One of the blessings that come with being a musician is to be part of really important events in the life of people. That, sometimes, includes the end of it; which means, playing at funerals.

Earlier this year, my dear friend Carlene McKenzie passed away. She was a radiant person full of positive energy and motivation, and also an essential member of my projects Cafemnee and Time For My Music, which support emerging female musicians in the industry. For her funeral, the other members of Time For My Music put together a special performance. We wore her favourite colour and honoured her energy with a celebration of her life. It was the first time many of us met in person after years of interacting online, which made the occasion even more emotional.

Later, I was invited to play in honour of the passing of someone who, years before, had asked me to perform at her’s mother funeral. Before, this person had mentioned she’d like to have me play at her daughter’s graduation ceremony, but things happened in a different way. Witnessing the generations of this family come and go has been an experience I don’t take for granted and I won’t forget.

I know saying something like “I appreciate the opportunity to play at funerals” sounds a bit dark, but I hope this clarifies my reasons. If you find yourself in a situation in which you’d like to hire a performance for a memorial, funeral, but also for any other kind of event, you can reach me through my booking form.

To finish this post, here is a clip of me playing “You Raise Me Up”, a song originally written by Rolf Lovland and Brendan Joseph Graham, and made famous by Josh Groban, during a funeral: