A creative oasis

by Debra Hornsby

Richard Reed Parry calls the last two years “a nonstop roller coaster ride”. Little wonder. As a member of the groups Bell Orchestre and Arcade Fire, in the last 24 months he has been nominated for a Grammy, won a Juno, released two albums, toured North America and Europe, performed with U2 and David Bowie, and appeared on the David Letterman show. And, somehow, found time for a residency at The Banff Centre.

Parry, who plays bass, keyboard, and percussion, and the other members of Bell Orchestre – Sarah Neufeld (violin), Pietro Amato (French horn), Kaveh Nabatian (trumpet), Stefan Schneider (drums and percussion) – spent several weeks in a music residency at the Centre in 2005.

“For us,” say Parry, “coming to Banff was a chance to reconnect and be creative together. It was an escape from the craziness of touring and … a chance to be around musicians and artists who come at music from a different angle than us.”

Stefan Schneider concurs. “The unexpected element about Banff was the mix of other artists there at the same time. You make musical relationships and personal connections that last long after you have left.”

During their residency, Bell Orchestre, whose work has been described as contemporary chamber music with a tinge of post-punk rock, put the finishing touches on their first album, Recording a Tape the Colour of the Light with help from an Irish group also in residence.“We did some overdubs and edits with the Callino String Quartet … recording on the fly,” Parry recalls.

“The whole place was a hive of activity,” says Parry. Paradoxically, the Centre also offered an opportunity for reflection. “The quiet, the physical environment, and the chance to focus inward” were important, he says. For Schneider, the Centre’s mountain location proved inspirational. “Whenever I looked outside,” he says, “I was reminded I was in a special place and somehow the feeling of being in this special place informed the work I was doing.”

This summer, Bell Orchestre will tour to festivals throughout Europe and eastern Canada. Parry and Neufeld’s other group; the indie-rock band Arcade Fire, is enjoying a break after a year of heavy touring that saw the band top many alternative album of the year lists.

Both Parry and Schneider vow to return to The Banff Centre, as soon as their collective schedules permit. “I would like to come back sooner rather than later,” says Schneider. “I don’t hesitate to tell other people about it … I sound like an ad for the Banff Centre – and it’s all true.”

Parry looks forward to the respite and solitude that the Centre provides. “My strongest memory is of swimming in the pool at night… floating on my back and watching a ghost image of myself reflected in the glass. [It is a] really lucid visual image, peaceful and beautiful, and somehow symbolic of the whole experience …a time of reflection and focus…”