The 18th annual YWCA Empty Bowls fundraiser takes place at The Venue in Peterborough on February 26, 2022. (Photo courtesy of YWCA Peterborough Haliburton)
Tickets are now on sale for the YWCA Empty Bowls fundraiser, which takes place at The Venue in downtown Peterborough on Saturday, February 26th.
All proceeds from the 18th annual event will directly support YWCA Nourish Food programs to prevent and relieve hunger in the city and county of Peterborough.
“In Peterborough, one in seven households are experiencing food-insecurity,” explains Nourish manager Joëlle Favreau in a media release. “Every ticket for YWCA Empty Bowls helps individuals and families most at risk of experiencing food insecurity put fresh, local, affordable food on their tables, while also supporting the systemic changes required to end food insecurity and poverty.”
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From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on February 26, ticket holders can visit The Venue at 286 George Street North where they’ll have 30 minutes to browse and select a hand-crafted bowl donated by local artisans of the Kawartha Potters Guild and Kawartha Woodturners Guild.
Each $50 ticket also includes a local restaurant coupon card featuring discounts from participating restaurants, redeemable for six months. Participating restaurants include Amandala’s, Baked 4U, Black Honey, Central Smith, Fresh Dreams, Gerti’s, Naked Chocolate, Pastry Peddler, Stickling’s, That’s A Wrap!, and The Cheese Shop.
“We’re extremely grateful for the continued support of our community and our sponsors, including Kawartha Cardiology Clinic, Cornerstone Family Dentistry, and The Venue, who truly understand that food insecurity is a critical health issue and a core barrier for women experiencing gender-based violence,” says YWCA executive director Kim Dolan.
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Tickets are available online at www.ywcapeterborough.org or by calling YWCA Peterborough Haliburton at 705-743-3526.
COVID-19 public health protocols will be in place at The Venue for the event, including proof of vaccination, face coverings, and limited capacity.
Police have arrested and charged a 32-year-old Toronto resident in connection with a head-on collision on Highway 28 in North Kawartha Township last August that killed a couple in their 60s.
Claudio Benetti, 64, and Janice Benetti, 65, both of Stoney Creek, were pronounced dead at the scene after a collision involving two vehicles on August 21, 2021.
The collision happened at Big Cedar, south of Woodview, on a stretch of Highway 28 known for its high volume of traffic, especially during the summer months, along with a high number of accidents.
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The driver of the second vehicle was transported to a Toronto-area hospital with life-threatening injuries.
On Tuesday (February 1), police arrested and charged Nicola Pirillo, 32, of Toronto, with two counts of operation causing death, two counts of dangerous operation causing death, and possession of a Schedule I substance (other drugs).
The accused is scheduled to appear in the Ontario Court of Justice in Peterborough on March 3, 2022.
This Valentine's Day, material expressions of love can have the desired impact without adversely impacting the environment. The GreenUP Store carries locally made soaps and bath bombs by Simply Natural Canada, cards by Jackson Creek Press, and folk art coffee-lover hearts by Brianna Gosselin. (Photo courtesy of the GreenUP Store)
Each week, GreenUP provides a story related to the environment. This week’s column is by Leif Einarson, Communications Manager at GreenUP, and Jenn McCallum, previously of GreenUP and now Environmental Education Technician at Lower Trent Conservation.
Did you know that the idea of Valentine’s Day as a celebration of romantic love originates with a poem written in 1382?
Geoffrey Chaucer’s “Parliament of Fowls” describes a gathering of birds on Valentine’s Day. Three male birds make passionate speeches — including appeals to cosmic and political order, and insults — in order to win the affections of one female bird. None succeed.
That does not seem like a promising start to us. We think everyone would be better off if we all celebrated Valentine’s Day without such a narrow focus on romantic love.
With that in mind, we gathered some fun facts, unfortunate realities, and alternatives that would make Valentine’s Day more sustainable and loving.
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Love and Money
Valentine’s Day is big business. According to the 2016 Census, roughly 57 per cent of Canadians over the age of 15 identified as living as a couple in a private household.
Not everyone in a romantic relationship is included in that figure, but it is clear that the majority of our population is likely to participate in Valentine’s Day. Canadians spend approximately $37 million on Valentine’s Day each year. The most common Valentine’s Day gifts include cards, chocolates, and flowers.
Let’s take a look at how each of these items has grown in popularity, and what alternatives could reduce negative environmental and social impacts.
Cards
In addition to their negative environmental impacts, Valentine’s Day cards also have a history of misogyny. In the Victorian era, hateful and anonymous Valentine’s cards became popular in several countries, sometimes rivalling the profitability and popularity of cards that conveyed messages of love. Sometimes called “vinegar valentines,” these cards were often sent from men whose advances went unreciprocated with the intention of delivering emotional damage to women. The Chicago post office once declared some 25,000 cards so vulgar that they were unfit to be carried by the U.S. postal service. (Public domain images)
Valentine’s cards first became popular in 19th century England. In 1841, only a year after the invention of the postage stamp, the number of Valentine’s cards exploded from approximately 60,000 to some 400,000.
Valentine’s cards are second only to Christmas cards in their popularity and, like early mass-produced Christmas cards, these Valentine’s cards were assembled in factories that employed women or girls.
Studies of the environmental impact of the greeting card industry in Canada are not readily available, but a recent study by Exeter University in the UK showed that sending one card produces about 140 grams of carbon dioxide. With nearly two billion cards sold annually in the UK, that carbon footprint is roughly equivalent to manufacturing 10,000 cars per year.
The good news is most cards and envelopes are recyclable if they are made exclusively from paper, and some cards are made from entirely post-consumer recycled paper. One thing to keep in mind is that adornments like shiny or glossy materials, music players, glitter, metallic ink, or metal charms must be removed before the card can go in the recycling bin. Unfortunately, glitter and music players contribute to plastic pollution globally.
Lower-impact alternatives to mass-produced cards include buying cards from local makers, making your own cards out of recyclable or biodegradable materials, or trying e-cards.
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Chocolate
A cocoa tree with fruit pods at various stages of ripeness. Originally used by Mesoamerican peoples thousands of years ago to create a ceremonial drink, cocoa has long been considered potent with symbolic associations to the heart. (Public domain photo)
Chocolate is another popular gift at Valentine’s Day. Chocolate is created by processing the beans found within large fruit pods that grow on cocoa trees. The cocoa tree is native to the tropical regions of south and central America. However, approximately two-thirds of the world’s cocoa is now produced in West Africa, often using child labour.
Conscious consumerism is important if you plan to gift chocolate this Valentine’s Day. Look for fair trade chocolate products that respect basic human rights and care for the growers and workers on cocoa farms. Learn more and consult the list of registered brands and companies at fairtrade.ca/cocoa.
Also consider asking our talented local chocolatiers here in Peterborough if their chocolate and sugar are sourced from fair trade sources. Buying local can reduce the environmental impacts of shipping, especially if you find a chocolatier who uses recyclable or biodegradable packaging.
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Flowers
A worker cuts roses to be shipped to the U.S. and Europe at a flower farm in Madrid, Colombia, in August 2020. Ecuador and Colombia are world leaders in the cut-flower industry. (Photo: Fernando Vergara / AP)
Cut flowers are an iconic Valentine’s Day gift. A dozen long-stemmed red roses will cost you 30 per cent more for Valentine’s Day than at any other time of year. Increased demand and limited supply drive prices up for Valentine’s Day.
Cut flowers have a particularly negative impact on vulnerable groups and the environment. In 2017, Stats Canada reported that 12.4 million cut roses and rose buds were imported into Canada with a total value of $76.1 million. Most of these flowers are produced in Colombia and Ecuador, and many contribute to unethical working conditions and unsustainable water use.
Data from a 2009 study from the International Labor Rights Forum shows that about 60 per cent of flower farm workers in Colombia and Ecuador are female. Of these workers, 55 per cent have been victims of sexual harassment, with the aggressors rarely punished.
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Heavy use of pesticides results in approximately two-thirds of these flower workers suffering from health problems, ranging from impaired vision to congenital malformations and neurological ailments. In some cases, it has been reported that workers must take pregnancy tests, and those who are found to be pregnant are either fired or not hired in the first place.
You can use fairtrade.ca/flowers as a resource to find sources for flowers that support more equitable working conditions.
You can also consider potted plants that have been grown sustainably in Canada or, even better, relatively close to Peterborough. Planning ahead and harvesting a dried bouquet of native flowers from your garden in the early fall can make for a low-impact, thoughtfully arranged gift that lasts longer than cut roses.
