singing, recording and performing oh my!

Last December I told you about the Up Your Watershed show I was performing in with Holly Arntzen and the Dream Band at the Bell Centre (a beautiful soft seat theatre venue in Surrey BC).

Yay! We have a video and I thought I would share a clip of one of the songs.........




It really was a wonderful show and I was proud to be a part of it. We do have other schools scheduled to participate in the future and plans are to bring more of these great events to many more schools so if you think you would like your local school to be a part of this sort of inspiring event please do contact Holly through her website to find out how.

This Thursday we will be at the Norman Rothstien theatre to perform the concert with a choir of 100 kids from David Lloyd George School. The last two weeks have been spent rehearsing with the children and things are looking fantastic already. The school is preparing to launch a book that the children wrote about diversity so this show is partly a celebration of the launch of this book and partly an event to support  Project Blue Sky, a program/website dedicated to helping children and their families track the ways in which they personally are reducing their carbon footprint by walking, bike riding and/or taking the bus rather than driving. The project was created by Olympic Rowing silver medalist David Calder.
.

For the first time ever, this Thursday at the show we will be performing the song Blue Sky (written by Holly Arntzen and Kevin Wright), a song which was requested by Vanoc to bring awareness to Project Blue Sky,

Yesterday I was at the Factory studios with Holly and Kevin who were recording  Blue Sky with some truly talented musicians also known as the Dream Band, These fellas are among the same players that do the live theatre shows with the childrens choirs.

For me it was quite an outstanding day, to be there hanging around in such a rich creative environment with so many well respected musicians. These guys and gals are some of the nicest most down to earth people you will meet and I always love having the opportunity to work with them all and share in the laughter. As of yet I don't have a recording of the song to share with you seeing as the mixing is still in process, but I thought that what I would do is share some photos from the day and give you the links to the players so that you can go and check out their work for yourself.

Holly Arntzen is just so impressive to watch perform. I love witnessing her mastery of her instruments and seeing her fearlessness in the studio and on stage. I feel as if I am learning a world of good just by being around her and working with her and I am very grateful she has made me a part of her team.

Kevin Wright is a bundle of energy and a bold performer. His gravelly rock voice brings an excitement to the songs that the kids pick up on and really gravitate towards..

Shawn Soucy is a longtime dear and trusted friend. As I have said many times before, I am always delighted to be onstage when I know Shawn is at the kit (which is fairly often seeing as he is the drummer for the Hitmen, a band I am so very lucky to be able to perform with).

Michael Creber was playing keys on this session and it was the first time I have met him  but right away I noticed how tasty his playing is and I just sat and watched his fingers tickle the ivories for a while as the band rehearsed. It was very nice to meet him and I look forward to working with him again in future.

Brian Newcombe I have been lucky enough to play live with in another band that I sub in for so I've had the chance to get to know him on a number of occassions and I adore him completely.  Brian has an impressive list of credits to his name and has played bass on so many tracks for so many artists that I would be very surprised if you yourself have not heard his low notes being played on some album somewhere in your collection.

David Sinclair , Sarah McLachlan says David is a beautiful and gifted guitar player and I couldn't agree more. Every time I see him work his magic with a guitar my eyes are simply glued to his fingers dancing on the fretboard. I was in the studio the day he laid the guitar solo to the track of Up Your Watershed and I seriously felt goosebumps while he was taking the pass that actually went on the record.  Watch the guitar solo in the video above you will see what I mean. Every time I see it, I give a little cheer of delight. ~woot~ David!!

                                                                             

Me, adding my background vocals to the mix.

Listening.

                                                                           

It was a fun day, the kind that I would like to remember happened this January day in 2010 so here it is, my memories. What a great way to start the year if you ask me. Thank you to all of you for once again sharing your time and energy with me.

And to you all who are reading, thank you, I hope your year is going well so far.

