music

The theatre of Orville Peck

Canada’s most famous gay country singer has cultivated intrigue—and heaps of fans—with his singular look and made-up name. What’s true about the man behind the mask? 

(Photograph by Jimmy Fontaine)

Faouzia could be Gen Z’s next big pop star

The Moroccan-Canadian singer built a huge fan base and netted a Juno nomination—without even releasing an album

First page of a 961 letter from Luther Perkins to Margie Perkins Beaver. (Courtesy of Margie Perkins Beaver)

This letter tells the story of Johnny Cash’s pivotal 1961 trip to Newfoundland

Luther Perkins, Cash’s lead guitarist at the time, wrote the letter to his wife

Traviata (Courtesy of Chris Hutcheson/COC)

Themes of class and patriarchy in the classic opera ‘La Traviata’ still resonate today

One fancifully sinister scene in the Canadian Opera Company’s 2021-22 performance of ‘La Traviata’ encapsulates why we return to the opera time and time again

(Illustration by LeeAndra Cianci)

Dolly Parton has been very busy. What might she do next?

She donated a million dollars to fund vaccine research and wrote a thriller releasing spring 2022. Here are some (slightly far-fetched) ideas of what she may do next.

Dion during her performance at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, Feb. 28, 2020 (Nina Westervelt/The New York Times/Redux Pictures)

Why Céline Dion is what we all need right now

Canada’s beloved pop star is the emotional defibrillator for this exact moment. And we’ve never needed her more.

Biali performs 'live' with musicians from her new album (Laila Biali/YouTube)

With Quarantunes, Laila Biali tours from home

When the pandemic wiped her high-profile gigs off the calendar, the Juno-winning musician and her bandmates took to the virtual stage

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - FEBRUARY 16: k.d. lang performs during Fire Fight Australia at ANZ Stadium on February 16, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Cole Bennetts/Getty Images)

k.d. lang’s pandemic playlist

From John Prine to Debussy — here’s what’s in lang’s rotation during isolation

The bountiful afterlife of Leonard Cohen

Cohen lives on with a new book, and a new album is even in the offing

Québécois music isn’t marginalized—it’s English Canadians who are missing out

How Quebec’s music industry has remained strong, prolific, and diverse, while also being unapologetically Québécois

The secret music career of legendary filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin

Prolific even into her eighties, the documentarian has also been harbouring musical gifts that few knew about—until now, with a reissue of her stunning 1988 album

Joshua Bell on the steadying power of music in an age of distraction

The acclaimed violinist is coming to Ottawa for a concert based on the time he busked for rush-hour subway crowds, and had adults ignore him—and kids notice