Why me?

To be honest, I was snooping around the Juno site because I wanted to see if I could submit. I was looking to submit my children’s songs. I quickly realized I needed an album, but I only have 3 songs, so nope, not gonna do that.

They have a New Zealand theme about them. You can check them out here:

What I did find out was I could apply to be a Juno Judge….

What are the Junos?

‘Presented annually by The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS), The JUNO Awards is Canada’s premier awards show and the Canadian music industry’s most prestigious recognition for excellence in recorded music.   Founded as The Gold Leaf Awards in 1970, the JUNO Awards has grown from a one-night industry event held in Toronto, ON, to a national weeklong music celebration hosted in a different city each year. Since the first broadcast of The JUNO Awards in 1975, more than 155 million Canadians have tuned in to celebrate the country’s musical achievements in 41 categories, representing multiple genres.  The Awards help tell the story of our collective past, chronicling more than four decades of musical highlights and unforgettable JUNO moments. Learn more about The JUNO Awards.’

Why me? – 2

I thought, why not?

The old motto – you got to be in it to win it. So, I filled in the form and was pleasantly surprised to hear I’d been chosen. I judged for the Classical Album of the Year: Vocal and Choral Performance section.

What’s it been like?

First of all, I’m grateful I’ve had the experience of judging singing and producing radio shows. This helped me narrow 22 to 10 of such a huge variety. There were choirs to opera to early music to contemporary to soloist and symphony for the 1st round.

Finally, in the 2nd round, it was very straight forward as it was from 5 down to my top 1.  As a result, that was easy, there was only 1 of those I had originally voted for in that final 5.

Also, everything is done online, so I can do it from wherever I am.

Such incredible talent and creative ideas are presented. What a joy to hear it all. I enjoyed being a part of choosing Canada’s best to show to the world the ability which grows and abides here. In particular, in classical repertoire, it was great.

I’m honored and grateful to be a part of the people who have volunteered to contribute to such an award.

Finally, congratulations to the winners. I have to say, everyone deserves a huge thanks for their contributions to music in Canada. I know, personally, how much work goes into creating these albums. You all get a high 5 from me for managing to do it and do it so well!

In addition, I’d love to hear your comments on awards ceremonies in the arts. Do they really serve us? Or are the arts just too subjective to be judged with any real measure that isn’t mainly subjective?

Tell me your comments below: