SASKATCHEWAN — A few years ago, musician Bryce Lewis had a side gig repairing amps. He was self-taught and took on repair jobs as they came, though he says the work was often complicated and admits that his knowledge base was too small.
The musician, who has had a well-rounded artistic career touring with various bands and artists, had also worked as a ranch hand, a mechanic and drove trucks. “When COVID hit I started losing jobs,” says Lewis. “Once we realized what was going on I decided to take the time to upgrade my skills.”
Lewis enrolled at Saskatchewan Polytechnic, choosing the partly because of the connection to the work he’d been doing to pay the bills as a musician, and partly because it was close to home. “It seemed like a good fit at the time and that’s turned out to be true.”
Lewis has just completed his second year of three in the program and cites the co-operative education portion as a significant advantage. His first two work terms were with Shermco, a provider of electrical testing, maintenance, repair, commissioning, engineering and training. “Electricity is intangible,” he explains. “You can talk theory all you want but being in the field gives you the ability to put the mental pictures in place. The co-op work terms really make the program make sense.”
“The program has opened a lot more doors for me in terms of field services,” says Lewis. “I’m focusing now on establishing myself as a good employee, to further my career as an electrical engineering technologist. I know that when I have time and it isn’t peak service season, I’ll be able to get back to music.”
Babith Varghese, program head for the Electrical Engineering Technology program at Sask Polytech’s Moose Jaw campus, is impressed by Lewis’s ability to balance his varied interests. "Bryce is a remarkable student who juggles his studies with his musical ambitions. His ability to connect technical learning and artistic expression demonstrates his dedication and versatility.”
Blending skills and interests seems natural for Lewis, who decided the pandemic was also a good time to work on an album. “I thought it would be good to get it done before having my first kid, but I missed that deadline” he laughs. The rootsy guitarist, who describes his style as traditional country mixed with old-school surf rock and bluegrass, persisted with his goal to make an instrumental album, which he finished recording in 2021.
“I was in contact with a friend in the United States and she offered to make a cover. I sent her tracks and then didn’t hear back for a long time. A year later she came back to me and asked if I wanted to be on their label—.”
The label announced Lewis’s album, , in fall of 2022 and released it in the middle of Lewis’s second work term last spring. “I was working at a co-op placement at the time and had a young toddler,” he says. “I was way too busy to have a launch party!”
“It’s exciting to have my album out there, and I’m happy to be able to continue making music while working towards my diploma,” says Lewis. “I’ve had two shows this summer including the Gateway Festival in Bengough. I wouldn’t give up music for anything, but my program is lining me up for a lot of different opportunities. It’s reassuring to know that I’ll have options in terms of work or further fields of study in the future.”
Varghese expects Lewis will have many more opportunities to shine in all his career aspirations, noting, “Bryce took a pivotal role in establishing the student chapter affiliated with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Â鶹´«Ã½AV Saskatchewan Section. He has demonstrated his dedication to fostering a vibrant community of future electrical engineering technologists and engineers. More immediately, though, we congratulate him on the personal achievement of his album launch.”
To learn more about Sask Polytech’s .
— Submitted by Saskatchewan Polytechnic Media Relations
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