Jewellery is another popular Valentine’s Day gift that can have significant environmental impacts, including erosion of land, leakage of harmful chemicals into local watersheds, and the alteration of entire ecosystems. A unique low-impact alternative comes from local maker Keetarella, who crafts gorgeous earrings out of beer cans. (Photo courtesy of the GreenUP Store)
The pressure to give gifts on Valentine’s Day can have detrimental impacts on the environment and on social conditions around the world. When considering your loved ones and your expressions of love for them, also think about where various products come from, how they were produced, and how workers are treated.
Here at GreenUP, we also encourage you to support locally made products. Even better, consider expressing your love through your own creativity: perhaps write a poem or letter, make a handmade card, or bake some treats.
Originally a fine-metal sculptural artist, Nogojiwanong-Peterborough artist Gillian Turnham became interested in tessellating geometric designs and eventually on the complex geometric patterns of the Islamic tradition. She will be discussing the Islamic art tradition in a six-episode series to be broadcast on Trent Radio on February 6, 2022 as part her her "Your Radio is Their Stage" artist residency. (Photo courtesy of Gillian Turnham)
When Nogojiwanong-Peterborough artist Gillian Turnham first encountered Islamic tradition in 2012, it wasn’t something she initially explored artistically. Her engagement with the geometric patterns in the Islamic artistic tradition came later, stemming from an exploration of esoteric Islam.
kawarthaNOW has published profiles of each of the participating artists in Trent Radio’s “Your Radio Is Their Stage”. You can also read about textile artist Melanie McCall, painter Jose Miguel Hernandez, artist JoEllen Brydon, and community artist John Marris.
By the time Turnham came across and became curious about Islamic geometric patterns — what drives them and how they are constructed — she had established art design and Islamic tradition with separate roots. Nevertheless, from first working with her hands as a child in England, to designing and building art in the PCVS arts program in Peterborough, to her focus on architecture and ornamental art after graduating from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, the turn to traditional Islamic art was a natural extension of her creative life.
“It opened up a whole entire world for me,” Turnham recalls. “And since that point, almost everything I’ve done artistically has been Islamic geometry.”
VIDEO: Samples of Gillian Turnham’s work
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Turnham hopes to open that world for listeners with a six-episode radio series she is producing during her Trent Radio “Your Radio is Their Stage” artist residency. The radio series will be broadcast on Sunday (February 6) and explore the theory, symbolism, and cultural context behind traditional Islamic art.
“I think there’s a growing interest, but also a lack of basic contextual literacy and understanding in how to view contemporary traditional art,” says Turnham. “Peterborough is becoming more diverse in our demographics. I think it’s good to gain some literacy in other artistic traditions and other ways of thinking about the world, especially now that there is a lot more interest in things like mandalas and yoga and meditation.”
“For these traditional aspects that we’re bringing into contemporary life, it’s important to have a framework for engaging with them that is respectful and genuine and culturally appropriate,” she adds.
During her artistic residency with Trent Radio, Gillian Turnham is producing a six-episode radio series exploring traditional Islamic art and why it is experiencing a contemporary revival. The series features conversations with guest artists Adam Williamson, Ameet Hindocha, Eman Hijazi, Paul Barchilon, and Samira Mian. (Photo: Michael Morritt)
Before exploring Islamic traditions, much of Turnham’s artistic grounding looked to European and Western traditions. Since practising traditional Islamic art, she’s noticed that many people have a growing interest in the form and patterns, but lack understanding of its framework.
For instance, Turnham says traditional art is treated differently in the West because of differences in ideology about progress and time.
“We think about traditional arts as existing in museums, or being something that we need to preserve, rather than being something alive and meaningful in a contemporary sense,” she explains.
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For Turnham, when the opportunity came to transfer her artistic practice into audio with her “Your Radio is Their Stage” artist residency at Trent Radio, that meant sharing the cultural traditions and contexts from which her work derives meaning. Through the residency, Turnham has received mentorship, equipment, training, and support to develop the radio series.
“It’s a relatively standard talk radio format, in which I bring on a number of guests to the show and we discuss various topics within Islamic art rooted very much in the experience of contemporary artists working in the field today,” Turnham says. “We also explain some of the history and give the background context for people who might not have encountered this before.”
The topics to be covered within the series, which is called ‘Beauty, Goodness, Truth’, include:
What is Islamic art and why is it experiencing a revival today?
What is the role of digital technology in Islamic art today?
How are unity and diversity expressed within the tradition?
Are figurative images banned in Islamic art?
What have been the roles of guilds in the past, and could they be revived today?
