A farewell message from Bob Egan

My fellow musicians – It is with mixed emotions that I announce my retirement from the Film and Music Officer position at the City of Kitchener. It has truly been my honour to serve this community over the past 4 years and it has been a pleasure to work with my inspiring colleagues at the city. I could not have asked for more, but the call of the creative and performing life has grown too loud for me to ignore.

I will be pursuing my creative passion for public speaking and performing/recording music once again. So, while I am leaving this job I will definitely and proudly remain a part of our wonderful creative ecosystem here in the Waterloo Region.

You will be able to find me a) online in all the usual spaces, b) in any fine coffee shop in DTK five days a week or c) at this email for the next little while as I will continue to work with Andrea Hallam, Manager Arts & Creative Industries on our shared passion of supporting and growing our creative community.

I hope to see you out there on a stage soon, somewhere down that road!

Twenty-five microgrants of $1,000 each are now available for musicians (and artists in all disciplines)! The deadline for applying is November 22 and the application guidelines are here.

The Union is a new multi-purpose arts hub hosting concerts, showcases and media events to support and grow our local music scene. Attend a show there! Book your band there! Connect here!!

Money, money, money. It has always been the “thing” musicians need more of especially after the seismic music industry changes these past four or five years. The good news is that it is still possible to make money with music. The reality however, is that one will have to work very, very hard and be incredibly creative to make that money. In my humble opinion, it is not lack of talent that holds artists back, it is the brutally hard and creative work required. This article nicely sums this up – Truth About Music Money.

Part of the work musicians need to do to gain more fans (to move their careers forward) is marketing. Will musicians spend money on gear? YES! On recording? YES! On marketing? NO! I get it! We musicians are passionate about creating but not investing in the business of marketing our music is like the tree that falls in the woods with no one there. Here is a pretty good take on Marketing for Musicians.

Bob Egan

Bob Egan, former City of Kitchener Music Officer moved to Kitchener 20 years ago looking for a cheap house to build a recording studio in (he found it and did it). Shortly afterwards he founded Bob’s Guitar Service and 100 Guitars for 100 Kids (with Cynthia Sundberg and Rick Endrulat) to provide

instruments to underserved youth. He retired from Blue Rodeo in 2017 (after 17 years) to create (and fundraise for) Heffner Studio and the instrument lending library at Kitchener Public Library. His latest gig at the City of Kitchener allowed him to build the foundations of both the Film and Music Office. As he explains,

“Music has been very, very good to me. I got to play and record with Blue Rodeo, Wilco, the Tragically Hip and hundreds of others over a 2-decade career in music. It is incumbent upon me to give back and work to lift others up in this amazing thing we call music.”

A moving musical experience:

The Grateful Dead in Des Moines Iowa in 1974 with their wall-of-sound. Met Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir afterwards!
The Who at the Chicago Stadium in 1975 with Keith Moon
Al Green at the Full Gospel Tabernacle in Memphis in 1998-99. The rock and roll level in this church exceeded Springsteen shows in the 80’s!

Favourite thing about Kitchener:

Bike lanes, urban trails, the ION, the post-industrial vibe, the community spirit, THE PEOPLE!

Local music happenings that inspire you:

The passion and care being put into making the Boathouse a premiere music venue
The shows being staged at the Union (at the JR rehearsal facility) by an amazing collective of passionate music people
Sydney Jones gigs
Amit from GoodCo’s events – Sunset Sessions, Palette to Palate, and everything else too

Currently listening to:

Classical standards, baseball playoffs, early Bob Dylan, late Tom Waits, Aldous Harding, Lana Del Rey, Kasey Musgraves, Youth Lagoon, Bill Frisell.

Here is what inspires Bob Egan:

Local small business owners who work their tails off to make our communities a more vibrant, better place to live
Local philanthropists and the WR Community Foundation who show their dedication to our community through their grants and giving
Healthcare workers, childcare workers, teachers, social workers
The entrepreneurial and care-for-your-neighbor spirit of Kitchener

What do you think? As always, comments or feedback are welcome at KitchenerMusicOffice@kitchener.ca

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