While this past year has kept many musicians and performers off the stage, a lot of songwriters and composers have used the down time to create new works. For composers of Christmas music, the holiday season is an opportunity to focus on messages of gratitude and wonder.
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Reg and Lynne Dickson are beloved makers of music on the Coast. In their almost fifty years here, they have been popular and generous performers in many settings. In 1994 Lynne started the thriving and popular Music Makers, which continues to offer generations of local tots the opportunity to experience the thrill and joy of playing music. The Dicksons have performed at care homes and benefits for numerous worthy causes, and have directed choirs for children and adults. Their very first recording was a Christmas album in 1989, Christmas With Harmony, that consisted of seven original holiday songs. It featured Reg on guitar, Michelle Bruce on violin, and Lynne and Reg on vocals.
“Light the Lights” might be the song for which Reg and Lynne are best known. Recorded in 1995 to raise money for the upkeep of Rockwood Heritage House in Sechelt, this is the melody that many of us start humming about now; the song has been performed for the past twenty-five years at the Light the Lights ceremony, which kicks off the holiday season in Sechelt. And while the Dicksons recently stepped down from hosting the yearly event, they have been working with local composer Kenneth Norman Johnson to arrange “Light the Lights” for publication in SAB (soprano, alto, bass) plus treble chorus, to ensure that choirs can sing this song to brighten the holiday season in years to come. All of their music is available on SoundCloud. Lynne adds, “This Christmas season will be different than any we have experienced before. Thankfully we still have music to tie us together in these interesting times.”
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Patricia Burnett moved to the Coast permanently in 2018 after many years on the road as a performer in various bands, playing piano (she has a degree in classical piano) and singing. She’s not slowing down though, and has been a popular solo performer at various venues and for the Pender Harbour Blues Festival. She has made songwriting, collaborating, and recording a priority since moving here.
“I recently recorded ‘Remember.’ It’s out on YouTube, and I am currently about to release ‘Dear Michaels’ about our two Canadians exiled in China. It’s a big song and includes our very own [Sunshine Coast’s] Serena Eades on fiddle.”
One of her latest songs is a new country-style holiday piece, “Christmas Apart.” You might be able to hear her sing it this season at the Clubhouse at the Pender Harbour Golf Club. Burnett gives the owner of the Clubhouse, Mike Gojevik, full marks for navigating the pandemic. “Mike is such a wonderful, warm, welcoming host! He’s providing work for many musicians, and at the same time offering a safe environment for his staff and customers.”
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Composer/writer/conductor/director Lesley Southerland’s Christmas compositions and arrangements for choir often include instrumentalists as well. Maybe because she recognizes that audiences delight in (for instance) a beautifully-played clarinet. Or maybe because she’s eager to use some of Powell River’s talent.
“There is a wealth of talent in Powell River. I particularly enjoy bringing instrumentalists and vocalists together.” Two of her more recent compositions for Christmas are “Mary” for choir, piano, and clarinet, and the haunting and evocative “A Snowflake Falls” for treble choir.
Sutherland has worked extensively in television, film, theatre, and opera. Since moving to Powell River in 2018, she has taken on the youth choir at the Academy of Music and has been involved with many other creative projects. Holiday music holds a special place for her. “For me, Christmas music evokes a magical sense of wonder, mystery, hope, and joy.”
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Someone who grew up in a town called Snowflake, Manitoba, never really had a choice: Kenneth Norman Johnson has a thing for Christmas. Of his more than 100 works, about a quarter are winter and Christmas songs.
“I think the inspiration for my Christmas music is childhood memories of life on the Prairies. That includes the songs about winter, ice-covered branches, snow forts, family celebrations . . . these definitely inspired “Castles in the Snow” (a musical stage production), which we premiered on the Coast in 2014.”
Johnson recalls a time when the winter school bus was a horse-drawn sled. For him, Christmas was and continues to be a time of joy and wonder. His winter music ranges from spiritual to sentimental. Many of his pieces are a celebration of the beauty of the natural world during the winter season. He writes in in a variety of styles from semi-classical to pop to fireside jazz. He’s written Christmas musicals for kids, holiday film scores for orchestra, stage productions, and he has arranged many of his pieces for choir. His solo piano recording of the title song from “Castles in the Snow” continues to be one of his most streamed pieces of music. Johnson’s website is being expanded to reflect his company’s (Kappa Arts) newest projects and directions, but his recordings are available on all the streaming sites. He can be reached at for publications.
Johnson directs the Pender Harbour Choir and has lived in Garden Bay for many years. He doesn’t find the relative lack of winter weather to be a hindrance to his inspiration. “It’s interesting that most of my Christmas music was written in the summer or when I was working in warm climates. As joyful as my memories of the Prairies are, I am pretty happy to be here where winter is less harsh.”
