the music of video game composers Nobuo Uematsu (Final Fantasy), Koji Kondo (Super Mario Bros) and more, Nintendo® cover band THWOMP share their music with gaming enthusiasts young and old at various geeky events.

Brad and Dave from THWOMP took a break from their Animethon 17 and CD release preparations to chat with me when I was a Contributing Writer for Suite 101.com. In this final installment, they discuss cosplay, food and shout-outs.

When you guys to gigs, do you dress up as characters?

Dave: "We want to. It’s a lot of work."

Brad: "There’s so many other things we have to do to get a gig going. Especially during a convention show…We really, really want to have some wicked cosplay stuff, but we don’t ever seem to have the time to pull it together. We have done some stuff. We did the “mad scientist” thing at one show and wore lab coats and crazy glasses. That was pretty fun. We should resurrect that one day, maybe."

The group dreams of having a show big enough to warrant costume changes between sets. "It would be awesome, but you’d need a whole production crew to do that," said Brad. "Then you’d need a budget that’s three times as big as ours."

Asking THWOMP About Favorite Snack Food

Dave: "Sushi. It could be breakfast. It could be lunch. It could be dinner. It could be a midnight snack."

Brad: "Well then, how would you not pick sushi every time? There’s no other answer, now that sushi is available."

Brad admits to favoring salty foods. "Brad has this thing called the “salt lust”," explained Dave. "Where there’s a bag of chips open and they’re not long for the world."

Anything else that you want fans to know? Future fans?

Dave: "Just our website."

Brad: "Oh, I see you have THWOMP in all caps, all the time on the page. That’s good. That’s important...A lot of people write it in lower case and put an exclamation mark after it and that drives me completely insane."

Any shout outs? Anyone you want to say thank you to? Acknowledge?

Dave: "Jenny Chan of Otafest and Adam [Scheopp] from Animethon. And Shawn [Hansen] from Otafest too."

Brad: "Yeah. Those guys have been good to us...and all of our parents for buying us Nintendo®’s."

More About THWOMP

THWOMP is a Nintendo® band comprised of Calgarians Brad Stanton (lead guitar), Colin Mitchel (lead guitar), Scott Munro (bass), Scott Moffat (drums), David Marshall (keyboards/percussion) and Kirk McVean (keyboards).

In the fall of 2010, THWOMP will host its debut CD release party in Calgary, Alberta. Many of these classic NES video game tunes will appear on the band's CD.

Nintendo® cover band THWOMP share their music with gaming enthusiasts young and old at a variety of gigs. Their primary focus is to perform for enthusiastic fans at anime conventions and comic-cons; and they dream of performing at the Penny Arcade Expo. For more information about THWOMP, the band or to listen to audio clips, visit their website and Myspace page.

Full interview series: Part 1 – THWOMP’s Origins | Part 2 – Band Names & Niches | Part 3 – Songwriting | Part 4 - Hey! Listen! CD Release | Part 5 - On Gigs | Part 6 - Convention Gigs | Part 7 - Video Games | Part 8 - Fun & Food

THWOMP Interview: On Video Games and Characters

In Part Seven of this interview series, Brad Stanton and Dave Marshall of the Nintendo® cover band THWOMP chat about video games. This interview was originally published on Suite101.com on July 2010.

Nintendo® cover band THWOMP share their music with gaming enthusiasts young and old. Inspired by the music of video game composers Nobuo Uematsu (Final Fantasy), Koji Kondo (Super Mario Bros) and more music from retro video games will appear in the band’s debut CD coming out in the fall of 2010.

Brad Stanton (lead guitar) and Dave Marshall (keyboards/percussion) from THWOMP take a break from their Animethon 17 and CD release preparations to chat with me. 

THWOMP on Favorite Video Games

Dave: "That’s a really difficult question. The list of games that I’ve played for more hours than I care to admit IS longer than I care to admit...I would say “Super Mario World” is in my Top 15, but the Mario games, aside from that one, they’re OK.

We’re all big RPG fans. We all love “Final Fantasy VI”. “Chrono Trigger” is in there too...“Secret of Mana”... other favorite games...“Super Mario Kart” and then completely different stuff, like “Ultima Online” and “Quake 1”...“Mass Effect”, really was absolutely amazing. Maybe my favorite game ever."

Brad: "It’s like you’re asking me to pick a child...[Super Mario] – that doesn’t even make my Top Ten. Not even close...“Master of Orion II”. Write that down. Put that in the article somewhere. That game is so amazing."

THWOMP on the Final Fantasy Franchise

Dave & Brad: "The only game that we actually stray outside of our format for is “Final Fantasy VII” for PlayStation because it had to be done."

Having said this, FFVII isn't one of the group's favorites. "It's one of the most popular games of all time; but in terms of Final Fantasy, that’s my least favorite," said Dave. "I didn’t really like that one very much. I think that’s where they got away from everything I loved about the Final Fantasy’s of the Super Nintendo® and started to go in this new direction they’re on now. It’s more like a TV show."

If you could be a video game character, who would it be?

Brad: "I’ve never ever thought about that. Who’d I want to be? Man, I don’t know, the guy from “Excitebike”?"

This idea got shot down by Dave, "C’mon. You can do better than that."

