As a musician, it is amazing to be able to work intensely with a composer on a newly finished commission.  The Continuum Consort recently wrapped up a residency at ArtSpring on Salt Spring Island at the end of June and it was such a pleasure to work with composer Linda Bouchard.  Our first morning, we rehearsed alone with her and had the chance to ask a million questions.  It was great to clarify some of the notations in our parts and find out exactly what she wanted to hear – something you don’t often have the opportunity to do with a composer, living or dead.

The next day, we worked with Linda, our choreographer Lori Hamar, and two dancers from triPOD dance collective, Brandy Baybutt and Matilda Cobanli.  It was fascinating to watch the dance unfold to the music and so hard to keep your eyes on the page!  That evening we staged a public presentation – something that was difficult to do considering the dancers had only heard the music for the first time that morning.  We received a really positive response from the audience, and what a great audience they were!  That’s what is so great about Salt Spring Island – it is such a passionate, artistic community.  The audience was full of past or present dancers, artists, choreographers, musicians, lighting designers and sound engineers.  We felt really honoured to have such wonderful and productive feedback and we all left this experience feeling incredibly motivated and inspired.