Jeffery Straker Live @ Minstrel Cafe
This event has already occurred
March 26, 2015
Location: Minstrel Cafe & Bar, 4638 Lakeshore Road
Address: 4638 Lakeshore Road
Time: 8:00 PM
2015-03-26 20:00:00
2015-03-26 16:00:00
America/Vancouver
Jeffery Straker Live @ Minstrel Cafe
Singer-songwriter-pianist Jeffery Straker performs over 100 shows per year across Canada. He has recorded for CBC radio’s ‘Canada Live’, had a music video chart in the top 10 on Much More Music Canada and has toured internationally as far as Ghana Africa and Peru. His tour stops range from intimate house concerts to club and theatre shows and include recent sold-out concerts (capacity 2000) with the Regina Symphony and Saskatoon Symphony Orchestras. The review following his orchestral debut read: “Straker was simply spectacular…clearly one of the province’s best cultural exports”. Canadian Musician Magazine has said, “Very much an artist to watch” while the Chicago Free Press has written, “Rufus Wainwright, as well as k.d. lang are among the Canadians making essential and beautiful music. Add the name Jeffery Straker to that list”. His latest career boost came from winning the prestigious Vina del Mar (Chile) song competition in February 2014 where he represented Canada. Performing live to a festival crowd of 20,000 people and to a TV audience of 100,000,000 viewers across the Spanish speaking world he quickly gained a fan following putting him in demand for performances in Latin America. He’s already toured Peru with Mexico slated for 2015.
Straker launched his latest collection of songs “Vagabond” in 2012. Produced by Canadian multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter Danny Michel it was a thrill for Straker to record on Glenn Gould’s grand piano at the CBC studios in Toronto. The release has been met with critical acclaim with the Toronto Star giving it 4 (out of 4) stars and calling it “one of the most faultlessly conceived and meticulously executed albums in any genre to come out of Canada in a long time”. “Vagabond” debuted in the top 20 on the iTunes singer-songwriter charts and charted in the top 10 on several college radio stations across Canada. Xtra! (Toronto) said of the album: “like the unexpected yet surprisingly down-to-earth lovechild of Neil Young and Elton John”. Straker has crossed Canada on a 50 date tour supporting the album.
Straker is now set to launch a new collection of songs in March 2015. The 12-song album “North Star Falling” was produced by Dean Drouillard (Royal Wood, Justin Rutledge) and weaves a new sound around Straker’s songwriter-piano-pop. Electric guitars, horns, & strings as well as acoustic guitar and banjo help set the stage. The launch of the album (Acronym/Universal Canada) includes a national tour with performances from coast to coast.
Jeffery and his piano-folk-pop music are often compared to a mixture of early Elton John, Ben Folds, Sarah Slean, Billy Joel and Harry Chapin. Originally from small town Saskatchewan, the classically trained pianist was raised by a church organist mother and an auctioneer father. He swears he was born under the piano on the family farm. All this might explain his ability to share songs with audiences. Highlights of recent touring include: a debut performance at the National Arts Centre (Ottawa), invites to several Breakout West Festivals (Western Canadian Music Awards), Regina Folk Festival, Canadian Music Week (Toronto), NXNE (Toronto) and JunoFest.
His songwriting has seen him become a national top 10 finalist in the Canadian Radiostar Songwriting Competition and a top 20 finalist in the global Unisong Competition as well as twice placing in the top 10 in the prestigious Mountain Stage Newsong contest.
Jeffery is a musical descendant of Beethoven through teacher-student lineage (seriously…see below for the full story). He was a student of the Royal Conservatory of Music and received his licentiate diploma in piano performance from Trinity College, London when he was just 19.
Jeffery thanks the Saskatchewan Arts Board, FACTOR (Foundation Assisting Canadian Talent on Recordings), SaskMusic and Creative Saskatchewan for their support of his music.
THE BEETHOVEN CONNECTION:
Jeffery’s musical prowess and flare at the piano has an incredibly famous connection – it’s true. While studying at the conservatory of music at the University of Regina, Jeffery worked with one Frank Crumly, who had been taught by Thomas Manshardt, who previously had been taught by Howard Wells, who was a student of Leschetizky (acknowledged as the greatest teacher of all time), who was taught by Czerny, who, you guessed it, was taught by Beethoven. A similar lineage through Manshardt connects Jeffery to Chopin. Quite the piano pedigree.