Rach xo

~highlights for 2009~

~2009 highlights~

The first thing written down in my 2009 calander for January,
*Loverboy! Wow was that only last year? It's amazing that my first big gig of the year was backstage at the Commodore, me in my 'camera-girl' role, filming Loverboy for ALL ACCESS PASS.  I had as much fun shooting the action from all angles than I would have if I was onstage singing background vox with the girls, it was really eye opening for me and kind of kicked off our You Tube channel in a new direction. I made three videos and did a long blog post on it which you can find here.

                                                              

Camera girl at the Commodore Ballroom

In February * I played Lulu's lounge at the River Rock Casino in Richmond and Blondie, yes, the band Blondie, was playing in the show theatre the next night so the band and crew were right there in the hotel. What an excitement,  they came into the lounge and they were all so nice, I was all fired up with energy so I wound up having a very good night onstage and I was invited to go see the rehearsal the next day! I told the story on my blog  a few days later, and then got a message that a few people from the band  and crew had actually read the blog and it  had been decided they would put a link to my blog along with a picture of me right on their website! For a  hobby blogger like myself, that's some very cool beans right there! :)

Rachael Chatoor,  Clem Burke

March was very busy, probably the biggest honour was to be given a F*ck cancer bracelet and being allowed to be an ambassador for the very worthy cause spearheaded by a very determined Susan Fiedler  See post here.
* Creatively, I worked on more videos and one in particular was a real blast to do. I was visiting  with Sherry St Germain  as she mixed down her album, Sherry is a powerful and very talented performer who is now is headlining in a show in Las Vegas..... I just knew she was heading for big things the moment I met her!
* March was a bittersweet time because a schoolmate Schrader Heizer tragically passed away and it really hit home for a lot of people. All of a sudden friends I had not seen in over 20 years were in constant contatct with me and it felt like yesterday was today,  we re-connected easily and I helped (in a small way) them pull together a beautiful event in honour of a well loved friend. I missed all of my high school reunions so it was really nice to be able to see so many people after all of these years, but it was sad that it was under such tragic circumstances.  In the end though, I think we did a good job of honouring Shred in a way he would have been proud of.
* Another cool happening, one of my videos was played on Breakfast Television. I had sent the link to Vancouver's jazzy morning BT host  Dawn Chubai via facebook and she thoughtfully passed it onto her producers who played a portion of it on air one morning. I really love this city for how it supports local artists! Thanks BT!

Susan Fielder's F*ck Cancer bracelet.

                                                


In April * I helped organize a lunch with Twitter pal  Erica Ehm, founder of the Yummy Mummy Club. Erica seems to be a constant source of inspiration for me and that day was no different because it is where I first heard about the League of Rock. It was a rich day full of laughter, I loved meeting all of the women, so grounded and powerful in themselves, they connect in a way that only sisters in the village can. Erica just draws this kind of woman close  to her and helps foster friendships. There was so much sharing energy  going around,  I made a video of the lunch which you can see here.
*  In April I also made a video featuring Rebecca Bolwitt speaking at a Meet n Tweet! Rebecca, Miss 604 is and always will be one of my favorite people for her willingness to help me on my journey towards understanding and using social media to enhance and document my projects.
                                   

Erica Ehm and a bunch of very Yummy Mummies at the Tweet Up!

In May * I sang for the advanced screening of Mother's and Daughters, a powerful movie about relationships between women, and the women that raised them. Babz Chula one of the talented actresses involved in the film has  been another inspiring influence in my life for her heartfelt  and open sharing of her personal battle with cancer. Her words on her blog sustained me through my grief as they helped me understand my own father's  battle. I have been thrilled to contribute to her projects in the past and will continue to do so anytime someone honors me with a request to help.
* Kelly & Rach's All Access pass released more videos this month, a piece on the always entertaining, dapper Don Adams of DonPaul Entertainmant which I enjoy just because he is such a colourful character to shoot and make a story with. And a visit with Rick Tippe was a real fun day for myself and Kelly, where we took the opportunity to chat with him about his new online project sharing his experience on and offstage with his online audience ( I also had the chance to sit down and  re-write one of my songs with Rick which wound up winning a nod from Tennesse Concerts in Nashville, through Sonicbids).
                                                

At the advance Screening of Mother's and Daughters

   



