MacEwan University’s record label, Bent River Records, is celebrating its first Juno nomination for Winston & I, an album from MacEwan alum Brianna Lizotte, BMus ’23, in the Traditional Indigenous Artist or Group of the Year category.
Produced by Padraig Buttner-Schnirer, associate professor in the Department of Music, Lizotte’s album is about the ups and downs that came with the transition from her teenage years to adulthood: lively jigs written for family, spiralling mental breakdowns and accepting that not having the answer to everything is okay.
“Brianna had a clear vision of what she wanted for her album, and it was wonderful to see how things grew and developed as we progressed through the different stages of recording,” says Buttner-Schnirer. “Brianna and I worked together to refine the arrangements, the sonic colour of the instruments and the ensemble’s musical balance to ensure we captured what she wanted to say musically. We had a lot of fun working on this together and shared many laughs along the way.”
Major milestone for a university record label
Providing opportunities for students to work with emerging and established recording artists is at the heart of Bent River Records, one of the country’s only active university labels.
Being recognized at the Junos adds to the multiple nominations and awards at the Western Canadian Music Awards and the Edmonton Music Prize – and instills confidence in the students who work with the label, says Paul Johnston, head of Recording for the Department of Music who also produced Christine Jensen’s album nominated for a Juno in the Jazz Album of the Year (Group) category.
“This recognition is wind in our sails to keep learning, adapting and producing meaningful music and cultural experiences – bringing students and faculty together with the national music scene, providing connections, community engagement and experiential learning.”
Johnston co-founded Bent River Records with Rose Ginther, associate dean for the Faculty of Fine Arts and Communications, in 2015. In the years since, the label has worked with 17 artists on 28 albums, providing opportunities for MacEwan students to interact with professional musicians on a local, national and international scale.
Providing incredible learning opportunities for students
Bent River Records is a unique interdisciplinary learning lab that engages students studying music, arts management, design and other related fine arts disciplines, says Ginther.
“Working with artists at all stages of their careers provides crucial artist-focused work-integrated learning experiences where students can grow and learn together. As they engage, students learn not only about music, recording and record labels but also develop their identities as cultural workers. Seeing Brianna, a graduate of our BMus, who is also a Bent River artist, be nominated for a Juno is a fantastic outcome of this work.”
Lizotte’s Juno-nominated album features several MacEwan Bachelor of Music students and recent alumni in the ensemble, and Bachelor of Music Recording majors Ashe Stolte and Zak Wurtze, along with Bent River Intern Connor Archibald, as assistant engineers during the recording process.
The Juno Awards are being hosted in Vancouver on Sunday, March 30.