Gina Burgess Catch-Up Transcript
Episode Podcast and Video (with original episode as well!)
Gina Burgess:
As a teacher, we really are guardians. We actually are, and we provide another layer of stability for especially teenagers going through all of the changes in their bodies and their lives. And I just can't stress enough the importance of actually getting to know somebody, to know what they're going through in their home lives, in their social spheres, to be better there for them and to be a better teacher for and with them. I'm also quite inspired, especially with the students that I worked with for the ISNOW concert, the drum dancers. Their commitment to school and to the craft that they're working on was actually super inspiring to me.
Leah Roseman:
Hi, welcome to a special Catch-Up bonus episode with violinist Gina Burgess. Gina has had a really interesting year going back to university in Newfoundland, moving to the far north of Canada, in Iqaluit, and releasing her first album as a band leader. We talked about Inuit throat singing and have included two excerpts from the album, which I encourage you to check out on Bandcamp, linked to this episode. If you missed my first conversation with Gina, you'll be interested to hear her fascinating personal story and how she became so connected with the North. The link for that episode is in this description. Gina, thanks so much for joining me today.
Gina Burgess:
Hi, Leah. Thanks for having me.
Leah Roseman:
So we're doing a bonus Catch-Up episode, and for those listeners who missed your first episode, it's linked directly to this one. And the reason we're doing this is because you've had so many interesting changes in your life since we recorded it, and important musical journeys as well as personal. So let's start with when I first talked to you, you were in Nova Scotia and you were about to leave for Newfoundland.
Gina Burgess:
Yes, that's true.
Leah Roseman:
And not everyone listening is Canadian, so they don't even know what that means if we could ... yeah.
Gina Burgess:
Well, Nova Scotia's a little peninsula off the east coast of Canada, and then Newfoundland and Labrador is a big island. Newfoundland's the island off, what is it? About an half an hour flight, 45 minute flight from Nova Scotia? And then Labrador is attached up to the northeast of Canada.
Leah Roseman:
And you went there to do this program, at university?
Gina Burgess:
Yeah. I went to do a music education degree.
Leah Roseman:
And the reason you chose to do it there was partly because it was very efficient, right?
Gina Burgess:
Yeah, a one-year program, well, September through April in school classes, and then there's a four-month-long internship. Yeah, and it's specifically music based too, which most of the other ed degrees are not.
Leah Roseman:
That's actually really great, and I know it's very rich culturally there that you must have had a wonderful experience living there.
Gina Burgess:
I did. I really, really did love it there. There's amazing live music every single night. Every night of the week, you can go out and see wonderful players. They're playing every night, so their chops are good. They're on top of their game. And all genres as well, jazz and folk and rock, funk, all kinds of different things.
Leah Roseman:
And what was it like being back in school after so many years?
Gina Burgess:
That was a bit challenging, to be honest. Mostly the technology component, of course, because that's ever-changing and quickly changing, but I had a wonderful cohort. I think there was 20 of us around there, and everyone was just so kind and generous with their time, and we all have strengths and so we would contribute to one another in the ways that we can. And it's been a wonderful experience. We're still in touch. We have our Facebook thread and we talk. I was just chatting with them this morning actually asking questions. I'm always the one asking questions. Yeah, it's nice.
Leah Roseman:
So for those people who haven't yet listened to your first episode, they don't know that you were a busy touring and recording artist all over the world doing tons of interesting projects, and you made this big change in your career, I'm sure, partly because of the pandemic, right?
Gina Burgess:
Oh, absolutely. Yeah, 100% actually. So when the pandemic happened, I was touring with Jerry Cans and we had two world tours with them canceled, and I also had a tour of Hawaii canceled. And then I was in Nova Scotia looking for work, of course, and I got a call from HRA, which is Halifax Regional Arts to teach violin in the public school. And I actually got called in to teach in Spryfield, which is where I grew up. And when I grew up there, we didn't have any strings or anything. So I was quite happy to go back to that community and do violin, and I enjoyed it so much that I decided to pursue this music education degree.
Leah Roseman:
Fantastic. And then I know your placement was up in Iqaluit.
Gina Burgess:
Yes.
Leah Roseman:
So if you could describe what that means and how you were able to get there.
Gina Burgess:
Yeah. I knew when I started the program at Memorial that I wanted to do my internship in Iqualuit because I've been going there for 12 years now, and I call it my second home. It really is. I'm there a lot, and I know the community fairly well, and it was looking like it wouldn't be possible just with expenses. And no one's gone there to do an ed degree, and it seemed lost. But then Mary Pearcy Lewis, who is the music teacher at the Inukshuk High in Iqualuit did a Zoom call with my class in Newfoundland. And as soon as I saw her and I saw the Inuit art behind her, and I saw pictures of my students, I said, no, I need to do that.
