Canadian singer-songwriter Jeffery Straker loves to talk with his audience during breaks and after his shows. He says he's had many "aha!" moments talking to fans on tour.
Saskatchewan-born Straker and his band will be in North Battleford Friday, Jan. 29 to perform for and get to know more about music fans here. At least those he hasn't met, since he has performed at the Dekker Centre for the Performing Arts in the past, as well as house concerts in the area and a fundraiser at the Chapel Gallery as far back as 2006.
The energetic performer is looking forward to returning to the Dekker Centre.
"I really enjoyed it," he told the Regional Optimistthis week. "It's beautiful."
The classically-trained pianist from Punnichy, who speaks next to no Spanish but who is a near-superstar in Latin America, once considered becoming a dentist, but pursued a degree in plant biology instead. Now he pursues his passion 鈥� making music.
And it's not classical, despite the fact he was a student of the Royal Conservatory of Music and received his licentiate diploma in piano performance from Trinity College, London when he was just 19.
Straker is now a folk-pop singer-songwriter-pianist who performs over 100 shows per year across Canada. He's been compared to a mixture of early Elton John, Billy Joel, Sarah Slean and Harry Chapin. But he's really just being himself and doing what he loves.
It didn't start that way, though.
He thanks his formative years growing up on a grain farm for developing a strong work ethic, which has been key to success in his career. Music was all around him as well, coming from a musical family.
But, he says, he burned out on his musical studies.
"It was all classical," he says. "I didn't think I wanted to be a professional concert pianist."
So he decided to go to university in Regina, starting, of course, with arts and sciences because he was thinking of becoming a dentist.
Looking back, he's not sure why he went in that direction, but decided it wasn't right for him after all, but he was on his way to a degree and thought, "I might as well finish it."
Being from a farming background where gardening was part of life, he went for a plant biology degree.
"I enjoyed biology."
During his studies, he got a scholarship to study anywhere in the United Kingdom and Ireland. He chose Queen's University in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
It was a "great experience," he says. Besides studying Irish history, literature and politics, he also discovered "an incredibly musical place," with top-notch musicians in practically every pub.
Once he finished his degree, he went in yet another direction. He moved to Toronto to work in marketing. There he discovered a songwriter's musical community that came to life at night in open mic clubs. He tried it himself.
At first it was awful, he said, but it got better. He noticed people coming back to see him, and he started doing his own shows.
It was a pivotal day when he went to visit his great aunt who had Alzheimer's disease and it hit him a flash that we don't have a choice in how we end up and that such a thing could be his fate as well.
He wondered, "Why wouldn't you want to enjoy every day along the route?"
It was sad, but motivating, he says.
"I quit my job the next day."
It's a big leap to go from a regular paycheque to the "no guarantee" world of music, he says. But he's been a full-time musician for eight years now.
Being booked into venues such as the Dekker Centre, where the audience includes season subscription holders, is a big part of how Canadian artists find new fans, he says, so he is looking forward to his North Battleford appearance.
"It will be a really great night," says Straker.
He enjoys the interaction with his audience, sharing stories about where his songs come from and creating a connection. He says he's had good feedback about his rapport with the audience.
"A person who just wants to listen to music can watch all kinds of music on Youtube, but if you want [to connect with] the artist, you have to go to a live show."
He also enjoys mixing with the people who come to see him during the break and after the show. So he will be mingling with the audience in the atrium of the Dekker Centre.
He says talking with people while on tour has produced many "aha!" moments as he learns more about how people see life. A frequent comment is how lucky or how courageous he is to be following his passion, he says. Oddly, however, not everyone says they wish they had followed their passion; some say they wish they had a passion to follow, which leaves him bemused.
"Maybe they just haven't discovered it yet," he suggests.
By following his passion, Straker has definitely seen some success.
His tour stops range from intimate house concerts to club and theatre shows and include recent sold-out concerts with Canadian symphony orchestras in Saskatoon, Regina and Sudbury, Ont.聽The review following his orchestral debut reads: 鈥淪traker was simply spectacular 鈥� clearly one of the province鈥檚 best cultural exports.鈥澛� Canadian Musician Magazinehas said, 鈥淰ery much an artist to watch鈥� while the Chicago Free Presshas written,聽鈥淩ufus Wainwright, as well as k.d. lang are among the Canadians making essential and beautiful music. Add the name Jeffery Straker to that list.鈥澛�
His latest career boost came from winning the prestigious Vi帽a del Mar International Song Festival held annually in Chile in February. In 2014, he represented Canada. Performing live to a festival crowd of 20,000 people and to a TV audience of 100,000,000 viewers across the Spanish-speaking world, he quickly gained a fan following putting him in demand for performances in Latin America.
When he was first invited by email to represent Canada in the competition part of the festival, he thought it was spam.
"I deleted it," he says.
Then he got another email and decided to Google it. To his amazement, he found the Vi帽a del Mar International Song Festival is considered the best and biggest in Latin America and one of the biggest in the world. So he agreed to enter.
Soon after, he got a phone call at 4 a.m. saying he'd been accepted, asking if he would attend? It wasn't hard to weigh -30 C February weather in Canada against two free weeks of 30 C in Chile, he says.
So he went.
"I ended up winning!"
At his concert in North Battleford, the audience can expect to hear songs from Straker's newest album, North Star Falling, released in 2015, as well as a cross section from all six of his albums. In addition, he says, he may try one of his most recently written, not-yet-recorded songs.
"I like doing that," he says.
Since he's been on a hiatus from mid-December, he's been writing songs in preparation for future recordings.
While he has numerous tour dates across Canada, with more being added all the time, he will also be joining the cast of Saskatchewan's legendary telethon, Telemiracle, for the fourth time again this year.
"I'm part of the national cast in a host capacity, and I'll be doing some performing," he says.
"It holds a big piece of my heart because of the cause," says Straker, "but it's also live TV. Anything can happen and that's a big part of the excitement."
Jeffery Straker will be performing at the Dekker Centre for the Performing Art at 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 29. Tickets are available at the Dekker Centre box office or online at www.dekkercentre.com.
Recent policy changes at the Dekker Centre allow patrons to bring a beverage into the theatre area, however the bar is closed while the performance is underway.
