Colin Maier

Colin Maier is a Canadian oboist and multi-instrumentalist and also works as an actor, dancer, and acrobat, often blending these disciplines into one performance.[1] He has also worked as a stuntman and martial artist. He is currently a member of the award-winning Canadian new classical music ensemble Quartetto Gelato,[2] and the oboe and accordion duo JoyRide with accordionist Charles Thomas Cozens.

Colin Michael Maier
Born (1976-01-15) January 15, 1976
Calgary, Alberta
GenresClassical, Celtic, Jazz, Klezmer
Occupation(s)Musician, Dancer, Acrobat with Quartetto Gelato
InstrumentsOboe, English horn, clarinet, saxophone, flute, bassoon, violin, 5-string banjo, acoustic/electric bass, piano, guitar, mandolin, and musical saw

Education

Born in Calgary, Alberta,[3] Maier started Suzuki violin at age three and oboe at age 12. In high school, he studied fiddling, singing, dance, acting, martial arts, and gymnastics, and had plans to pursue musical theatre in college. Because of a missed deadline, he ended up pursuing the oboe, and classical music study. Maier graduated from the University of Calgary in 1997 with a bachelor's degree in oboe performance studying with Calgary Philharmonic oboist David Sussman.

Career

Maier began his professional career with a variety of acting engagements, most notably as the devil fiddler in the flying blue canoe for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Opening Ceremonies. His other acting credits include work in the stage version of The Lord of the Rings (Mirvish),[4][5] Fire (CanStage), Forbidden Phoenix (LKTYP), KA (Cirque du Soleil), Amadeus (Alberta Theatre Projects), That Dance Show (Saltance Productions), Cats (Neptune Theatre), Joseph's Dreamcoat (StageWest/Drayton), A Chorus Line (StageWest), Sarah Brightman's World Tour, and TV's Honey I Shrunk the Kids! and Murdoch Mysteries.

Maier joined Quartetto Gelato in 2009. This world-touring ensemble is known for their eclectic humorous performances, in which Maier plays the oboe and other instruments,[6] as well as sings, dances, and performs acrobatics.[7][8][9]

As an oboist, he has performed with The Calgary Philharmonic, The Hamilton Philharmonic, National Ballet of Canada Orchestra, Symphony of the Kootenays, Soundstreams, Toronto Concert Orchestra, Scarborough Philharmonic, Niagara International Chamber Music Festival, The Jive Mommas, The High Strung, The Fabulous Doo-Wop Boy and The Plaid Tongued Devils. In the 2002 International Double Reed Society conference, he performed in, and conducted, a jazz master class with jazz bassoonist Michael Rabinowitz, and has been invited to perform with Charles Thomas Cozens in his duo JoyRide at the 2020 International Double Reed Society conference in Iowa (unfortunately canceled due to Covid-19).

In addition to oboe, Maier also plays professionally a variety of instruments including the English horn, clarinet, saxophone, flute, bassoon, violin, 5-string banjo, banyan, acoustic/electric bass, piano, guitar, mandolin and musical saw.[10][11]

His two solo recordings feature newly commissioned compositions by Canadian composers Rebecca Pellet, Hilario Durán, Mark Camilleri, Vincent Ho, and Aura Pon in a variety of genres from classical to jazz and Celtic. Also performances by Canadian musicians, and Canadian comedian Colin Mochrie. Several of the compositions feature Maier playing as many as 13 different instruments.[12][13]

Maier was the oboe instructor at Brock University from 2015-2018.[14]

Discography
  • 2015 "Quartetto Gelato - All Original, 100% Canadian"
  • 2014 "The Fabulist – Oboe and Other Things" (solo) with funding from Factor
  • 2012 "Advice From a Misguided Man" (solo) with funding from the Ontario Arts Council and Factor
  • 2010 "The Magic of Christmas-Quartetto Gelato"
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References
  1. ["Where (Almost) No Oboe has Gone Before"]. The Double Reed, Volume Vol. 41 No. 2, 2018 by Sarah Hamilton.
  2. ["An Interview of Colin Maier"]. Double Reed, Volume 36 No. 2. by Dan Stolper.
  3. " Quartetto Gelato brimming with humour as well as fine musicianship". Waterloo Region Record, January 24, 2014, By Valerie Hill
  4. "Kevin Wallace’s Lordly Dream". The Gate, W. Andrew Powell. March 10, 2006
  5. "Genre-bending quartet treads the high wire". Toronto Star, John Terauds, Jan. 14, 2010
  6. "Quartetto Gelato", Alison Broverman. Odeum, December 2011.
  7. "MUSIC REVIEW: Quartetto Gelato serves up exotic flavors". Herald-Tribune, By Richard Storm, December 6, 2015
  8. "Nassau Music Society's Quartetto Gelato melts hearts". thenassauguardian.com. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  9. "Classical Notes: OSO and Quartetto Gelato show their gypsy colours". by Jim Elderton, Vernon Morning Star, Mar 8, 2015
  10. "Oboist Colin Maier to Adjudicate Rotary Burlington Fall Music Festival". Hamilton Musician, By Sarah Anne Wolkowski
  11. "Entertaining & energetic evening with Quartetto Gelato". Jeff DeDekker, Regina Leader-Post, October 11, 2015
  12. Ages, Karen. "The Fabulist - Colin Maier - The WholeNote". thewholenote.com. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  13. John Sunier (January 23, 2015). "Colin Maier – The Fabulist – self". Audio Audition.
  14. "Natalie confronts fears with concert in the woods" Archived 2016-09-03 at the Wayback Machine. St. Catharines Standard, By Cheryl Clock, September 2, 2016
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