Joe K. Walsh is an acclaimed master of bluegrass mandolin and a professor at Berklee College, and in this episode you’ll hear about many of his inspiring collaborations including with Darol Anger, Mike Block, Grant Gordy, Alex Hargreaves and Mike Marshall. We are also featuring some music from some of his albums inluding “If Not Now, Who?” We talked about Joe’s approach as an educator, the challenges and joys of the touring life, the importance of innovation and taking chances musically. Joe’s love of music and the mandolin shines brightly in this candid conversation. The podcast, video and transcript versions of this interview are all linked here.

Interview with the pioneering percussion soloist Lisa Pegher. The podcast, video and transcript are all linked here. Lisa Pegher is a brilliant American percussion soloist and drummer, and also a composer, improvisor and software engineer. She is known for pioneering percussion as a solo instrument within the orchestral realm and beyond, making it her life’s work to present percussion to larger audiences by commissioning, collaborating, and creating new works and performances that bring percussion to the front of the stage.cently, she premiered a We talked about her new concerto/show, "Circuits and Skins," written for her by Paul Dooley, which explores ways to meld orchestra with Electronic Dance Music, and also her project A.I.RE (ARtificial Iintelligence Rhythm Evolution. You’ll hear about her perspectives on self-care, social media, the value of mentors, and a fascinating variety of her performances during this episode.

Jessica Cottis is an acclaimed orchestral conductor, and in this wide-ranging interview you’ll gain insights into the special world of orchestral conductors and also some of Jessica’s interests in the natural world and the arts. She spoke to me about her musical path, from how she made her first trumpet, to life on a sheep farm, to her transition from a career as a concert organist, to lessons learned from conducting mentors including Colin Davis and Colin Metters. Jessica is such an articulate champion of the value of music and the arts, and I’ve also been privileged to have worked with her in my role as a violinist in Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra. I have a special interest in synesthesia, so I was interested in hearing her experience of sound through colour, and if you look at the description of this episode, you’ll find detailed timestamps for the many topics covered, inluding some beautiful music from Julie Cooper’s new album Oculus with Jessica Cottis conducting. Jessica also shared her difficult recovery from a concussion and how her senses were further mixed for a period of time. Like all my episodes, you can watch this on my YouTube channel or listen to the podcast, and I’ve also linked the transcript.

2024 Interiew with the brilliant Cheng2 Duo with cellist Bryan Cheng and pianist Silvie Cheng. The podcast, video, and transcript are all linked here. They have performed to great acclaim worldwide and have released to date four fantastic albums, the most recent Portrait which was nominated for a JUNO award. Portrait features music by composers from diverse Asian heritages, and in this podcast, Bryan and Silvie reflect on some important personal experiences related to this. We are featuring some of the music from Portrait and some of their other projects in this episode, with their insights on championing living composers such as Paul Wiancko and Dinuk Wijeratne and reaching new audiences. I asked them about their Carnegie Hall debut when Bryan had just started high school, and some of their individual experiences with concert preparation, touring, and finding a life-balance. Some of what you’ll hear about are Bryan’s reflections on his memorable childhood lessons with Yuli Turovsky, the incredible opportunity he’s had to play the Bonjour Strad, and his experiences with international competitions. Silvie shared her reflections on her mentors and her life as a performer and educator in New York.