Toronto Pianist Rea Beaumont Paints Beautiful Instrumental Images With Single “Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces)” From Enjoy The Journey Album
In 1964, the late Oscar Peterson released Canadiana Suite, an album based on a cross–Canada journey east to west that showed his love of the country through dazzling musicality. Now, 60 years later, Toronto pianist Rea Beaumont has crafted a very different ode, both to her homeland and life’s journey, with the lovely single “Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces)” from her excellent new album Enjoy The Journey.
“‘Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces)’ is an upbeat, energizing piece that is perfect for Vancouver, where so many people are active — walking, biking, hiking, jogging — enjoying the outdoors and its impressive natural beauty,” Beaumont says. “It’s stunning. It is peaceful, but there is also a vibrancy that comes from the energy of the city, which inspired ‘Vancouver Vibe.'”
Beaumont says “Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces)” originated when the University of British Columbia Green College commissioned her to write a piece to celebrate the institution’s thirtieth anniversary.
“The source of inspiration came from being back in Vancouver with the social energy of the people, at UBC where I completed my Graduate degrees, and in the Pacific Northwest surrounded by the stunning landscape,” Beaumont comments.
She composed “Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces)” in 2023 as the College’s inaugural Composer-In-Residence, which enabled her to have “the space, time and inspiration to write the music.” The title of this wonderfully crafted track pays tribute to the College and the ‘greenness’ of the environment.
The song’s bubbly, perky opening is light and busy all at once, almost exemplifying Vancouver and its residents to a tee. Beaumont slows things down slightly in the middle with some classical-leaning technique before building “Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces)” back up for an engaging and moving homestretch. With no words, the song contains a joyous hustle and bustle flair highlighting Vancouver as “a gem in the Pacific Northwest” that Beaumont says has “simultaneously a peacefulness and a vibrancy.” Whether it’s various events, nightlife, the arts or the opportunities Mother Nature has placed in Vancouver for an “active lifestyle,” the single seems to capture that West Coast joie de vivre perfectly.
“Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces)” is a single from Beaumont’s sixth album Enjoy The Journey. The album takes people from the Pacific Northwest to Atlantic Canada while reminding the listener that, like travel, life is a journey and one should be wise to enjoy all that it has to offer. Enjoy The Journey features both solo and chamber compositions by Beaumont while featuring guest violinist Christopher Verrette, best known as a member of Tafelmusik. It also features French-Canadian folksongs such as “En Roulant Ma Boule” which dates back to the Canadian fur trade when voyageurs sang the song while rowing great lengths. In addition to the three-piece Green Pieces set (consisting of “Vancouver Vibe,” “Mountain Morning,” and “Western Waters”), the album closes with the gorgeous four-part set entitled Time Will Tell (“Chasing Time,” “Time For Now,” “Embracing Time” and the moving “Tranquil Time”) that demonstrates how precious life and time are.
The single and album are the latest offering from Beaumont whose previous works include albums Awaken (2022), Liquid (2021), Timeless (2018), A Conversation Piece (2014), Creating A Landscape (2009), and A Shrinking Planet (2006). A faculty member at the University of Toronto, Beaumont received the SOCAN Foundation/MusCan Award of Excellence for the Advancement of Research in Canadian Music. Having premiered over 80 works, the pianist trained with Anton Kuerti, Robert Silverman, and Menahem Pressler, among others, and studied composition with Phil Nimmons, Edward Laufer, Dr. Samuel Dolin, and Gustav Ciamaga. Beaumont is also well known for her volunteer work and community service, and for promoting Canadian culture at home and internationally.
Now with “Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces)” and a new album Enjoy The Journey, look for Rea Beaumont to make inroads from coast to coast to coast with this dazzling single that pays tribute to Vancouver, its proud residents, and anyone else on life’s journey.
Care to introduce yourself to the readers?
Thank you for this interview and for giving me this opportunity to connect with your readers! I am Rea Beaumont, a Canadian pianist and composer formally trained in classical and jazz, although my music blends multiple genres as I have absorbed influences from many different styles. As a faculty member at the University of Toronto, I have received the SOCAN Foundation/MusCan Award of Excellence for the Advancement of Research in Canadian Music.
Each one of my recordings is unique to the others — different music, concepts, and moods. I just released my sixth album, “Enjoy the Journey,” which takes listeners across Canada and beyond. I wrote the music on this album, which opens with “Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces)” as a tribute to the city, its natural beauty, and its social energy.
What inspired you to create “Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces)” as an ode to Vancouver, and how did the city’s unique energy shape the music?
I was in Vancouver as a composer-in-residence when I wrote the piece. It is a busy city with lots of coffee shops, nightlife, music, and arts, and it has a vibrancy that I try to evoke in “Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces),” with an upbeat melody and energetic rhythms. “Vancouver Vibe (Green Pieces)” is a ‘feel-good’ piece. It also has a brief, musically darker section that can represent the rain or whatever the listener would like it to be. Then, the opening music returns because part of the city’s energy is nature, which carries you onward, propels you forward. Think of the water and winds — Vancouver is located in the Pacific Northwest, with mountains, forests, and beaches. There is tranquility and there is also energy, a momentum that sweeps you along and makes Vancouver a special place — and inspires an active lifestyle. The other two pieces in the set of “Green Pieces” are Mountain Morning and Western Waters. They are calmer, fluid, and evoke the expansive coastal waters and the Rocky Mountains.
Can you share more about the role UBC’s Green College and your position as Composer-In-Residence played in developing “Vancouver Vibe”?
The University of British Columbia Green College commissioned me to write a composition to celebrate their 30th anniversary. I wrote the three-piece set for piano that I named ‘Green Pieces’ (Vancouver Vibe, Mountain Morning, Western Waters), in recognition of the College and the beauty of its natural ‘green’ setting. The composer residency gave me the time and place to focus on writing this work. Being in Vancouver reminded me of the expansive Pacific Northwest and I appreciated the quiet surroundings as UBC is located on the Point Grey Peninsula.
As a composer and pianist with roots in both performance and composition, how do you see your role in advancing Canadian music and culture through works like Enjoy The Journey?
As a pianist, I performed a Canadian composition on all of my recitals, sharing Canadian music at every opportunity and working with composers, such as the legendary R. Murray Schafer, as I premiered many works. For my album “Enjoy the Journey,” I drew inspiration from Canada and wrote music that pays tribute to the country, such as Vancouver for the set of “Green Pieces,” and Quebec for the set of French-Canadian Folksongs. I was familiar with the folksongs and researched their history before writing the set for violin and piano. Through my music and albums like “Enjoy The Journey,” I am able to share perspectives of Canada, especially when my music is performed and broadcast internationally. Listeners are reminded that Canada is a beautiful, vast, country, and that each region is unique.
What future projects or musical themes are you looking forward to exploring, especially in your continued role as a Canadian composer and cultural advocate?
I am currently working on another commission, a large work that I look forward to sharing with listeners. As a cultural advocate, I am tireless in my commitment to sharing culture at every opportunity, contributing to the sector as a creative artist, and raising awareness of the importance of arts and culture in our lives. Think about all of the different ways we incorporate the arts into celebrating special occasions – they help us express and share the most important moments, and create memories.