James Carson walked away from a fledgling career as a concert pianist to rethink how music itself was made. After backpacking the world, and then settling in New York, he’s back in Toronto for the Canadian premiere of his documentary Cabin Music.
Toronto’s Planet In Focus Film Festival will host the premiere screening on October 20. The project, nearly two decades in the making, chronicles his journey towards making music in a new way.
James Carson
Now based in New York City, Carson grew up in Alberta, Canada. He was a child prodigy with perfect pitch who was composing songs by the age of four. At 16, the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra premiered one of his compositions.
He went on to attend the New England Conservatory, but just when it seemed like he was on an assured trajectory into a performing career on the international concert circuit, he walked away from music study entirely. James would spend a two-year period backpacking and working on farms as he travelled from Spain to Japan.
When he got back to Alberta, he built a cabin by hand. It became a five-year project. The goal was to have a place to practice his music.
More than practice, he was looking to make music from a different perspective, blurring the lines between improvisation and composition, and taking away the barrier between audience and performer.
The result was an album, The Story of Birds, consisting of 11 tracks recorded consecutively, with no edits or alterations, and the film Cabin Music. As a filmmaker, Carson blends a variety of images from his travels, with the natural beauty of northern Alberta as one of its stars.
The feature documentary saw its world premiere in New York in late 2022. It’s now making its Canadian premiere as part of the Planet In Focus film festival in Toronto.
The film screenings will include a performance and talk by the composer/filmmaker. Tickets and more information about Cabin Music at Planet in Focus Film Festival available [HERE]. After Toronto, Carson and the film head west for screenings and performances on November 4 and 5 as part of Edmonton’s NorthWest Fest and The Yardbird Suite, and on November 9 at Vancouver’s VanCity Theatre, presented by the Vancouver International Film Festival. More information about the film and events [HERE].
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