How does the way we conceptualize and teach number/geometry today differ from the past?
This work by artist Gillian Turnham shows the underlying geometric structure of the Islamic art tradition. (Photo: Michael Morritt)
Turnham put a lot of thought into the structure and formulation of the series. Six one-hour episodes is not a lot of time, considering Turnham’s nine years of research on the topic.
“There was a lot of formulation in terms of all the information that I wanted to get across and how I could structure that,” Turnham says. “They’re not scripted — they’re all spontaneous conversations.”
The series features conversations with Adam Williamson, Ameet Hindocha, Eman Hijazi, Paul Barchilon, and Samira Mian, many of whom live in different countries. Figuring out how to get a high-quality audio recording of Zoom conversations with people from around the world was an added challenge for Turnham’s project, although she prevailed.
“I have been finding it a little more intuitive than I thought that I would,” Turnham says. “I’ve had great support from Trent Radio and from Laurel Pollock on that regard as well.”
A completed work in the Islamic tradition by artist Gillian Turnham. (Photo: Michael Morritt)
Turnham has created show notes for listeners of the series, which will be available on her website at www.gillianturnham.com. For each episode, listeners will find visuals and further readings on the topics discussed.
While this is her first time learning audio as a medium, it is not the first time Turnham has shifted her artistic practice to a new medium. Originally a fine-metal sculptural artist, she expanded her artistic practice to work with wood and stone as well as hand-pierced metal, creating miniature sculptural works that explored elements of structure and traditional patterns.
She then became interested in tessellation — covering a surface with geometric shapes with no gaps or overlaps — and, in 2014, began focusing on the complex geometric patterns of the Islamic tradition. Turnham recently spent three years in southern Spain, where she immersed herself in the study of the Islamic geometric tradition. There, she created hand-sewn tapestries and original drawings and designed a series of mechanical clocks that incorporate traditional Islamic geometric patterns with other tessellating forms.
Artist Gillian Turnham recently spent three years in southern Spain, where she immersed herself in the study of the Islamic geometric tradition. (Photo: Michael Morritt)
Since the pandemic, her artistic expression of the Islamic tradition has been primarily through painting.
“With the pandemic and all of the lockdowns, I only had access to my domestic space,” Turnham explains. “Painting made a lot more sense within those confines, and it was something that I hadn’t been particularly gripped by before. By that point, my work was already very firmly rooted in Islamic geometry, and having the opportunity to explore that in painting was different from any previous experience.”
With its underlying mathematical framework, the geometry of Islamic art is based on simple forms that are combined, duplicated, and interlaced. The resulting intricate, symmetrical patterns represent unity and order while giving the artist an exceptional degree of flexibility and freedom of expression — an important balance according to Turnham.
“If you create a way of existing in the world that is connected to balance, it retains value without being in a constant process of change,” she says. “Change is inevitable. We don’t have to fight for that. But fighting for the connection — that essential harmonic resonance — has value now more than ever.”
A work by artist Gillian Turnham. The geometry of Islamic art is based on simple forms that are combined, duplicated, and interlaced. The resulting intricate, symmetrical patterns represent unity and order while giving the artist an exceptional degree of flexibility and freedom of expression. (Photo: Michael Morritt)
To learn more about Turnham’s traditional methods and designs, visit her website at www.gillianturnham.com. You can also follow her on Instagram @gillianturnham.
Turnham’s radio series is set to broadcast from 6 to 7:30 p.m on Sunday, February 6th on Trent Radio at 92.7 CFFF FM in Peterborough, 287 on Cogeco Cable, and online at www.trentradio.ca.
Trent Radio’s “Your Radio Is Their Stage” artist residency project runs until March 2022, with Turnham’s residency concluding on February 6.
Textile artist Melanie McCall was the first to complete her residency on October 17, followed by Jose Miguel Hernandez on November 14 and JoEllen Brydon on December 12. Gillian Turnham’s February 6 residency will be followed by John Marris (community arts). Poet Justin Million’s residency, originally scheduled from December 5 to January 9, is being rescheduled.
The reimagined work of all participating artists will also be broadcast in April 2022.
“Your Radio Is Their Stage” is made possible by the Community Radio Fund of Canada, the only organization mandated to support campus and community radio stations in Canada financially.
