MOOSE JAW — A former Moose Jaw student whose musical roots trace back to the Moose Jaw Band and Choral Festival is now taking centre stage with the Saskatoon Concert Band — and he said the festival played a major role in shaping his artistic journey.
Adam Schick, a Central Collegiate graduate now living and working in Saskatoon, recently joined the Saskatoon Concert Band as a tenor saxophonist. It’s his first time performing with a full concert ensemble since his high school years in Moose Jaw, and he’s excited to be playing again.
“I went a couple of years without playing too much at all, and then picked myself up a new saxophone a couple years ago. I got myself back up to a decent level, and then contacted (the Saskatoon Concert Band),” Schick explained. “We went through a bunch of questions about my level of skill, capabilities, and all that. I got a spot.”
For Schick, music has always been more than a hobby, and the Band and Choral Festival played a key role in opening the door to that deeper involvement. He participated in the annual spring event throughout his youth, starting in elementary school and continuing through high school, where he performed in concert band, choir, jazz choir, and as a soloist.
“I performed with our concert band at the school, but then in Grade 9, went into a lot of solo performances,” said Schick. “I did solos on my flute in Grade 9, and then in Grade 10, I picked up a saxophone, performed solos, duets, and a saxophone quartet … I joined the choir, jazz choir, and all of that in Grade 10.”
During his Band and Choral Festival experience, Schick often performed 10 to 12 pieces a year as a vocal soloist — experiences that pushed him to grow beyond the basic classroom repertoire.
“I think the biggest (benefit) for me was the solo work,” Schick said. “It really drove me to do more challenging pieces of music. I found a lot of the stuff we were playing in high school was more geared towards a beginner-friendly approach, and the solo work (through the festival) really allowed me to expand my skill set and learn new techniques.”
Those lessons followed him into other musical opportunities — including Central’s musicals, which opened yet another door.
“Derek Porter … ran the musicals at Central and he heard me auditioning for the jazz choir. He leaned back and was like, ‘You are joining the musical,’” Schick recalled with a laugh. “That was probably the big moment where I realized I should dive more into singing.”
He later took voice lessons from Porter’s wife, Stella Toledo-Porter, and even stepped in to play tuba during Grade 12 when the band was short on brass players.
Now beginning a career in economic development in Saskatoon, Schick said music continues to be a creative outlet in his life, and he’s glad to be performing again.
“(Music has) been a huge part of my life ever since I got into it,” he said. “Sitting down and just playing piano or picking up an instrument and playing … or just singing in the car — whatever it is, it’s always been amazing.”
Asked if he had a message for students thinking about signing up for band and choir programs or the festival itself, Schick was quick to encourage participation.
“I would say the music festival is definitely … one of the fondest memories from my high school years,” he said. “I’d encourage any students to participate in as many parts of it as they can, because it drives you to really push towards succeeding at something … and it’s just super fun.”
