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By Muriel Grant
Star Staff Writer
October 14, 2004
Corner Brook

Harpist Johanne McInnis is making plans for her third and fourth album and wants to liven things up. The Quebec city native, who moved to the west coast two months ago, is hoping to locate musicians who would like to help her create the final stage of her trilogy on nature. Playing in the most prestigious concert halls in Quebec City, McInnis’ musical talents were honed through many years of hard work. Along with performing and taking care of her children, she’s also an experienced educator.

“For the past five years I’ve had the privilege of playing in such concert halls as Château Frontenac, the Capitole and the Museum of civilization,” she explained. “For the past ten years, I’ve been teaching French and English as a second language. I also teach art, through music and drama. I’ve taught from pre-Kindergarten to college level and had to develop a different system for all of the different groups of ages. That has kept me pretty busy with a big family on top of that.”

McInnis was obviously intent on a career in music. Studying at a group of very prestigious schools has given her the background she needed to master the piano, the guitar and her beloved harp. She said she discovered the profound passion for the harp by accident.“I studied with 2 teachers from the Conservatory of Quebec City, I also studied at the Canadian University of France and at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ontario. She stated. “After receiving a piano degree and after my first year teaching, which was in 1993, I went along with my husband, Gilbert, to Mount Desert Island, which is in the United States close to Maine.” “It was to be a simple vacation and a time to relax. While we were there, we discovered a place where they made harps, so instead of going to the beach we spent most of our days at that place learning about harps.”

McInnis husband who is and English professor at Sir Wilfred Grenfell College, shared his wife’s instant love affair. However, he took his interest to another level. McInnis said it was her foundation in piano that allowed her to master the harp. “Well my husband plays by ear to amuse himself… he likes to improvise but mainly he makes harps, celtic harps.” “My piano allowed me to learn. I’ve met lots of harpists that have started out on piano.” McInnis noted. “After a while, they just started to realize they could just transfer all of their knowledge. You can transfer pieces you played from the piano to the harp. In 1999, McInnis recorded her first album “Harp orchestrated by nature”. The recording was done outdoors with the sounds of nature as the backdrop. “It was recorded outside with nature sounds, she said. “We recorded it in Quebec, close to my parents home. It was by a quiet river and you can hear the waves and bird sounds… it was quite a project. This first CD is mostly used in massotherapy centres. It is very relaxing music, very linear and quiet. I chose pieces from the 14th century up until today but I played them in a style where it was relaxing music. After completing her first album, McInnis decided to go with the nature theme for her second recording, “Nature Speaks”. It was during this project McInnis first tried her hand at mixing the sounds of the harp and bagpipes. Actually, yesterday I was putting the laundry outside and my children came running, “mama”, we can hear the bagpipes… someone is playing outside. “If I had the car, I would drove until I had found that sound.”

Enjoying the combined sounds of harp and bagpipes, McInnis yet again introduced another instrument into her second album, Nature speaks. “I love the bass because this instrument adds a slow, jazz colour, she said. In the second album, I would say it’s a mixture of slow jazz and celtic music. There’s a lot of experimental sounds, in one piece we hear voices of the ocean, imitations of whale sounds in the water.”

McInnis loved the combined instrumental sounds of Nature Speaks and has started planning her third and fourth recording. She will again use a variety of instruments and will explore the musical sounds of another culture. The name of my second album, Nature speaks, is translated Gange Jwar in Indian. For my third album I want to add some Indian colour sounds, she said. McInnis is a multitalented artist that doesn’t stop her creativity at music. While in concerts, she has at times included creative writing in her program. “Everyone at my concerts receives a scroll paper. When I have a small group I include a creative writing part.

During her time in Newfoundland and Labrador, McInnis has set some goals for herself. Planning to perform in a series of festivals is also on her agenda. McInnis said she and her husband are enjoying the west coast and find the culture very kindred to her home province of Quebec. She simply loves what she does and has no intention of stopping soon. “We love it here… it’s great”, she smiled. “We’re still discovering, we’re so happy to discover and drink the culture… people are so friendly”. I love what I am doing and I believe I’m an independent artist. And, people who are meant to get to know your music find you and I have plans in my head for music for the next 20 years.”

More on McInnis can be found at her website: www.johannemcinnis.com
Enjoy your visit!

ART AND SOUL
TUESDAY,
OCTOBER 14 / 2003
THE WESTERN STAR
MARITIMES

HARPIST
JOHANNE MCINNIS
HOPES TO LIVEN THINGS UP ON THIRD ALBUM.