A series of 8 questions with pianist, Stewart Goodyear
What place were you born and where do you live now?
SG I live in Toronto and Philadelphia at the moment.
What is your favourite era/genre of music to perform?
SG I love all genres and eras of music as a performer. When I practice and perform works of every
period, I feel like I learn so much about the history, culture and flavour of each era. To share my
love of history with the public as a musician is an immense joy.
Who are your musical influences and what do you love about their music?
SG That is a loaded question! As a pianist, my musical influence is Rachmaninoff, who was known
as one of the greatest pianists of his time as well as a known, respected composer. With every
work Rachmaninoff performed, whether it be Chopin, Beethoven, or Schumann, the listener
heard the care and curiosity of a fellow composer.
Your favourite food (only one!)
SG Trinidadian Callaloo….homemade…with grilled salmon!
Your most memorable performance? Where were you and who were you performing with and why was it memorable?
SG I performed my own “Callaloo”suite for piano and orchestra, with the Chineke! Orchestra
under conductor Andrew Grams, at the BBC Proms September 2024. It was a dream to perform
on that series and to share my original work with such a huge and wildly responsive audience at
the Royal Albert Hall made this performance one I will always look back on fondly.
Something unique or unusual about you.
SG I love films. I seem to always look at every work I perform cinematically… from its storytelling,
actors depicted characters, and the directors’ choices of mood and ambience of his/her
cameras. Storytelling, to me, is like the architecture of a symphonic movement; actors depicting
characters like a musician bringing a piece of music as a living and breathing form, and the
directors' choices of mood and ambience like the choice of orchestration and timbre.
How long have you been a performer?
SG I have been performing since I was 11 years old.
What are you most looking forward to about performing with VIS this year?
SG This will be my debut with the Vancouver Island Symphony, and I can’t wait to work with
Cosette Justo Valdés and these fantastic musicians!
