July 1, 2015 – Toronto, ON
Pan-Canadian project to feature orchestras from across the country
With a nod to Canada’s birthday today, Canadian songstress Eleanor McCain announces True North: The Canadian Songbook (working title), a musical project honouring Canada’s sesquicentennial. The project will cover beloved Canadian songs by some of the country’s most iconic songwriters reimagined through new orchestral arrangements. Along with Eleanor’s vocals, the album will feature orchestras from Newfoundland to British Columbia (and many points in between), as well as arrangers and soloists from across the country. True North: The Canadian Songbook will showcase Canada from many diverse perspectives as the country celebrates its 150th birthday.
A three-time East Coast Music Award nominee, Eleanor McCain is known for her classical crossover style that includes a mix of pop, Celtic, classical, seasonal, and jazz genres on her albums and performances. Her most recent recording, Runaway, is an album of contemporary and classic love songs arranged for orchestra, produced by Juno-award nominated jazz singer Matt Dusk, co-produced by Shelly Berger and engineered by Juno award winning engineer John “Beetle” Bailey. On True North: The Canadian Songbook, McCain teams up with Emmy Award- winning composer, producer and musician Don Breithaupt who will produce the project, while Neil Edwards (CEO, Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra) will act as project consultant. Eleanor welcomes back John Bailey on engineering alongside orchestral music engineering specialist Jeremy Tusz. Conducting the numerous orchestra sessions will be Martin MacDonald (Associate Conductor for Symphony Nova Scotia).
“My career and passion have always been about creating an emotional connection to music. A New Brunswick girl at heart, I am deeply proud of being Canadian and cannot think of a more fitting way to express this than celebrating the country’s world-class talent with True North: The Canadian Songbook,” said Eleanor McCain. “We are reimagining the Canadian Songbook through new orchestral arrangements of songs by iconic Canadian songwriters. I am thrilled to be working with some of the country’s finest collaborators to create something meaningful and lasting to honour our country on her 150th Birthday!”
Don Breithaupt has been recognized with an Emmy Award, three SOCAN Awards and two International Songwriting Competition Awards (ISC) for his composing and songwriting. His band Monkey House is critically acclaimed and he composes songs with his brother Jeff for The Breithaupt Brothers Songbook, which has regular performances in New York. A fixture in the Canadian rock and pop scene over the decades, he has toured with Kim Mitchell, Rik Emmett and Sass Jordan. Breithaupt brings a wealth of experience and connections to the material that will feature prominently in True North: The Canadian Songbook.
“With True North: The Canadian Songbook, Eleanor will offer a survey course in the last forty years of Canadian pop and rock music,” said Don Breithaupt. “With a mix of regions, styles and decades, there will be something for everyone — interpreted in Eleanor’s unique and authentic way. True North: The Canadian Songbook will be a musical touchstone for what Canada means to people on this historic birthday.”
McCain is delighted to announce the involvement of the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra (NSO) and the Victoria Symphony (VS) in True North: The Canadian Songbook. Conversations with additional orchestras and collaborators are underway and will be announced in the months ahead.
On July 17, Eleanor McCain will be performing with Canadian crooner Matt Dusk at the Indian River Festival Show in Prince Edward Island. For concert information click here
MEDIA CONTACT:
Deb McCain 416-402-5681
deb@debmccain.com