This story was created in partnership with Trent Radio, a producer-oriented broadcast facility that started as a Trent University student club in 1968. Sponsored and designed by students from Trent University, Trent Radio incorporated as a registered charity in 1978. Trent Radio currently holds a Community Broadcast License, and is a resource that is shared with the Nogojiwanong-Peterborough community.
Police are investigating a fatal snowmobile crash in the Municipality of Dysart et al in Haliburton County early Wednesday afternoon (February 2).
At around 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Haliburton County OPP responded to a single snowmobile collision on the Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Club’s trail E109.
The lone operator of the snowmobile was pronounced dead at the scene. Police have identified the victim as 58-year old Robert Hubers of Leaskdale.
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The investigation is continuing and further details will be provided when they become available.
Haliburton Highlands OPP is requesting anyone with information that can assist police to call 1-888-310-1122 or 705-286-1431.
If you wish to remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or online at khcrimestoppers.com.
The story has been updated with the name of the victim as released by police.
Sarah Lewis, Nogojiwanong-Peterborough's first poet laureate, is one of 12 Indigenous artists and groups who will be performing at the second annual Nogojiwanong Indigenous Fringe Festival at Trent University in Nogojiwanong-Peterborough in June 2022. Lewis is seen here performing her piece "Warrior Cry" in a video for the CBC Arts series Poetic License. (kawarthaNOW screenshot)
The Nogojiwanong Indigenous Fringe Festival has announced the Indigenous artists and groups who will be performing at the second annual festival taking place this summer at Trent University in Nogojiwanong-Peterborough.
As is fringe festival tradition, the 12 artists and groups — whose performances will range from poetry to burlesque and from drama to drag — were chosen by lottery.
The festival will ceremonially open on Indigenous Peoples Day (June 21) with a special virtual event, and will be followed by rehearsals and performances from Wednesday, June 22nd to Sunday, June 26th. Performances will take place at outdoor locations on the East Bank of the Trent University campus, in and around Enwayaang/Gzowski College.
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Here are the performers and performances for the 2022 festival:
Indigenized Indigenous Theatre Company – Rocko and Nakota: Tales From the Land
Aerial Sunday-Cardinal – Performance Artist
“Tiger” Will Mason – Songs and Stories
Sarah Lewis – Breathing Love into Poetry
Indigibabes – IndigiBabes Burlesque Show
Spiderbones Performing Arts – Wëlamàlsëwakàn (Good Health)
CedarBoyd – Cedar T
The Beautiful Canoe Collective – Journey the Beautiful Canoe
Sean Beaver – Sean Beaver Live
Classic Roots – Pow Wow Techno
Thamer Linklater – My Time in Foster Care
Surrounded by Owls Productions – The Gift
Ticket for all performances will be $10 and will be available beginning in April.
The first Indigenous fringe festival in the world, the Nogojiwanong Indigenous Fringe Festival was founded by a collective including Joeann Argue, Lee Bolton, Drew Hayden Taylor, and Muriel Miguel. The inaugural festival was originally scheduled for summer 2020 but was postponed until 2021 because of the pandemic.
For the 2021 festival, organizers had planned to present performances to small audiences at several outdoor locations on Trent University’s East Bank campus. However, due to provincial public health restrictions for performing arts at the time, the festival became a drive-in event.
Environment Canada has issued a winter weather travel advisory for the entire Kawarthas region due to significant snowfall event Wednesday afternoon (February 2) into Thursday morning.
Rain showers will transition to snow Wednesday morning. Snow is expected to continue through Wednesday night before easing by Thursday morning. There is still some uncertainty regarding additional snowfall amounts on Thursday.
Total snowfall accumulation of 10 to 20 cm is expected by Thursday morning.
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Motorists should expect hazardous winter driving conditions and adjust travel plans accordingly. Be prepared to adjust your driving with changing road conditions.
If visibility is reduced while driving, slow down, watch for tail lights ahead and be prepared to stop.
Surfaces such as highways, roads, walkways and parking lots may become icy and slippery.
This story has been updated with the latest forecast information from Environment Canada.
The Peterborough Police Service has partnered with Trent University on a survey on the use of body-worn cameras by local police. The survey is available until February 28, 2022. (Graphic: Peterborough Police Service)
With the help of Trent University, the Peterborough Police Service is seeking the public’s opinion on the use of body-worn cameras by local police.
A survey, being conducted in partnership with the Trent Community Research Centre, is looking for input from residents of the City of Peterborough, Village of Lakefield, and Township of Cavan-Monaghan.
“Body-worn cameras have entered the public discourse as a potential tool to increase police accountability,” reads a media release. “The exploration of this technology has become important as many police services across the province and the country are in various stages of research and implementation.”
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“It’s imperative that the Peterborough Police Service understands the community’s feelings on body-worn cameras along with the full impact of implementing such technology into the daily activities of the service,” says chief of police Scott Gilbert. “Over the past number of years, there has been discussion about the use of body-worn camera technology in the context of officer and public safety.”
The survey, which will be available until Monday, February 28th, can be found online at trentu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_4NuHFe0YLLijHNA. Paper copies of the survey can be requested by contacting the Peterborough Police Service.
“Your survey responses will be useful to the research investigator by gathering the public’s opinion on body-worn cameras, whether the community feels if they are needed or not needed and why, and the public’s thoughts on whether these devices would improve civilian-officer interactions,” reads the introduction to the survey, which is being led by Sabrina Wolanczyk, an undergraduate student in forensic science at Trent University.
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While participation is the survey is voluntary and anonymous, there are questions on age, gender, ancestry, career, and in which municipality the survey respondent resides or works. According to Wolanczyk, the survey has been approved by the the Trent Ethics Board.
“I believe that this research is crucial for the Peterborough Police Service to not only obtain responses that can aid in the successful implementation of body-worn cameras, but to also enhance transparency and engage the community in this important decision,” Wolanczyk says.
“Furthermore, community responses will provide insight into how the public would feel about such a change and can help the service to better serve their community,” she adds. “The questions in this survey will allow for the service to gain a general idea of potential concerns the public may have, and reasons why individuals believe body-worn cameras should or should not be implemented.”
Peterborough musician Benj Rowland has won the the fourth round of the Don Skuce Memorial Music Collective songwriting contest for his original song "Ballad of the Pig's Ear," a bittersweet ode to the historic Brock Street pub that closed for good in 2017. (Photo: David Warren)
When two legendary Peterborough music worlds collide, how can anything but good result?
Full evidence of that can be found, and heard, in the song “Ballad Of The Pig’s Ear.”
Dripping with nostalgia, Benj Rowland’s ode to the long-gone historic Brock Street pub is the winner of the fourth round of the Don Skuce Memorial Music Collective’s ongoing tribute to the late owner of Ed’s Music Workshop, who passed in June 2018 after a long battle with cancer.
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Rowland’s original demo song will be re-recorded by local music producer and audio engineer James McKenty before heading off to Los Angeles, where it will be mixed and mastered by Grammy Award-winning producer and Peterborough native Greg Wells at his Rocket Carousel Studio.
This is the eighth song chosen for that opportunity since the collective was founded in late summer 2020 by Peterborough musician John Crown and Wells as a tribute to the memory of Skuce and what he meant for countless local musicians over the years.
According to Crown, 28 entries were received and reviewed this round. Rowland’s entry, he says, stood out for its “rambunctious energy, the personalized nature of the lyrics, and the candor with which it’s delivered.”
AUDIO: “Ballad of the Pig’s Ear” by Benj Rowland This is the submitted version of the song to be re-recorded by James McKenty.
“One verse in particular — ‘Pretty much grew up here/As sometimes is the fate/If something’s too familiar/You end up with love to hate’ — has a mature depth of insight,” adds Crown.
As for winning the latest round of the Don Skuce Memorial Music Collective’ songwriting contest, Rowland is appreciative.
“It’s a positive thing, especially right now when it seems like nothing is going on … a nice little boost, a little bit of positive affirmation,” says Rowland, a singer and multi-instrumentalist who, pre-pandemic, performed and toured extensively with Josh Fewings in the fuzz-folk duo Mayhemingways formed in 2013.
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Rowland’s musical nod to The Pig’s Ear — it closed in April 2017 when owners John and Lylie Punter retired, having sold the property to Parkview Homes — is rooted in his “love-hate relationship” with the building that housed a pub for 152 years.
“It was a pretty important music venue at a time when we (Mayhemingways) were sort of coming up,” says Rowland, adding “But I was secretly glad it was closing. I wouldn’t have to play there for $3 anymore. The song came from the complicated feeling of that.”
“It was a great community there,” he adds. “The owners were great too. I do miss it but it was a complicated relationship for me … a complicated story of what was happening for me personally, but that’s what is was.”