Minstrel Cafe & Bar, 4638 Lakeshore Road 4638 Lakeshore Road
events@kelownanow.com
Singer-songwriter-pianist Jeffery Straker performs over 100 shows per year across Canada. He has recorded for CBC radio’s ‘Canada Live’, had a music video chart in the top 10 on Much More Music Canada and has toured internationally as far as Ghana Africa and Peru. His tour stops range from intimate house concerts to club and theatre shows and include recent sold-out concerts (capacity 2000) with the Regina Symphony and Saskatoon Symphony Orchestras. The review following his orchestral debut read: “Straker was simply spectacular…clearly one of the province’s best cultural exports”. Canadian Musician Magazine has said, “Very much an artist to watch” while the Chicago Free Press has written, “Rufus Wainwright, as well as k.d. lang are among the Canadians making essential and beautiful music. Add the name Jeffery Straker to that list”. His latest career boost came from winning the prestigious Vina del Mar (Chile) song competition in February 2014 where he represented Canada. Performing live to a festival crowd of 20,000 people and to a TV audience of 100,000,000 viewers across the Spanish speaking world he quickly gained a fan following putting him in demand for performances in Latin America. He’s already toured Peru with Mexico slated for 2015.
Straker launched his latest collection of songs “Vagabond” in 2012. Produced by Canadian multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter Danny Michel it was a thrill for Straker to record on Glenn Gould’s grand piano at the CBC studios in Toronto. The release has been met with critical acclaim with the Toronto Star giving it 4 (out of 4) stars and calling it “one of the most faultlessly conceived and meticulously executed albums in any genre to come out of Canada in a long time”. “Vagabond” debuted in the top 20 on the iTunes singer-songwriter charts and charted in the top 10 on several college radio stations across Canada. Xtra! (Toronto) said of the album: “like the unexpected yet surprisingly down-to-earth lovechild of Neil Young and Elton John”. Straker has crossed Canada on a 50 date tour supporting the album.
Straker is now set to launch a new collection of songs in March 2015. The 12-song album “North Star Falling” was produced by Dean Drouillard (Royal Wood, Justin Rutledge) and weaves a new sound around Straker’s songwriter-piano-pop. Electric guitars, horns, & strings as well as acoustic guitar and banjo help set the stage. The launch of the album (Acronym/Universal Canada) includes a national tour with performances from coast to coast.
Jeffery and his piano-folk-pop music are often compared to a mixture of early Elton John, Ben Folds, Sarah Slean, Billy Joel and Harry Chapin. Originally from small town Saskatchewan, the classically trained pianist was raised by a church organist mother and an auctioneer father. He swears he was born under the piano on the family farm. All this might explain his ability to share songs with audiences. Highlights of recent touring include: a debut performance at the National Arts Centre (Ottawa), invites to several Breakout West Festivals (Western Canadian Music Awards), Regina Folk Festival, Canadian Music Week (Toronto), NXNE (Toronto) and JunoFest.
His songwriting has seen him become a national top 10 finalist in the Canadian Radiostar Songwriting Competition and a top 20 finalist in the global Unisong Competition as well as twice placing in the top 10 in the prestigious Mountain Stage Newsong contest.
Jeffery is a musical descendant of Beethoven through teacher-student lineage (seriously…see below for the full story). He was a student of the Royal Conservatory of Music and received his licentiate diploma in piano performance from Trinity College, London when he was just 19.
Jeffery thanks the Saskatchewan Arts Board, FACTOR (Foundation Assisting Canadian Talent on Recordings), SaskMusic and Creative Saskatchewan for their support of his music.
THE BEETHOVEN CONNECTION:
Jeffery’s musical prowess and flare at the piano has an incredibly famous connection – it’s true. While studying at the conservatory of music at the University of Regina, Jeffery worked with one Frank Crumly, who had been taught by Thomas Manshardt, who previously had been taught by Howard Wells, who was a student of Leschetizky (acknowledged as the greatest teacher of all time), who was taught by Czerny, who, you guessed it, was taught by Beethoven. A similar lineage through Manshardt connects Jeffery to Chopin. Quite the piano pedigree.
