Sound for the Soul

Their sounds may differ, but the gripping voices of soul singer Jarvis Church, soprano Michelle Danese, Ben Harper and Vanessa da Mata give their emotionally involved audiences chills with equally moving performances.

Jarvis Church
In his self-produced CD The Long Way Home, Juno Award-winning, Grammy-nominated Gerald Eaton, a.k.a. Jarvis Church (a name he derived from living between two parallel streets in Toronto) drives a rhythmic, sexy pop-soul vibe. “My lyrics are very personal, they are little windows into what’s going on in my life. When you’re writing about something that you honestly feel, the words come a lot quicker.” Read more

Run Away to Jamaica

On a comforting  chaise lounge facing a pale blue sea, I reach my hand out to accept a pina colada, a velvety sweet texture of rum, coconut cream and pineapple juice that cools me from the sultry Caribbean heat. Music spills at just the right volume behind me, mixing with the fragrantly sweet air and salty mist that whispers gently off the sparkling ocean. I exhale and smile, thinking back to how eager I was to peel off my sweater just a few short hours ago. The small plane I was on smoothly touched the landing strip of Donald Sangster International Airport, as the verdant mountainous terrain and turquoise coastline of Jamaica’s Montego Bay unfolded below me. After quickly gathering my luggage and clearing customs, the humid air and jostling vibe of Jamaica embraced every inch of me with warmth as I stepped outside. Read more