Art Island S1E5: Tony Wilson - Musician, Composer, Author

In Episode 5 of ART ISLAND, Zsofin Sheehy joins jazz composer Tony Wilson in his Hornby Island studio, where the seeds of Tony's musical journeys are sown and cultivated. Tony shares both the joy, challenges, and drive behind his singular career and the expressive, often improvised compositions that earned him respect as one of the foremost jazz composers and musicians in Canada. But Tony's music is not only what makes his story exceptional. He candidly shares his life experiences of homelessness and addiction, and how he has used his art for creating dialogue about urgent social justice issues. Tony's humble recollection of his life, work and current projects carries wisdom for any viewer striving to realize their creative dreams.
[About Tony Wilson]
Tony Wilson began his musical studies in 1981 at Malaspina College in Nanaimo, where he studied composition with Pat Carpenter. After moving to Vancouver in 1987, he performed and wrote music for the sextet Video Barbeque which won a West Coast Music Award for its CD Maximillism. In 1990, he formed the Tony Wilson Sextet which performs original compositions as well as arrangements of the works of jazz luminaries such as Don Cherry, Sun Ra, Captain Beefheart and Duke Ellington. He also leads a quintet, a quartet and a trio in his name, as well as the 11+ piece band he formed to perform his multimedia presentation, The Homeless Project. Tony has toured across Canada, Europe and the United States, worked on commissions by international orchestras and dance companies, and has released six albums to date.
[Art Island: Perspectives from a Creative Community]
Who are the individuals that comprise the vibrant artistic community of Hornby Island? This 10-episode docu-series looks into the personal lives and artistic perspectives of local artists - our community members. Expanding on how they became artists, what inspires their art, challenges they've encountered, and how they persevered, Art Island is a deep dive into why artists feel art is important and how it has the power to affect us all.
[Credits]
Director & Cinematographer - Zsofin Sheehy
Associate Producer - Emma Walter
Assistant Director - Kris Krüg
Location Sound - Liam Wheatley
Sound Mix & Design - Matt Copeland
Title Animation - Grigorii Kniagnitskii
Colour - Bogdan Mykytenko
[Additional footage courtesy of]
Mike McKinlay
Lee Hutzulak
[Music]
Tony Wilson
[A Day's Life Band]
Tony Wilson - Guitar
J.p. Cater - Trumpet
Jesse Zubot - Violin
Peggy Lee - Cello
Russell Sholberg - Bass
Skye Brooks - Drums
[Photos courtesy of]
Bob Cain Photography
Hornby Island Archives
Chris Weixelbaumer
Don Peterson Photography
For more episodes follow the links below:
E1: Alina Milek • Art Island S1E1: Alina...
E2: Tom Burrows • Art Island S1E2: Tom B...
E3: Moragh Eilish • Art Island S1E3: Morag...
E4: Michelle Nyberg • Art Island S1E4: Miche...
E5: Tony Wilson • Art Island S1E5: Tony ...
E6: Alpen Kelley • Art Island S1E6: Alpen...
E7: Gordon Payne • Art Island S1E7: Gordo...
E8: Elaine Savoie • Art Island S1E8: Elain...
E9: Tom Knott • Art Island S1E9: Tom K...
New episodes coming soon - Subscribe to stay in the loop and watch more videos.
Funding for this episode of ART ISLAND is provided by the Canada Council for the Arts, BC Arts Council, and the Province of British Columbia.

[@bhavanijai6217]

Love your authentic sharing.. wisdom is speaking thru you ❤

[@inchafune]

Thank you SO much for this amazing film.

[@hollymorgan4792]

What a beautiful touching film. Thank you to all who helped in it's production.

[@HornbyArts]

Thanks so much for watching and commenting ☺️

[@ange9748]

i'm always surprised at the amazig people I meet through KZbin. Tony I loved listen to what you have to say about life. Your view of humanity is well understood by me through my heart. It is the modesty that you radiate... and your open face shows the possibilities of becomming human. Thanks for the good tunes you give into this world. And thanks to the film team who makes it possible to show such people,

[@chantalrochon3566]

Lovely man, exceptional composer❤❤❤❤❤

[@HornbyArts]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@UmaAuroville]

THANKS.........🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰

[@susannequicker257]

This is straight out of the heart. Beautiful! Thank you so much!!!

[@Kathysart]

Profound. Thank you.

[@JamesSimonSculpture]

Sammy Sammy! I lived on Hornby island at George de Papes aka Sammy Sammy for a couple glorious years in the early 70s.(and i have a bunch of pictures) George encouraged me and my friend to stay, and offered to build us a cabin with his saw mill and trees-which we did in the middle of winter!! George was a special guy-we met several of his sons during that time-one was a great accordion player-such a magical place!!

[@HornbyArts]

Oh wow! Thank you for sharing your experience :)

[@sweetrebeldy]

"I made Tony Wilson Music". Top quote-

[@carolinecaiger6717]

What a great profile of Tony. It’s amazing how long you can be around someone and only really learn what makes them tick watching these videos. Great work, Zsofin ❤

[@HornbyArts]

Thanks so much for watching Caroline.

🎸🎼🎶🎤🎧

“Trust and make the jump. I can do this.”

[@ochervelvet9687]

❤

[@user-ky7cj1sr5q]

Beautiful. Thank you.

[@ShannonWarwick]

Beautifully done!