Dave: "I’ll go with Commander Shepard from “Mass Effect”. I’m a huge science-fiction fan. Massive. I really love that concept of that universe. I think that’s really brilliant. Rich and believable. The weird thing about that character is that you can make him who you want to. You really get to pick what he’s like.

Brad: "How about Minsc from “Baldur’s Gate”? You get to carry around a huge broadsword and a little hamster you talk to."

THWOMP is a Nintendo® band comprised of Calgarians Brad Stanton (lead guitar), Colin Mitchel (lead guitar), Scott Munro (bass), Scott Moffat (drums), David Marshall (keyboards/percussion) and Kirk McVean (keyboards). The bandmates hope that their musical trip down memory lane inspires listeners to dust off their old gaming consoles and video games. Or lead them buy or rent video games they loved to play while growing up.

For more information about THWOMP, the band or to listen to audio clips, visit their website and Myspace page.

Full interview series: Part 1 – THWOMP’s Origins | Part 2 – Band Names & Niches | Part 3 – Songwriting | Part 4 - Hey! Listen! CD Release | Part 5 - On Gigs | Part 6 - Convention Gigs | Part 7 - Video Games | Part 8 - Fun & Food

THWOMP Interview: On Gigs Past, Present and Future

In Part Five of this originally-published-for-Suite 101 exclusive interview, Brad Stanton and Dave Marshall of the Nintendo® cover band THWOMP discuss gigs past, present and future.

Calgary-based Nintendo® cover band THWOMP is gearing up for two exciting projects. They will rock Edmonton on August 6, 2010 at Animethon 17. In the fall, they will release their debut CD. Brad Stanton and Dave Marshall stopped by to discuss gigs past, present and future.

THWOMP's Take on Bar Gigs

The band has had its share of bar gigs over the years, which the guys are glad to put behind them. "We used to play around town a lot, actually," said Brad. "It’s kind of easy to play Calgary out. There just aren’t that many decent bars to play at."

Bars and clubs tend to attract regulars and only occasionally draw in new patrons, while family and friends go only so far. "Once it’s your fifth gig in three or four months, it’s harder to get all of your friends to come out to it," explained Brad. "They’ll all come out to the first few, because they love you."

The other downside of bar gigs is the low return on investment. Dave said, "They pay almost nothing and the people who go to the bar don’t go to the bar and expect to spend $50 on merchandise, so nobody buys merchandise either."

THWOMP members made a conscious decision to stop doing bar gigs and focus on conventions. They have not looked back since.

THWOMP on Cool Gigs

Dave recalled one of their favorite gigs, "One of our funny, semi-regular gigs is at the Canmore Hotel, which is a heritage building. I think it’s 120 years old, at least, and you can tell…We turn it into a pretty big party and there’s some band stories from those gigs that I don’t think we’ll share with you."

"What happens on the road stays on the road," added Brad.

THWOMP's Current Gigs

Anime conventions, gaming conventions and comic conventions are ideal stages for THWOMP. "The conventions really have our exact demographic – sitting there – already dressed up," said Brad. "We have made some crazy fans over the last two summers."

THWOMP plays regularly at Otafest, Calgary's annual anime convention and Edmonton's annual anime con, Animethon. In 2009, the band gave its debut performance at the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo.

The last gig had some bumps. "We were they only band they’ve ever had and you can tell," said Brad. "They had no idea what to do with us."

THWOMP on Dream Gigs

"I think we can all die happy if we played the Penny Arcade Expo," said Dave. The Penny Arcade Expo, or PAX for short, is held semi-annually in Seattle, WA. It is a gaming festival that hosts tournaments, freeplay areas, concerts and panels over the span of three days. "It’s probably the biggest gaming expo in the world, now that E3’s gone," added Dave.

Another dream gig for THWOMP would be MAGFest, held in Alexandra, VA. MAGFest is a video and computer gaming festival. Concerts by video game bands and jam sessions are featured prominently. "Too bad it’s about 3,000 miles away," said Brad.

Transcontinental gigs are hard for bands. "It’s not about the money but not losing money to get there," explained Dave. "Once you’re carting gear across the continent, it becomes very expensive."

Plus, being a niche band doesn’t make it any easier for bands like THWOMP. "It’s hard to stop at bars along the way and play to pay for your gas and food money," said Dave. "A lot of bars don’t want bands that don’t have singers and for good reason. That’s the world we live in. Ultimately, the more conventions we can regularly play the better."

Touring Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia is another "ultimate dream" for the band. "Getting paid to wander around Japan and play video game music would be really nice," added Brad.

THWOMP is a Nintendo® band comprised of Calgarians Brad Stanton (lead guitar), Colin Mitchel (lead guitar), Scott Munro (bass), Scott Moffat (drums), David Marshall (keyboards/percussion) and Kirk McVean (keyboards). For more information about THWOMP, the band or to listen to audio clips, visit their website and Myspace page.

Full interview series: Part 1 – THWOMP’s Origins | Part 2 – Band Names & Niches | Part 3 – Songwriting | Part 4 - Hey! Listen! CD Release | Part 5 - On Gigs | Part 6 - Convention Gigs | Part 7 - Video Games | Part 8 - Fun & Food