THIS CLASS IS NOW FULL

Scholarships and Bursaries are available for all Island Mountain Arts Programs

Link here for information about accommodations for students

To register call 1-800-442-2787 or online below.
You can also mail a cheque to Island Mountain Arts, Box 65, Wells, BC, V0K 2R0

Workshop Description

This course focuses on both writing and performance aimed at facilitating self-expression through music, song and spoken word poetry. Combining elements of musical theory, improvisation techniques, lyric writing, collaboration with peers and working one-on-one with the instructors, students get and incredibly dynamic and transformational experience. This program is suitable for complete beginners, as well as students with prior musical experience. Corwin brings his mobile recording studio to give students an opportunity to record their new tunes and have a CD to take home with them. Students perform their new songs at the ArtsWells Festival. Having taught this course at IMA for over ten years, professional BC musician Corwin Fox has developed an incredible program that has been life-changing for many of the young people who have taken part.

Instructor Bios

CORWIN FOX

Corwin Fox is a Canadian songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist who has been hailed as “a shining light in Canadian roots music” by Doug Cox (artistic director, Vancouver Island Music Festival). Known as much for his studio expertise as his live show, Corwin has toured extensively across Canada, the U.S. and Australia performing his songs on banjo, guitar and ukelele. He has played venues and festivals large and small, some by himself, some with his band Morlove, and some with such luminaries as Fred Penner, Shane Koyczan and the Short Story Long, Alex Cuba, Kim Barlow and Raghu Lokanathan.

KIA KADIRI

Island Mountain Arts is excited to welcome back Kia Kadiri to teach at this summer’s workshop. Kia’s passion for music, rap, and poetry makes her extremely productive as a workshop leader, and engages even those participants who are shy to perform. Kia is warm, welcoming and energetic, which makes her a magnet for adults and children. The goals of her workshops are always to help youth build self-confidence, and connect to their cultural identities, using music, rap and poetry. She enjoys helping them express their ideas, communicating struggles that they face, addressing issues in their communities, and most of all having fun while they learn new skills. She explores basic music theory, improvisation techniques, and writing lyrics. She can also offer music recording workshops, and beginner Hip-Hop/Break dancing classes.

MAIYA ROBBIE

Maiya Robbie, Teacher and Centre Director of Little Tree Music Together, has been teaching music to children and adults for over 10 years. Starting out independently she, upon moving back to the Okanagan after some years away, joined the Maeve Lily School of Music in 2010 as a private instructor in Guitar, Voice, and Songwriting.  In the winter of 2012, after researching early childhood music development, found the early childhood music and movement program, Music Together (http://musictogether.com/).  She swiftly became fascinated by all the program had to offer to little ones, parents and families, as well as communities.  As a firm believer in non-performance based teaching for under 5's , as well as the importance of positive, dynamic role modeling from parents, teachers and caregivers, Music Together was a perfect fit for her teaching goals.  And so, Little Tree Music Together was born!  Serving communities around the Okanagan Valley, Maiya's highest hope is that music making, a vital ingredient in early childhood development and family growth, will be more easily accessed by all.  Along with scheduled weekly classes in various towns and cities, Maiya is working to offer outreach programming in tandem with local not-for-profits dedicated to community development.

Musically: After receiving a Diploma of Music from Selkirk College, Maiya spent time writing and playing her original music around Vancouver and the Interior of BC.  In 2006 she joined and helped create the 'Talk Rock' band Shane Koyczan and the Short Story Long.  Eight years later the band is going strong, performing to audiences around North America at venues such The Vogue in Vancouver and festivals such as the Vancouver Folk Fest and Hillside Festival in Guelph, Ontario, and Telluride in Colorado. Maiya is often touring in summer, with bands as well as on her own. This all helps her keep her feet warmed up for dancing with kids and families through the school year! 

SHAWN STEPHENSON

Shawn Stephenson is a composer, performer, music educator and professional recording and live sound engineer with over 20 years experience in the industry. His diverse skill set has led him to work in music composition and production for the Discovery Network, Vision TV, Tourism Canada and Tourism BC. As the owner/operator of Becoming Sound studios he specializes in small to mid size ensemble recordings, mixing and mastering as well as high quality on site or remote recordings. As an educator, Shawn has facilitated songwriting workshops for children, youth and adults and operates a thriving music education business teaching beginner to advanced guitar, music theory, ear training, vocal technique and basic piano to students aged 5 to 50.  As the artistic and technical director of the Tiny Lights Festival in Ymir BC over the past 5 years, he has worked with the community and local youth to engage them in the inner workings of the festival by providing quality youth programming and incorporating youth and adults in technical production. Shawn continues to seek out opportunities to share his skill and knowledge to increase the quality and depth of musical experience for those both on the stage and off.

Events Included:

• Monday, July 29, 7pm: Student Welcome Reception, IMA Gallery (2323 Pooley Street) -Meet your instructor and pick up your student information packages.

• Saturday, August 3, ArtsWells Festival Performance –Outdoor Stage, Students perform their new creations as part of the festival.

IMA students also receive free admission to Barkerville Historic Town and many discounts to local businesses.

General Course Information for Young People

Classes are held in the Wells School and run from 9am – 3:30pm with a lunch break between 12 – 1pm.

Parents or guardians are responsible for child or youth supervision during lunch and before and after class hours.

IMA is not liable for any personal injuries occurring on property rented (or owned) by IMA, and IMA is not responsible for lost or stolen personal property.

At the discretion of the teacher or IMA staff, children or youth who consistently disrupt the class may be removed from the course without a course refund.