Calgary’s Music Scene Is In a Groove

Matt Masters calls Calgary “the best city in Canada to be a working musician.” The reasons why he lists it above Toronto and Montreal — both widely recognized for their music scenes — are plenty. Calgary has a fast-growing roster of venues where musicians can earn a decent income, a big-money economy that can support music culture, reduced competition (for now) for gigs because of a smaller number of artists than the nation’s other metropolises, and Studio Bell, the home to the National Music Centre and all of its advocacy programs built to foster an appreciation and diversification of music in the city.

Country music dominates, of course, yet there is room for jazz and blues and even an under-the-radar EDM scene. Masters is a country musician, who plays in Barney Bentall’s B.C.-based Cariboo Express and hosts Friday night shows at the King Eddy, a historic Calgary venue on the ground floor of the National Music Centre. During the pandemic, he launched the Curbside Concerts series to help musicians in Calgary and beyond get paid. He also books shows at venues in Calgary and is a consultant for Studio Bell on its music education series. His connections in Canadian music are deep as a bassline and his knowledge of Calgary detailed enough to know the strengths and weaknesses of its music landscape.

He acknowledges that the city isn’t likely to ascend globally in stature as a music tourism destination without a home-grown superstar like a Drake or Taylor Swift. But it can continue to breed a culture that improves the overall tourist experience in Calgary.

“If you can reliably find good live music when you walk into a place it absolutely will create a reputation and attract people. It will change the vibe of the city,” Masters says.

And there’s outstanding revenue potential for destinations that can draw travellers seeking a music experience. One industry report predicts that within a decade the global music tourism market will more than double from its current $5.5 billion USD value. Nashville, a city to which Calgary is often compared, received 5.5 million music tourists in 2019, more than one-third of its overall number of visitors. Its success in tourism marketing dates to 2003, when municipal decision-makers opted to brand Nashville as “Music City” and created infrastructure to support that initiative.

For Calgary, the anchor for the music tourism experience is Studio Bell. As a national museum, it has an enormous amount of superstar capital that makes it a top attraction. Along with being home to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, its collection includes an eclectic and electric assortment of items, including:

• the Rolling Stones’ mobile recording studio, housed within a bus whose walls could let slip some wild stories if they could croon
• the immense and unique Kimball organ, used in early 20th-century theatres to provide soundtracks to silent films
• Elton John’s piano on which he composed “Tiny Dancer” and other early hits
• the hockey-themed drum kit of Rush’s Neil Peart
• the outfits of Celine Dion and Shania Twain; and so much more.

Interactive experiences give visitors the chance to explore their own musicality. Most notably, the children’s programs give kids hands-on opportunities to learn about sounds and how to put them together.

Private behind-the-scenes tours can also be booked separately. You can see an impressive number of instruments that have historic significance as well as contemporary value because musicians and sound engineers can use them to create new music. Among the notable items are a synthesizer so unique that Coldplay inquired about renting it for a recent recording, a Yamaha piano signed by the likes of Chuck Berry and Sam Moore, and a TONTO (aka The Original New Timbral Orchestra) synthesizer that Stevie Wonder engaged for some of his hits.

“This is a unique place to be inspired by what’s here, what these instruments can do and in some cases who has used them before. It’s a world-class recording space both in terms of the equipment you can access and acoustically what you can achieve,” says Jeff Kynoch, a recording engineer at Studio Bell who frequently operates the instruments for his work. “Anyone can come in here and record a song with Neil Young’s old microphone and his amp. That’s pretty special.”

Kynoch says more and more local musicians are booking time in the recording space. They’re also benefitting from the King Eddy, the hot spot on the corner of 9th Avenue and 4th Street. The former blues club and hotel had fallen so badly into dilapidation that it was condemned in 2005 by the city government. Its status as a heritage building saved it from destruction. When Studio Bell purchased the property, it was rebuilt brick by brick while retaining its facade and much of its original character. The King Eddy is now among the go-to venues on Calgary’s Music Mile for both musicians and music lovers.

During the Canadian Country Music Association Awards last week, nominees and emerging talents hit the stage as industry executives scoped for talent, a sign of the city’s growing importance. Masters notes that the scene is evolving quickly beyond the King Eddy and Music Mile, with clubs opening up steadily across the city, including in quirky places. The Prairie Emporium, located in the rear of a motorcycle accessory shop in an industrial park southeast of downtown, features songwriter series and other events. On a recent Friday night, the venue hosted an all-Ontario all-female session of country singers, including some performers who had been drawn to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains because of the opportunities and support for their music in Alberta’s largest city.

“I’m seeing musicians moving here — some really good musicians — coming from cities with better musical histories than Calgary,” Masters says, noting that he’s securing dozens of shows each week for artists. “There’s definitely a growing sense that this is where you want to be right now.”

MORE ABOUT EXPERIENCING CALGARY’S MUSIC SCENE

Studio Bell Location: 850 4 Street SE, Calgary (see map below)
Website: www.studiobell.ca
Admission: The National Music Centre has a pay-what-you-can policy, with suggested contributions of $15 per visitor. Hours: Thursday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. A ticket for the private Behind-the-Glass tour costs $10 per adult.

The King Eddy: The club has a full-service lunch and dinner menu. There is no cover charge for Matt Masters’ Happy Hour shows on Friday nights (4:30 p.m. start time).