The front of the Pig’s Ear Tavern in downtown Peterborough in 2009. The pub closed on April 22, 2017 after 152 years. The building, which does not have a historic designation, was purchased in 2017 by local developer Parkview Homes for a residential redevelopment. (Photo: Esther Vincent, evmustang.ca)
His “contrarian” views of his Pig’s Ear experiences aside, Rowland laments the closure of Peterborough live music venues — a list that also includes The Spill, Dobro and, more recently, The Garnet.
“That was one of the things that made Peterborough pretty fun and special,” he says. “A lot of touring acts always came through here because of those venues. We’re in a pandemic now. I’m surprised anything is (still) open.”
For his part, McKenty is grateful to both Crown and Wells for “bringing me in on this project.”
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“I’m one of those people — maybe it’s the entrepreneurial spirit — that never wants things to get stale,” McKenty says. “This has really brought a lot of people into my studio that I might not have met otherwise. You’ve got your circle of friends, your circle of clients, (but) sometimes it’s hard to see what else is out there.”
“They’ve all been such nice people … great songs and varying levels of experience but yet they’ve been able to deliver in the studio, which is amazing. Some people get what we call in the business red light fever. As soon as you hit record they get nervous. That hasn’t been the case.”
McKenty, who formerly fronted The Spades before going into the recording business fulltime, is thrilled Rowland’s song was chosen.
Formerly of The Spades, James McKenty is a music producer, audio engineer, and music event planner. (Photo from jamesmckenty.com)
“It’s going to shine even more of a light on a legendary tavern that existed in town here. I’m not shy to say I spent a lot of time in The Pig’s Ear.”
Like countless other denizens of the Peterborough music community, McKenty’s memories of Ed’s Music Workshop and its beloved owner remain vivid and heartfelt.
“I didn’t spend nearly as much time there as John and Greg, but one of the things that sticks out in mind was going there with my son Noah when he was quite young, probably five or six years old, and Don being so welcoming,” McKenty recalls. “He gave us each one of the famous Ed’s T-shirts with the logo. It didn’t fit my son at the time, but over the years he grew into that T-shirt.”
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“It has always struck me that you’ve got a guitar shop with such amazing instruments in a city this size with someone as knowledgeable as Don at the desk. What a gift to Peterborough and the Peterborough music scene.”
Rowland says his Ed’s Music Workshop “story” is not unlike that of “lots of other young people. Going there on your lunch break from high school and checking out all the cool stuff he had.”
Ahead for Rowland is the scheduled February release of his new album Community Garden, produced by Dartmouth-based singer and songwriter Joel Plaskett, with whom Mayhemingways toured a few years back. “Ballad of the Pig’s Ear” is one of the tracks on the new record.
In February 2022, Benj Rowland will be releasing his new album, Community Garden, produced by Dartmouth-based singer and songwriter Joel Plaskett. (Cover art by JoEllen Brydon)
In the meantime, Rowland will continue to host his YouTube livestream show each Sunday 10 a.m. to noon as well as keep busy with his visual art, namely printmaking.
As for the Don Skuce Memorial Music Collective, it will carry on petitioning for original songs and provide the opportunity for winning selections to receive the full McKenty/Wells treatment free of charge. There is, however, one change: the contest will now be offered twice a year as opposed to three times, with the next submissions due on June 15, 2022, and the winning song(s) to be announced July 1.
“This will give writers more time to craft their songs and potentially give us a wider field of songs to draw from each round,” say Crown of the change.
For more information on the Don Skuce Memorial Music Collective, including audio recordings of past winning songs and song submission requirements, visit donskuce.com.
Environment Canada has expanded a special weather statement for a “multi-day snowfall event” Wednesday (February 1) through Friday for the entire Kawarthas region.
The special weather statement is now in effect for all of Peterborough County, all of Kawarthas Lakes, Northumberland County, Haliburton County, and Hastings County.
Freezing rain, freezing drizzle mixed with snow, or rain showers on Tuesday night will transition to snow by Wednesday morning.
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In some areas, there is a risk of freezing rain during the transition from rain to snow. Regions in the vicinity of Georgian Bay may see rain mixed with snow on Tuesday night instead of freezing rain.
Snow will continue until Friday, when it will taper off, with total accumulations of 10 to 20 cm by Friday. There may be reduced visibility due to snow and local blowing snow.
There is still some uncertainty regarding the track of the low pressure system and therefore the total snowfall amounts.
This story has been updated with the latest forecast from Environment Canada.
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