And a few days after that, Darlene Nuqingaq, who co-runs the Iqaluit Music Society, and she asked if I wanted to teach at the Iqaluit Music Camp, and they fly you there and fly you home. And I said, yes, I absolutely want to do that, and can you fly me home in December? And she said, I can't see why not. And as soon as that happened, I called Memorial and asked if we could make it happen for me to go and intern with Mary, and it was all very quick and it unfolded beautifully.
Leah Roseman:
And Mary's a Newfoundlander who's lived up there for many years.
Gina Burgess:
Yeah. Yeah, she was in Arviat in the west of Nunavut for, I don't know, eight years or something. And then she's been in Iqaluit for the rest of the time, but she's been up there for almost 20 years. Yeah.
Leah Roseman:
And so what kind of things were you doing? Because I think it's pretty broad. It wasn't string playing so much in terms of teaching.
Gina Burgess:
So normally her grade nines, they're on a six-week rotation, so they get to explore art and music and different things for six weeks at a time. They would normally be doing guitar, but since I was up there and we have access to all of the fiddles through the Iqualuit Music Society, they just happened to store their instruments in the high school. We decided to offer fiddle. So the first two cohorts of grade nines got six weeks of violin fiddle, but I was also teaching and learning guitar, band. I ended up playing trumpet quite a bit. Mary's third instrument, I guess is trumpet and choir as well, working with the choir. It's a wonderful, beautiful choir. They incorporate drum dancing and throat singing, and they sing in Inuktitut French and English. So I was doing all of that with them and my private lessons, continuing with students that I've worked with for years and years. It was quite wonderful, very diverse.
Leah Roseman:
So you mentioned throat singing, and there's a throat singer who's featured on your album, which we'll be talking about in a minute. And many people haven't heard that sound. And her name is Cynthia. I can't pronounce her last name, Pit-
Gina Burgess:
Pitsiulak
Leah Roseman:
She does contemporary throat singing, but it comes from this wonderful tradition, if you could talk to that.
Gina Burgess:
Yeah. So traditional Inuit throat singing is found in the Canadian Arctic. It's a game between two women, it's a rhythmic game. And so, one person is a leader and they create a sound using breath, throat, some guttural sounds, also nasal cavities. And a lot of the sounds that they're making are copying sounds of nature. So there's the wind and dogs and tulugak ravens, seagulls, and the other woman is following seconds after the first. So the leader's making these sounds and the follower is creating the sounds after. So it sounds almost like a delay, and it would've been used to pass time. Also, traditionally babies and still are carried on the back in a jacket called an amauti. And so the vibrations will go through the ribcage, through the back and help soothe the babies, keep them occupied. So it's a wonderful tradition, so that's a more traditional style. Contemporary throat singers, Tanya Tagaq is probably one of the most famous women. Usually there's only one person, not partnered, and they incorporate a lot of different sounds as well.
Leah Roseman:
Maybe this will be a good time to introduce ... we could play an excerpt of the first piece on your album, and I encourage people to go over to Bandcamp and buy the album. So I have trouble saying it as you know, if you could say the name.
Gina Burgess:
Sure. It's called Anuri and that is Inuktitut for the wind. Yeah, and so the wind is a traditional Inuit throat song or katajjaq is again the Inuktitut word for throat singing. So yeah, it would've been between two women. And there's a whole song, it's beautiful. I encourage people to go and search up The Wind, and there's some beautiful videos on YouTube of women singing it. So for this album, instead of a second throat singer, the violin takes another part. I'm not copying her, but there is a back and forth and interplay of sorts. And I do feel like it's two people meeting for the first time and interacting and slowly getting to know one another. Yeah. And then that song goes into another song. So Anuri on my album is actually three songs in one. It's The Wind, the introduction with the violin and the throat. The rest of the band comes in, and then it goes into a tune called The Switch, which I wrote in Halifax, my hometown, Kjipuktuk.
And there was a festival here called The Switch where they took the cars off the road and they switched it to pedestrian only. So I love that festival and I wish we would do more of that. But musically, it switches back and forth between four and five and four and five. And again, this whole album is based off the idea of Inuit throat singing of a game, and a lot of delay sounds. So when we play this song live, at any point, any band member can yell "switch," and we all have to very quickly switch to keep it playful and fun and keep you on your toes as well.
On the album, we just did a rather safe version of just four, five, four, five, but it's still in that vein of play. And then it goes into a piece called Mathemagics where I have this repeating melody of eight notes, and it goes down seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. We swim around there for a little bit and then we count back up and we end in seven. So it's a longer piece, it's a long form. Like I said, it's three in one. There's a lot going on in there, but there are certainly a lot of aspects taken from Inuit throat singing or inspired by. I don't like to say, taken, inspired by.
Leah Roseman:
This first clip is part of the first song on the album, and the link to the album is in the description.
(music).
Thanks so much for sharing that.
Gina Burgess:
Yeah.
Leah Roseman:
That is really beautiful.
Gina Burgess:
I hope people like it.
Leah Roseman:
And you did an album release up in the Iqaluit, with the special concert?
Gina Burgess:
Yeah. Yeah, it was super special. Two of my bandmates from Halifax came up. Unfortunately, the third was busy with a circus show, so he was doing his thing. And we had Olivia Chislett sitting in for Cynthia, and she did an incredible job learning all of that music. It's extremely difficult. Throat singing is an extremely complex art form and very hard to do. I always say this, and I will continue to say this, some of the best musicians I know are Inuit throat singers. And so yeah, Olivia didn't have a lot of time to learn the tracks, and she learned it all, and we had a wonderful time playing together.
And then on top of that, the Inuit drum dancers from the high school. So they've been working with Mary for years and years. I envisioned one song, one qilauti player, quilauti is the in Inuit drum. And instead it ended up being many quilauti players, I think nine or 10 of them, on all nine songs off my album. They choreographed themselves, they made up these beautiful, beautiful dances that went along with all of my pieces, and it was just mind-blowing, just amazing what can come out of collaborations, things that you don't even imagine as an individual when you come collectively. Just what is created is really wonderful.
Leah Roseman:
Yeah, so true. And for those people would remember your first episode you did with me, you played solo violin, some tracks that are on the album, but of course, they're so transformed by all the collaboration and layering.
Gina Burgess:
Yeah.
Leah Roseman:
And the name of this album, you might think it's Is Now, but you could also say, I Snow, right?
Gina Burgess:
Yes. Yeah, happy accident.
Leah Roseman:
Yeah.
Gina Burgess:
Yeah. Or what's the other one? Monsi. I've seen it a couple times at festivals where it was upside down by accident.
Leah Roseman:
Oh.
Gina Burgess:
Yeah. But I originally thought of it as Is Now. Part of my meditation and reflective practice is to remind myself of the moment, and this is it, right? It is now, always, so that's where it came from. And then the I Snow was just, like I said, a happy accident. I didn't even know that actually until my records arrived in the mail and I saw it for the first time. I saw it many times on the computer, and I never saw I Snow until it arrived in my house. And now everyone mostly sees I Snow first. Yeah.
Leah Roseman:
Yeah, with the artwork?
Gina Burgess:
Yeah.
Leah Roseman:
Hi, just a quick break from the episode. I'm an independent podcaster who does all the many jobs required to produce the series, and there are a lot of costs I bear as well. Please consider either buying me a virtual coffee as a tip or becoming a monthly supporter, starting at $3 Canadian, which is close to $2 U.S. or two euros, and getting access to unique perks. The link is in the description. Now, back to the episode.
Yeah. I was thinking about Ravens on the Roof, the beautiful video you had made, which is a beautiful collaboration and featured the art of Alan Syliboy. And maybe you could talk a little bit about that project and people could check out that video.
Gina Burgess:
Yeah, I'm really proud of that video and happy with the collaboration. It was also a long time unfolding, and we had many back and forths. There were three other artists working on it, actually. But basically in a nutshell, while I traveled around the Arctic with the Jerry Cans, I just randomly took pictures of tulugaq, ravens, and never anticipating doing anything with them, just having them for my own use. And then I ended up giving those pictures to Alan and he painted on top of the pictures. And another artist, Robert took his images and made them come to life and move. And then another artist added the characters of the Raven. So it's like the opening scene are actually crows from Nova Scotia, and then you'll see this raven together, and then it splits, and a white raven goes.
So it's almost like different things, twofold, actually traveling to the Arctic and doing those things, but also astral planing into other realities through different modes, meditation, plant medicine, dance, anything. So that's certainly an aspect of the video. And that artist came up with a lot of sacred geometry and different things to throw in through there as well. And then Lucas edited the whole thing and put this beautiful, I call it a filter, but he does not like that word. It's more deep than that I guess, but he put it all together and it was really the very end when it all came together that we thought, oh, okay, this is a beautiful piece of art, and I'm really happy with it.
Leah Roseman:
This next clip is from the song Ravens on the Roof, which is available as a single or as part of the album. You can see the video on Gina's YouTube channel. Everything Gina Burgess is linked in the description.
(music).
Great. And you are a very ... I don't know how to put it, but you're crafting is a very important part of your life. It's really part of how you are in the moment, I imagine.
Gina Burgess:
I haven't done it in a while.
Leah Roseman:
Really?
Gina Burgess:
No, I've been so busy.
Leah Roseman:
Because you were too busy with school.
Gina Burgess:
Yeah. Yeah. Those were the busiest four months I've ever had in my life, which is saying something.