I am looking at June now and I really don't know how I do all the things that I do. I am very lucky  really.
* June saw the collab of myself and OS5  for  Peggy's party. This was a cosmic event, everything all lined up perfectly so this day could happen and I am just so glad that I was a part of the surprise, it meant a lot to me to be there an I am so thankful that they tracked me down and asked me to help !  And a big thanks to the boys from OS5 for including me on their album and being there for me for this gig! It was a great collab and I really enjoyed working with them.
* My song was released on a CD  for Stupid Cancer and it makes me proud to have contributed in some way. Much thanks to Matthew Zachary who found my song and was so supportive of it. I will never forget your powerful words and insistence that my song be a part of your project.  And let me tell you all something that you may or may not believe, my father told me this would happen to this song, a few months after he passed away, he told me. You do what you wish with that info. :) 

                                                                      Rach and OS5




July was more of the same,
*Abba show's, with the wonderful Jonas and Jeanette of Mooncoin productions.
* gigging/subbing in with Dr Strangelove
* my first songwriter in the round at the Merrit Mountain Music Festival, an event for which I made my first CD with the help of producer / musician Mick Dalla Vee who owns Millenia Sound design
* Also in July, the kickoff for the League of Rock which I had by this time been invited to participate in because, well I begged my friend Erica to tell her husband Terry Moshenberg, founder of the League of Rock about me. I just knew the second I heard about this project, that I would love it and I did, I do, and it's been one exciting revelation after another on this crazy little ride, making so many new friends, connecting with the members and meeting new music industry folks from all corners of the music world. Its just very exciting and things really started to rev up during the days we did our first round of television, radio and press promotions. Just read this post and watch the video and try and tell me I was not the luckiest girl in the city on that day.

League of Rock kickoff event, Terry Moshenberg, Me, Nando Poelsil, Stephen Pallivicini

August *was birthday month, can you imagine celebrating your birthday with the Gap? I did ,with the help of Rob Boshaw and Shawn Soucy,  me and the Gap turned 40 together. I send a thank you to all the people who came out to celebrate with me, it was a smooth transition thanks to your love and support .
* I was also PUNKED and secretly tricked into a day of ziplining, something I had been excited to try since the beginning of summer.
* Then there was my first gig with the Hitmen at Lulu's lounge!

                                                                                 

                                                      Shawn Soucy, Me, Rob Boshaw
                                              (photo courtesy of Rob's wife, my friend Sharylin)

September did not slow down one bit and in fact it started with a trip to Classic Rock 101  where I did an All Access Pass video with Dee Lippingwell and we wound up staying on in the studio to judge the Westcoast Ceaser contest.
* My brother got married and I made my first trip to Vegas, I didn't post about it but I had to mention it here because he is my little brother
* A great fun night was blogged about when I was involved in two different tweet-ups in one evening, first with Miss 604 where I sang for an event supporting the Children's hospital, and then later I met up with Erica again for a Yummy Mummy mom's night out Tweet-up! It's always fun and real with those girls, and so great to connect with and not apologize for being a woman first
* The excitement ended once again at Classic Rock 101 when Nicola and I went in and did a spot on-air to talk about the League of Rock, want to see it?  I made a video! *

Erica Ehm and Rach at the Yummy Tweet up!

October *began with a bang, as it started out with the first final showcase  at the Yale  for the Vancouver chapter of the League of Rock.  I finally got the chance to really feel the power of the community and I felt like our little family had grown into something very cool which was represented throughout the night as band after band took to the stage and the smiles got bigger and bigger. When our esteemed coach Tal Bachman took the stage for the finale and  I was able to stay onstage and throw a few background harmonies around, not only was I was clearly delighted,  I was embarrasingly awestruck as I am one of the legions of  adoring fans who thinks the man  is easily the most talented, inspiring, undeniably handsome fellow walking on the planet. And  because it was such a big surprise to me when he was invited onstage to jam, I would have to say that this  moment easily takes the top prize for the coolest thrill of the year,...... hands down!!!
*  I also had a number of wonderful gigs including an Abba gig where I got to switch it up and play a blonde for the night, ooh la la funshine!
* There was also a great trade show where I was able to work on the corporate events side of the League of Rock and I can really see where things are headed for this project in the future so stay tuned to hear more about it this year.
* Near the end of October I also started working in earnest on the Voices of Nature project with Holly Arntzen and this is just so inspiring to be able to bring music and learning to children and work directly with them on such an exciting show.

