Snowflake Season

Today is November 22nd 2022 and I am going to post about (gulp) Christmas. Still, I see that several neighbors have put up Christmas lights and, the truth is December is just around the corner. I tend to have mixed feelings about the Christmas season, and I suppose I am not alone in feeling this way. There is such a mash up of emotions all swished and swirled together and along with that comes the MUSIC. Ah, yes Christmas music! The sacred, the secular, the popular, the annual favourites, vocal and instrumental, the new ones you discover or write yourself.

*photo depicts Plato’s Pinecone People made by me many years ago and posed in the snow last December while visiting my Mom on the prairies.

Christmas Music: It’s true I’ve always loved hauling out the Christmas music books and producing new arrangements of standards and I’ve also written songs related to the season. Do you know my tune “Olive, the other reindeer”? Ha ha! You probably do NOT know that one. Maybe if you live in Vancouver, you have heard it since I have sung it in performance with We Three Queens. It’s fun and it’s silly and no, I have not recorded that one. *There is another song or two written about that less than famous reindeer if you do some swifter than a reindeer can fly internet search.

Yesterday while digging through my Christmas box, I found my song “Fa, La, La It’s Christmas” and a few other KP compositions which I had honesty forgotten about. A few are “throwaways,” but others seem catchy somehow and worth revisiting.

Moving forward and looking back at the same time:

Over 20 years ago now I recorded a Christmas Jazz album called “snowflake season”. The recording features some wonderful musicians and quite a cross section of music. Swing, Bossa, Ballads, more. Much has happened in life since that recording however, I still enjoy all the song choices I made. It is not a “commercial Christmas cd” if, you know what I mean? *Admittedly I don’t play my own album much during the holiday season because I have other annual faves I turn to. More on that another day. snowflake season is available on various streaming platforms and, the physical CD is available from my online store: https://www.karinplato.com/past-cds

Christmas Jazz Concert featuring KP Quintet:

Lucky me! I will be singing and swinging Christmas Jazz at The Anvil Theatre on St. Nicholas Day December 6^th. How appropriate that the concert lands on St. Nicholas Day! A family tradition for us was this: When we were children on the evening of December 5^th, we would set out one of our shoes at the front door and in the morning, St. Nicholas would have put chocolate or marzipan treats or some other Christmas delight in there for us. Yeah, we liked St. Nicholas!

Tickets are available now. https://anviltheatre.ca/event/piva-presents-a-jazz-christmas/ I hope you decide to come to the concert. I am currently working on the program of songs and certainly I will perform a few from my album snowflake season. The band I have assembled is exceptional: Miles Black, Tom Keenlyside, Conrad Good and Dave Robbins. The Anvil Theatre is located in New Westminster and is easily accessible by skytrain.

In closing, may the season that we are facing be filled with good chocolate and good music and if possible some real joy.

Thanks! Karin

Sing a Song of Summer 2020

Summer 2020 is officially here! I love this season: the endless flowers, the long days, the sun’s heat and, often there are camping trips and garden party get-togethers with friends.  This will be a very different kind of summer for everyone due to the current pandemic. Typically this month, I am preparing music for various  music camps that I teach at each summer season however,  all those camps are cancelled for this year.

Since the very beginning of the pandemic I have been able to shift most of my voice and piano students to an online platform. There certainly have been some major challenges along the way and, this method of teaching has required a great deal more work and preparation and flexibility however, I do appreciate the fact that in this current world, I am able to connect with my students and remain safe and distanced and yet still share the beauty, creativity and joy of music making and learning.

“adapt, modify, be positive”– those have been my key words in teaching online music to people of all ages.

I am aware that there are many people who are missing the experience of singing with others or, they are missing the in-person experience of sharing music in a lesson. Some people (perhaps especially the ones who are living alone?) are missing their social circles and have expressed a sensation of feeling anxious, sad, and frustrated with this current and continuing reality.

Over the past month or so I have designed a virtual song camp that I will offer online this coming July called “Sing A Song of Summer” I am really hoping that this song camp will bring some much-needed joy and connection to people who love to sing. I have been researching music that was made popular in the 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, 50’s and 60’s. Some of the songs that were pop hits in the day are recognized as jazz standards while others were blues or country hits.  I have gathered “famous, familiar and perhaps forgotten” songs that have lovely melodies to sing and a potential for easy harmony parts.

Through the magic of the internet I will invite interested participants into my music studio each morning in this virtual song camp. One fact that has come to mind and which makes me rather excited is that people from various Provinces and States and, even those living in other countries could feasibly attend this song camp. Although my studio is located in Vancouver, BC you can live anywhere in the world and it may be possible that you can participate.

In my mind the type of person who might enjoy this song camp would be someone who longs to sing but wishes they could do so with accompaniment; a vocalist wishing to extend a current repertoire or someone who considers themselves a poor singer. One fact about this online camp is that people will see and hear me on the screen (piano and voice) and they will SEE others on the screen but not hear anyone else. So, you could feasibly sing your heart out and no one will be able to criticize how you sing! This is not a technique camp but rather a sing ’cause you love to sing camp.

I’ve got a lot more to say about the 2020 virtual song camp, but this blog is already longish. People interested can email me directly about the cost and other specifics: karinplato@shaw.ca

Have a safe summer everyone! K

I’ll Send This Dream

I’ll Send This Dream is the title of the new recording I’ve been fortunate enough to make with acclaimed mandolin player John Reischman and harmonic master on the guitar John Miller. We’re going to be playing two special Vancouver concerts this December to celebrate the release and we’ll play music from the recording as well as new material we have been working on.

December 12 – 7 PM @ Roedde House Museum Tix for concert

December 20 – 8 PM @ Tipper Review Room Tix for concert

Two summers ago, and rather soon after my quintet recorded This Could Be The One in Warehouse Studio in Vancouver the two Johns and I recorded I’ll Send This Dream in a much more basic setting: The dining room of our home!

** I can barely believe that I had the notion? the determination? the will? to make two recordings within just a few weeks that July!  However crazy it may sound, I was prepared and I worked hard to maintain a healthy strong voice and I had a good feeling about both projects.

I have always appreciated the warmth of the sound in our dining room and thought it would be fun to capture the natural sound of the trio for our recording. I enlisted engineer Marc L’Esperance who was able to bring his recording studio gear and set up his control room in the kitchen area while we three musicians sat on our chairs facing each other in the same way we would while rehearsing. It was lovely. It was relaxed. It seemed to be just the right approach for us to record this music.

We did a few takes of each of the songs and only once did we have to stop recording while the sound of a large truck rumbled by. That’s rather remarkable in a city such as ours I think and it seemed that luck was on our side.  I love the way we could record this music without wearing headphones. As always, I enjoyed hearing all the beauty that these two men put into the music and I feel so fortunate to be able to sing with them both.

The recording includes some new originals for the recording such as my song “Soon” (the only song I play the uke on for this recording) and John Miller’s song “To No End” for which I composed a lyric.

Thanks to my incredible husband Gorm Damborg who always encourages and supports my efforts with his positive attitude and, who didn’t mind that we turned our house into a recording studio for this project!

Karin

 

What do you know! ‘Tis AUTUMN

I am somewhat surprised and yet willing to accept the fact that Autumn has indeed arrived. Summer was wonderful and filled with music and vacation time too.

I’m back to teaching in my music studio and I certainly do have some interesting piano and voice students ranging from very young to much older. Some like jazz. Some like classical music. Some are pop singer-songwriters. Some are absolute beginners. My task? To help teach and guide and motivate and cultivate the joy of music no matter what genre my students are interested in studying.

I still have space for new students in case someone out there is considering lessons. Note: typically, my music room is far more cluttered than this photo indicates and that is a fact! Often song books and piano books begin to pile up during the week. There is table for that specific purpose and every once in awhile I decide to place books back on the shelf in an attempt to keep things tidy, at least for a day or so. Ha!

Aside from my teaching I have some lovely opportunities to perform coming up, here in Vancouver and also in Toronto and I am certainly excited about the month of October.

Soon, I’ll be singing at Vancouver’s premiere jazz club: October 11th at Frankie’s!  I’m delighted about sharing some of the music I’ve been working on this past September. I’ll be singing lots of jazz standards, some are new to me and others I have revised after many years of neglecting or “resting” them. I have one new original that I will debut that evening with my band mates. Reservations can be made here: Frankie’s Jazz Club

Just a week later I will be heading to Toronto to attend the Audio Festival and the Vinyl Festival and, even more exciting to me, I’ll be singing two exclusive concerts with the acclaimed Mark Eisenman Trio. The one of a kind “Jazz In The Kitchen” concert series is where these performances will take place and tickets are available here: Jazz In The Kitchen

Last but certainly not least it’s time for the new Joy of Jazz Concert season to kick off and Sunday October 27 will be a doozy! Kate Hammett-Vaughan and I will be joined by Miles Black and Conrad Good and the evening will be a Cole Porter celebration.

Many years ago Kate performed Porter themed concerts entitled “Kate Loves Cole”. We both love Cole! So, our concert is entitled “Let’s Do It” and we’ll definitely include that song as well as many others. Further information at the website: Joy of Jazz Concerts

Enjoy your Autumn days everyone!

Karin

What’s Your Story Morning Glory?

August greetings everyone! Here in my Vancouver garden the flowers seems content with today’s refreshing rain. Moments before the rain really kicked in, I ran outside to take a photo of my Morning Glory flowers. I love this blue! It’s a good day for me to write a blog about some of the music related projects in my life right now.

