Halifax, NS: Upstream Music

On June 27, the Upstream Music Association presented the performance piece “Diving for Pearls” to celebrate co-founder Paul Cram’s 19 years as director of the Halifax new music collective. Instrumentalists Rick Waychesko, Jeff Reilly, Dawn Hatfield, Tim Crofts, Geordie Haley, Danny Parker, and Douglas Cameron, with Cram himself on saxophone and clarinet, collaborated with vocalists Ann Denny and Mitchell Wiebe, dancer Susanne Chui, and video projections by Lukas Pearse. Cram’s tenure included Upstream performances in Lisbon and Victoriaville, and numerous collaborations within the Halifax community, including Symphony Nova Scotia, and the Open Waters Festival, a January festival of experimental music.

Paul Cram

Tim Crofts, Norman Adams, and Lukas Pearse. Photo by Ingrid Bulmer, Chronicle Herald.

Double bassist Lukas Pearse, who completed a Canadian tour this winter with pianist Tim Crofts, cellist Norman Adams and guest percussionist Gerry Hemingway, will take over as Upstream’s director.