                                            

Hands down, this was the highlight event of the year for me!
 Me, Tal Bachman, Terry Moshenberg, Rob Boshaw. (Nando on drums)

November *was very focused on the childrens program Up Your Watershed which is part of the Voices of Nature series.  we went up to Williams lake and has a marvelous time working with the kids. Everything was new to me so I was easily motivated to tear up. I love seeing young chidren reach way up high, I just do. I couldn't help but love doing this, you can see more here.
* Near the end of the month I sang Xmas Carols with two dynamic girlfriends, Layla Vaugeois and Kimmy Baskerville. It was the  Canuck Place Christmas Tree lighting ceremony and it was a real treat to get crazy with those girls and spread some Christmas cheer towards a worthwhile cause.

Holly Arntzen, Me

December *was no slow down either, the final show for Up your Watershed at the Bell Centre happened and it was truly a magical event. They are making a video for it as we speak so you will hear about it  and see more in due time.

* The League of Rock had their second final showcase at the Yale and it was a fantastic time as well, pics and videos are still coming for that event and I will share them when they are sent to me.

*The world Kindness Concert had an ALL star line up and I was lucky enough to have been invited to make a video of the event which is aimed at bringing awareness and skills to stop bullying.

* I also enjoyed a crazy run of work with all of my favorite bands over the holidays and the last final big show was held at none other than the Commodore Ballroom with the Hitmen.  I can't believe how this year has come full circle  in that respect. If  you recall that last year I was just so excited to be backstage at the Commodore filming Loverboy, and now here I was front and centre on the same stage with a dressing room and everything. It really was a bright end to an outstanding year of growth. If you would like to read more about it look no farther than the previous  post.

Kent Wallace, Bill Abbott, Tom Arntzen, Rachael Chatoor, James Wright, Shawn Soucy, Nathen Aswell






So good bye 2009, it was a lovely time, I hope everyone out there had as much fun as I did and managed to fulfill a few dreams. I feel like I barely had time to scratch the surface here, a year is pretty hard to sum up, there is more, there is so much more.  In the end though, it's pretty simple, I lived,  I walked, I ran, I sang, I danced, I flew, I climbed, I stumbled, I fell .........and I picked myself up,...... over and over again I picked myself up.... despite any and every fall....... and I always found a reason to look forward.
There is power in that, and at the end of the day, considering where I was last year,  I'm really pretty  happy with where I am today.

I look forward to 2010, thanks for hanging out with me, may you always pick yourself up
and look forward...........with hearts and hugs, Rach.

Christmas at the Commodore Ballroom

                                                                      

 The Hitmen

Kent Wallace, Bill Abbott, Tom Arntzen, Rachael Chatoor, James Wright, Shawn Soucy, Nathen Aswell
                                                               

So last Satuday night I was singing with the fabulous Hitmen at the Commodore Ballroom  which is a Live Nation venue in Vancouver BC. It was truly an exciting end to a fantastic year. 

As I strolled around backstage during soundcheck, it occured to me that just last year I was there filming the Loverboy videos with Kelly Brock, feeling  in complete awe of the venue and the stage that has hosted some of  the most talented artists and exciting concerts this city has seen. Now here I was, about to be front and centre on the same stage with an amazing band being treated like royalty and I even had my own dressing room.

The gig was a blast and the band was on fire. The sound was amazing, the stage was vast and I was completely free to fly, so I did. I felt like a million bucks.

There really is not a lot more to say other than  just share a few pics from the night!

Nathan with his famous Stick ( a bass/guitar combo) and James Wright

(who sat in for Russell Marsland on guitar).