I have a new recording which will be officially released in December. It’s called “I’ll Send This Dream” and it is dedicated to the memory of Nancy Thorwardson, a musician who really made an impact on many people with her songs, her sense of humour and her engaging personality. She is dearly missed. Check out more about Nancy at her website: https://www.nancythorwardson.com/

I consider myself lucky to make music with and record with mandolin star John Reischman and incredible guitarist John Miller.  I admire and respect the musicality of both these men so much! Recording engineer Marc L’Esperance  was able to record us “live off the floor” here in our dining room and I am very happy with the end result. It’s natural and unadorned and just the way we like it! We recorded some beautiful jazz standards and we also included some original songs. We’ll be performing a CD release concert later in the year. Thank you to Paul Norton for the graphic design:

I’ve been putting the finishing touches on the next Joy of Jazz Concert Series for 2019-2020. These concerts take place at Hood 29 on Main Street and this year we’re presenting the concerts on Sunday evenings: October 27, December 15, February 23 and April 26. These are early evening concerts starting at 7:30 PM so even people who are working the next morning will (hopefully) consider attending. This is my labour of love series! I am part of each concert however some of my personal pleasure comes from hearing my fellow musicians in performance together and in solo presentations as well. Web-Meister Paul Norton will have the new website up and running soon. Here’s a link to last year’s series: www.joyofjazzconcerts.com 

Take a look at who is involved in the 2019/2020 series!! Yeah, it’s going to be a doozy…

There may be one more “Plato Pop Up Performance” which will be part of this series in 2020. I’m still scheming…

Enjoy the rest of your summer days everyone and thanks for reading my blog.

Karin

She Can Bloom

March is the month that signifies the beginning of a new season. It’s also the month when I’m involved in assisting with and performing as part of the Strong Women Strong Music concerts. These fund raising events specifically help Enterprising Women Making Art (EWMA), a program of Atira Women’s Resource Society based in Vancouver. This will be the 13th year we’ve presented women in jazz performing these concerts.

This year, since the SWSM concerts take place March 5-7 and, because International Women’s Day is actually Friday March 8th, I decided I’d like to produce another special event celebrating creative women artists. She Can Bloom will be an intimate community event which will take place on the Hood 29 Stage in East Vancouver. Hood 29 is a local Bistro with a warm and inviting atmosphere with a good stage and room to seat 100 people max. Expect spontaneous laughter, tears, joy and appreciation when these artists take to the stage with songs, poems, prose and thought provoking themes with wide ranging appeal. All are welcome to attend! Consider this a Dinner + Show event with the show starting at 8 PM, doors open for dinner by 6:30 PM.

Five creative, intrepid & inspiring artists in collaborative and solo works:

Kristina Olsen -American based song-writer/multi-instrumentalist

Jodi Proznick – Juno Award winning bassist/composer/educator

Shauna Johannesen- Leo Award winning actor/writer/film maker

Kate Braid – Acclaimed Canadian poet/writer

Karin Plato – Juno nominated vocalist/composer

I am absolutely thrilled that these extraordinary women have agreed to perform for the ‘She Can Bloom’ project. These are women I have watched and listened to, have been inspired and deeply moved by. I have cried, I have laughed, I have cheered for these talented artists. I have read the poems, books and songs that they have written. I have watched their films and plays. I have listened to their recordings and in some cases I have been able to share the stage with them. Now, the Vancouver audience will be able to attend an evening featuring each of these creative women in celebration of International Women’s Day.

Advance tickets are available through eventbrite.ca (She Can Bloom) Here’s the link:

She Can Bloom Tix

She Can Bloom – Friday, March 8th – 8 PM at Hood 29 – 4470 Main Street Vancouver 

Do you LIKE karinplatomusic?

Not so many months ago I released a new recording and although there hasn’t yet been a tour associated with the recording (maybe in the future?) my band mates and I performed two concerts in the Vancouver area to celebrate. I’ve only just begun to send out CD’s to radio stations and music reviewers.  Fans of my music have been very supportive already and have made various requests to have my music heard and featured on radio stations in their region of the globe. Thank you everyone! A spiffy new website will be up any minute now as designed by my good friend and at times the busiest man in town Paul Norton. I’ll let everyone know when it’s up and happening!

These days it appears that social media activity is rather important as it relates to an independent artist’s life and therefore I decided to hold a type of contest to give away a special KP gift package to some individual who “likes” my official facebook karinplatomusic page  karinplatomusic

It’s a bit of silliness to have to request people to like your page (in my opinion) however if you can imagine this: Apparently there are certain artist grants that musicians are currently applying for will look at those numbers and apparently are making some decisions based on those figures. Not the numbers on your “regular” facebook profile but the numbers on your artist page. So, rather than simply request those “likes” I’ve decided to give something back in the form of this gift package. It includes a copy of my new CD This Could Be The One, a spiffy new bebop bo bag featuring the character Bo who appears within the graphics of the CD and vinyl plus a gift card once again featuring Bo.

To enter simply go to my the karinplatomusic page on facebook and there are two things you will need to do to be “officially” in the contest:

1. LIKE the page itself.

2. LIKE the photo image of the KP Gift when you find it on the karinplatomusic page

I will make a draw for the winner on December 21 which, people often associate as being the first official day of winter. I’ll probably do a little video and have one of my friends be there to make the draw with me. I’ll have the package ready to be mailed (or if you live in the lower mainland I’ll try to have it delivered directly to you)

Do you like the sound of the contest? Ha!

Thanks everyone!
Karin