Long & McQuade Learning Series - Toronto (Bloor), ON

The Long & McQuade Learning Series is a series of free career-enhancing clinics specifically tailored to the needs of musicians, songwriters, producers and home studio enthusiasts.

THIS CLINIC HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED FOR APRIL 1
Saturday, March 4 | 1pm
Clarinet Workshop
with the Wychwood Clarinet Choir’s Michele Jacot & Roy Greaves   

Join the Wychwood Clarinet Choir for an informative and fun-filled afternoon!  We’ll start with a Clarinet Lifehacks workshop followed by Stump the Clarinetist, a Q & A session (bring your clarinet questions!), and we’ll wrap things up by coming together with Clarinet Harmony, a music-reading session where we’ll play through some of the WCC’s most beloved repertoire. Bring your clarinet! Space limited, so please RSVP.

Michele Jacot is a musician with an active schedule, performing in symphony orchestras, pit orchestras, chamber ensembles and as a soloist, in addition to conducting, adjudicating and teaching privately. Besides being in demand for her skills as a clarinetist, Michele is equally at home as a saxophonist and flutist. Michele has been the Artistic Director of Toronto’s Wychwood Clarinet Choir since its inception in 2009. She is proud to be a Yamaha Canada Spotlight Artist, and an Artist at Vandoren, Paris, France.
 
Roy Greaves, Associate Artistic Director and founding member of the Wychwood Clarinet Choir, arranges many of the compositions played by the group and works closely with Michele in programming concerts and rehearsing the ensemble. Before his retirement, Roy taught music at Oakwood Collegiate Institute for 29 years.

Saturday, March 11 | 2pm
Day-to-Day Guitar Care
with Josh Piche   

Join artist and guitar technician Josh Piche for a special workshop dedicated to learning about maximizing your guitar’s performance between seasonal maintenance setups. Josh will share easy tips and best practices to help you get the most out of your instrument and increase your knowledge about guitar care. Topics will include restringing, cleaning and finish care, humidification, and simple adjustments based on your preference.

Josh is a Winnipeg-born, Toronto-based singer/songwriter/guitarist and instrument repair technician who has worked with blues/soul band Irene Torres & The SugarDevils, The Julian Taylor Band, and country music recording artist Nicole Rayy. He also releases music under his own name, and can be seen performing around Ontario regularly. He also founded Canopy Music Theatre, a socially distant venue for the Covid-19 era.

Saturday, March 18 | 1pm
Trombone Performance & Masterclass
with Dr. Denis Jiron    

Long & McQuade and Conn-Selmer are pleased to bring you a performance and masterclass featuring Denis Jiron, the newest appointee to the Don Wright Faculty of Music at Western University.

A native of Los Angeles, California, Denis enjoys a varied career that includes performing with symphony orchestras, pop acts, Afro-Cuban/salsa artists, TV shows, big bands, and education. Formerly the acting 2nd trombone of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Denis has also performed with groups and artists as diverse as: Stevie Wonder, the Detroit Symphony, Queen Latifah, LA Opera, Sting, The Tonight Show Band, and many others. 

Denis earned his BM degree from California State University Northridge and his MFA degree from California Institute of the Arts, as well as studying at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik Trossingen and later the Hochschule für Musik und Datsellende Kunst Mannheim. He earned his DMA degree from Michigan State University as a University Distinguished Fellow. Currently, He serves as Assistant Professor of Trombone at the Don Wright Faculty of Music at Western University in London.

Saturday, March 25 | 2pm
Fingerpicking Flurry
with Mike T. Kerr

Finger-picking got you tongue-tied? This workshop will clearly define finger independence and break you out of 'patterns.' Learn to play bass with the thumb while the fingers take the melody. Every attendee will walk away with an easy-to-read tab of the fingerpicking classic 'Freight Train' by the legendary Elizabeth Cotten. Bring your guitar and fingerpick along!

Mike is a wild guitar player and ambitious songwriter of Canadian heritage and American citizenship. During his time at Berklee College of Music in Boston and in over 10 years of performing, he's lived his life through many historical and contemporary musical styles. Always curious to dig up not only a song's history, but the shape of the world at the time, Mike plays passionately and openly while interpreting the great guitar players of the past, primarily across the country blues and jazz genres. A Danny Gatton lick or Django Reinhardt tune is never far from his fingertips. When it comes to his own songwriting, Mike writes storytelling ballads inspired by old movies and current events.

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Registration & inquiries may be sent to the store at [email protected]