Its awesome playing any gig with Shawn Soucy, a long time dear and trusted friend, I

always feel very secure onstage knowing Shawn is laying down the beats.

No kidding, Tom is just fun onstage, another nutter of a showman I can  play off of and be goofy with.

The horn section just brings thing to the next level! LOVE it!

Watch out for my Vodoo child, watch out for my Vodoo.

I am glad to report that it all went very well, the client sent us a warm email saying he got floods of compliments from the crowd and that he thought it was the best he had seen the band,  he even pointed out the new vocalist was terrific (the new vocalist being me)!

So I ended the year with quite a bang, I am so thankful. This was my last gig of 2009 and it couldn't have been a more fantastic event to close with. I worked hard throughout the last year to get here, I wanted this gig very much, wanted to play with these boys more than anything and I admit I pushed and wished for a long time.  It didn't come easy  but I never gave up, and now, here I am, feeling very much like part of the family. It's been totally worth it. Thank you to the boys for taking a chance on me.

Looking back I am proud, and I am walking into 2010 feeling ready to take on any challenge.

This folks,  is only the begining.

Happy Holidays to you all, be good, be strong, face your difficulties head on and keep your chin up. Things always work out they way they are supposed to.

Talk to you soon........xox

midway, recording, and the final showcase coming up for the League of Rock

The girls of the League of Rock, Vancouver Chapter Session 2.

Nicola, Rach, Loralee

I've had so much fun over the last few outings with the League of Rock, everyone involved is now part of my Wednesday family, and that's just how it feels. :) Today's blog post features both my own pics as well as Sharylin's photos from the first midway session at the Fairview Pub. These photos tell the story of what happened a few Wednesday's ago when the 2nd session had it's first 'live performance' workshop. For this night we had two fantastic coaches who practically spend thier lives onstage Mick Dalla Vee (who recorded/produced my original CD) and Marc La France each were giving all of the bands their thoughts and suggestions in a small group setting after each band finished performing their mini-sets. This was a great opportunity to get a solid heads up on what each band could be fine tuning for the next live performance workshop. It was just a whole lotta fun and I  really noticed  that the returning members had somewhat of a calming effect on the newer ones. I think we all  quite enjoyed seeing each of the bands play for the first time as well. As usual there is a really warm community building that flows in amongst and between the bands and various members.

~ LOST ICONS ~

John Gojevic - Drums

Andrew Huige - Keys/Vox

Allan Keller - Vox

Bill McDonald - Guitar

Mike Rikely - Guitar

Colin Darling - Bass

~ AUDIO CAB ~

James Gaffney - Guitar

Nicola Galassi - Vox/Guitar

Robert McFadyen - Drums

Dave Tucknott - Bass

Brian Wright - Vox/Guitar

~ BLACK & WHITE ~

Danno Brouseau - Vox/Guitar

Mark Hall - Guitar

Robert Boshaw - Bass

Nando Polesel - Drums

~ UNDER PRESSURE ~

Enos Choy - Guitar

Rick Halliday - Drums

Stephen Pallavicini - Guitar

Loralee Parks - Vox

Al Rempel - Bass

Rob Boshaw and Mark (with his brand new  guitar that he won from the League of Rock (and  sponsors Long and Mcquade), during the showcase for the inagural session of the LOR!)

Mike and John

Pallivicini and Loralee

Jamming

 Mingling

~hahahahaha and they were trying to make fun of US~

And the girls, Yes, yay for the girls! I'm so glad more chicas joined the League of Rock I dream of  a LOR all girl band that can really 'rock it' forming one day, one that we can take out on the road when we all start playing  some of  the cool events that the League of Rock members in Toronto get to play. Yes, make note of this Vancouver,  in Toronto....THOSE bands got to play for the Grey Cup festival, and for some fancy shmancy Yacht club party, just to name two of the events.............. just look at what can be done (and we love and support them of course)!!......so let's DO that Vancouver!