Leah Roseman:
Okay.
Gina Burgess:
But I'm about to head back up to Iqaluit next month, and I fully anticipate I am creating space in my life for more crafting. And a few of my very good friends have had babies in the last month and so they'll be home crafting, and I'm moving very close to them so I can walk over. Even in blizzards, I can walk over and we can make art together. I do bead work mostly, and that's my favorite. I do some other things too, but bead work is my favorite, and also quilt making. So I think quilt making will be something I tend to do in the south, and then the beading I'll do up north. It's more portable, that's for sure.
Leah Roseman:
So will you be working up there when you're going this time?
Gina Burgess:
Yeah. I'll keep my private students and I have a couple of yoga classes that I'm teaching at the Arctic College. I'm also running a sober jam biweekly at the Arctic College where anyone can show up and there's instruments provided, or if you just want to sit and have a tea, you can just come and chill out and listen. That's been really rewarding and we're going to continue that. And then I will also work in the high school in some capacity. I know I'll sub for Mary when ... she's going to the Arctic Winter games, so I'll sub in for her class.
And I will also be doing some non-music teaching, which will be very different for me first time in my life, but I do know a lot of the students there. And I'm really realizing through my internship experience that it's the connection with the students that matters more than the subject that you're working with. So I think I will have some value being there, even if I'm not the greatest math teacher or something. I hope I don't get math, but we'll see. Maybe socials. I think I could really roll with that and we can do some cool things.
Leah Roseman:
Well, it's interesting you say that, Gina, because I think sometimes we can learn more from people who've had to work through something. If math comes naturally to someone they haven't had to figure out how to learn it.
Gina Burgess:
That's true.
Leah Roseman:
So you could be a great math teacher.
Gina Burgess:
Wow.
Yeah. You never know. I do think you're right, though. I absolutely think you're right because a lot of even music teachers that I've had who are very naturally gifted and talented, don't necessarily know how to explain how to do something. Oh, oh, "just do it. You just do it". It's like, well, no, I actually need to know the steps to be able to do it. So I think you're onto something there.
Leah Roseman:
Yeah. And what have you learned working with teenagers so intensively?
Gina Burgess:
Wow. Again, I really think it has to do with this connection because I feel like deepening relationships with them is just the most important thing. As a teacher, we really are guardians. We actually are. And we provide another layer of stability for especially teenagers going through all of the changes in their bodies and their lives. And I just can't stress enough the importance of actually getting to know somebody, to know what they're going through in their home lives, in their social spheres, to be better there for them and to be a better teacher for and with them.
I'm also quite inspired, especially with the students that I worked with for the ISNOW concert, the drum dancers. Their commitment to school and to the craft that they're working on was actually super inspiring to me. They showed up every single day. They showed up early, they worked at things on their own at home. They would try different routines and then be really excited to show me the next day, and they just went full force and they have the energy to do it. Right? So it's really cool and inspiring to see when we really focus what we can actually do.
Leah Roseman:
Yeah, that's great. And there's something else I wanted to ask you about, I've talked about with you before that we didn't record because you've worked for many years helping people with grief and palliative care through music, and I know that's something you'd be interested in doing more of.
Gina Burgess:
Yeah, definitely. So another thing, when I was in Iquluit, I started my volunteer work again in the hospital. They don't actually have a palliative care ward or a hospice, but they do have people coming in and dying and all different levels of health, so I started that up again. It felt really great. And then there was a lot of blizzards and a lot of holidays on my day there, so it wasn't as much as I wanted. My goal actually, is to get some of these kids from the choir to go to the hospital.
So the hospital and the high school are directly across the street from one another. And unlike the south where there's a lot of red tape to do different things, it's not so much like that up there. So they would be super happy to have a group. I know they were very happy to have me go over and play my violin and just sit. Sometimes you just sit with folks. But that is certainly my goal is to get some of the younger folks over there and to sing, because singing I think is a little bit different than an instrument.
It's just you. It's you to you, that other person and nothing in between. So I know that some of the students are definitely game to do that and they want to do that, so we'll prepare some appropriate pieces. And then some of the other students, it's not for them and totally fair. It's not for everyone and that's fine. But over the next four months, I do really hope to have them over. I'll continue my work there regardless.
Leah Roseman:
Yeah. Well, this next chapter of yours is really inspiring. It's been great to catch up.
Gina Burgess:
Yes, you too. It's hard to believe everything that's unfolded since we last chatted. It's pretty wild.
Leah Roseman:
Yeah.
Gina Burgess:
Yeah.
Leah Roseman:
I so hope you enjoyed this catch up with Gina, and please check out my complete episodes catalog as I continue to feature a diversity of musicians, with wealth of creative experience, and personal perspectives. Thanks for following this podcast, and please share this episode with your friends. Have a great week.
