UselessNews

  Disposable by Design:   When Quitting Is Framed as Growing Up. Myself and Michael Newnham with Orchestra Toronto(April 16th 2024) The season of cheer is on its way out — and what a season it was. This year, I’m grateful to have spent Christmas with my family and friends. Last year was different. I was in a holiday production that, while musically enjoyable, triggered intense illness anxiety. Life is short, and you only get so many opportunities to be with the people you love during this earthly existence. I’ll give up other holidays for music, but Christmas is a hard one to surrender. This season, I spent much of my time singing in long-term care homes, which I find deeply fulfilling. My final caroling gig of the year was on December 23rd with my regular choir. Somewhere between homes, during a break, I was asked a series of questions by a fellow chorus member — questions I haven’t stopped thinking about. That's What She Said.. People often ask me what it’s like to make a...

The Show Must Go On...And Then What?     Lucia's hard day at work.  D ecember is my favourite month of the year. My heart practically glows when I hear Christmas carols (or songs that are suspiciously similar but not enough to trigger copyright lawsuits). And the lights on people’s houses? Immediate serotonin. Plus, in Canadian work culture, once we hit December 20th, everyone who isn’t an essential worker collectively agrees to do the bare minimum necessary to avoid being fired. If anyone complains, the official response is: “Cheer up, fool — it’s Christmas.” And then, of course, it’s my birthday month . Every couple of years I end up performing on my actual birthday, and I almost always get a wonderfully chaotic “Happy Birthday” from my colleagues — sometimes even the audience joins in. The most memorable? Counterpoint Orchestra’s Don We Now Our Gay Apparel concert in 2015. Yes. Ten years ago.       Cantabile Chamber Singers.  That concert was t...

Begging Wednesday and Festivus for the rest of us!  Babushka Mode activated.  So much to do and so little time! I, like 90% of musicians, have once again found myself in the chaotic wonderland that is holiday gig season. It looks different every year, and luckily for me this time around I’ve got a nice mix of concerts and a bit of time to actually see my family. This year, I’m taking it easier. I’ve decided that singing outside is officially for the young and ambitious. I have paid enough dues, thank you very much. I sang outdoors for a Remembrance Day Ceremony and then spent the entire rest of the week trying to warm up. I even pulled out the winter gear early, all proud of myself—and yet the cold still got me. So here I am with some caroling, four concert gigs (Burlington, Hamilton, and Cambridge), and—of course—a partridge in a pear tree. My most loathsome carol. My personal purgatory is never actually arriving at “Five Golden Rings.” Caroling: The Good, the Bad and t...