So, moving on here,  this was the first outing for the bands and it was a great success, the perfect warm up to the Yale midway which happened a week later and was also an exciting big success of a night. The Yale is a little bigger and brighter and the energy level went up an notch. Rob and Topher officially announced me as the host of the LOR show's in Vancouver so that was quite exciting to kick that off! Though it really was such a blur I hardly even recall most of what I did up there. I do recall that the bands did extremely well and they  all seemed to impress our super coaches (LOR music Director/drummer) Topher Stott and (musician/songwriter/producer) Tal Bachman . The cool thing about the second midway live performance workshop is that the comments are delivered over a microphone so the whole group was able to hear the advice to each band after they performed their songs. The coaches had a lot to say to the bands and they had the audience laughing out loud at times, effectively, we all were able to learn from their comments as well as our own observations.  It just was a great night all around and the bands are more than half cooked now. I wholeheartedly predict that the finale is going to ROCK people!

Next week, Topher is back to record with the bands at Nimbus Recording studios and I can't wait to be there for some of those sessions as well. The first time in studio for many people is very exciting and I love to witness it and be a part of it,.......... talk about good energy flying around, ~woot~ it's always a very cool night, the 'in the studio' night! 

And finally, I MUST mention that the FINAL SHOWCASE is coming up on Wed the 16th of December! All the bands play all of their songs and they will all be polished little diamonds sparkling for the audience at the Yale. SO many people said to me the last time after the first showcase, that they would love come to the finale the  next time....SO you have now been informed!  :)   Please note, for the first finale showcase  the Yale  was very busy so take this tip, don't arrive late if you want an actual seat where you can see something, don't say I didn't warn you. 

Doors at 6, first band starts at 6:30!

See you there!

~Rachael~

Final note:  if you have a musical loved one on your Xmas list, I think a LOR membership is the perfect Xmas gift. The new session starts in January!

Merry Ho Ho ~ Canuck Place children's hospice....

             

Last Monday was the official tree lighting ceremony at Canuck Place children's hospice and I was honored to be able to provide some of the entertainment for the event. (My friend Rae gave me the heads up about the event so I emailed them and asked if I could be helpful.) The Vancouver Bach choir was the main focus of the night and they sounded just heavenly as they stood on the front steps near the tree and delivered their exquisite harmonies. They truly delighted the packed house full of CP supporters and VIP's who were invited to the event.

 The Vancouver Bach Choir and Fin!

The property is quite large however and near the side of the house under the gazebo was another mingling spot where all the treats hot chocolate and coffee were being served. The chior could not be heard  all the way over there so, the organizers requested I provide some carols for that busy area. I was thrilled to say yes!

I asked two of my dear gal pals to join me Layla Naomi Vaugeois and Kimberly Baskerville (who are both very busy singers working in this city). Layla sings at the Roxy nightclub in downtown Vancouver, if you have ever been to the Roxy on a Wed-Thurs-Friday night, you have seen Layla rocking it with her band Troy's R Us. Kimmy is part of the legendary March Hare band.

  Kimmy, Layla, Rach

The girls and I decided on our wardrobe, got together over a glass of wine and ran some songs together before showing up to Canuck Place. There was a lot of laughter and straight up silliness between us which carried on throughout the whole night right up till the very end where we were skipping through the xmas lights and doing cartwheels on the grounds. I love these girls! We really enjoyed singing together too, and the crowd was so warm and appreciative........ it was just a joy to be a part of the event.

  Rehearsing tunes and picking our parts!

  ~Carol Time~

We even got to jam a song with Canuck mascot Fin!

Fin ROCKED!

When you are  in the city this December do take yourself a little detour to check out the beautiful grounds of Canuck Place. They did an amazing job decorating the grounds and as the story is told, the Vancouver Canucks themselves dedicated a whole day on site, helping to hang the tens of thousands of Christmas lights that now sparkle throughout the property. What a team! What a facility! I'm just thinking before I sign off on this post, if you are looking for a place to make a charitable donation to this year, you may wish to consider supporting Canuck Place. They do a world of good for so many families. How special would it feel to know that you helped  provide a little bit of comfort to families who are facing the most difficult time in their lives.

                                     

    

With love and hearts............Rachael xo