"A lot of people I've never seen before."
“It was one of the scariest things I’ve ever done.”
18-year-old saxophonist Claire Devlin had just won the Rising Young Star award at the Prince Edward County Jazz Festival in 2012. She would head off to McGill University’s jazz program a couple of weeks later, and there she was, performing on stage at the Regent Theatre with some of Canada’s and the world’s biggest jazz acts.
Nearly a decade later, despite Covid, she has both her undergraduate and master’s degrees in jazz performance, a firm and respected foothold gigging in the lively Montreal music scene, her own quartet and a critically-acclaimed debut album entitled Anyone.
But that long-ago stage in Prince Edward County left its mark.
“I think back on that often. It felt completely out of my comfort zone, being thrown in with these incredible musicians. But it taught me that I could get through it. I think I have enough distance from it now to realize that it was really great for my development – learning to let go of stuff and just try to be present and do your best, make music, and not worry too much about what people think. In the moment I was, well, I have no choice but to do this – there’s no backing out now. It was great. It was fun, everyone was positive, I got great feedback and it worked out, even though it felt like the world was about to fall on top of me.”
“And playing with that calibre of musicians taught me a lot about far I had to go – not in a bad way, but how much I wanted to get better.”
18-year-old saxophonist Claire Devlin had just won the Rising Young Star award at the Prince Edward County Jazz Festival in 2012. She would head off to McGill University’s jazz program a couple of weeks later, and there she was, performing on stage at the Regent Theatre with some of Canada’s and the world’s biggest jazz acts.
Nearly a decade later, despite Covid, she has both her undergraduate and master’s degrees in jazz performance, a firm and respected foothold gigging in the lively Montreal music scene, her own quartet and a critically-acclaimed debut album entitled Anyone.
But that long-ago stage in Prince Edward County left its mark.
“I think back on that often. It felt completely out of my comfort zone, being thrown in with these incredible musicians. But it taught me that I could get through it. I think I have enough distance from it now to realize that it was really great for my development – learning to let go of stuff and just try to be present and do your best, make music, and not worry too much about what people think. In the moment I was, well, I have no choice but to do this – there’s no backing out now. It was great. It was fun, everyone was positive, I got great feedback and it worked out, even though it felt like the world was about to fall on top of me.”
“And playing with that calibre of musicians taught me a lot about far I had to go – not in a bad way, but how much I wanted to get better.”
The Claire Devlin Quartet was born as she was gigging her way around Montreal while going to school in 2016. She wrote for it, did a mini-tour of Ontario, and was preparing for a tour of B.C. and Alberta in March of 2020 when the pandemic hit. She’s also been subbing in increasingly with the Montreal National Jazz Orchestra, and played this spring with saxophonist Christine Jensen, who she’s looked up to since high school.
Claire’s also been teaching privately since she was in high school. It’s helped keep her afloat financially during the last year-and-a-half, despite the challenge of conducting virtual lessons. “Seeing the enthusiasm of people starting out is contagious, even if I’m feeling kind of down about music, that kind of inspires me.”
But the pandemic has been a game-changer, as it has for many musicians.
“I had so much momentum going when it hit. I did feel disconnected from music for awhile. I wasn’t practising much, I wasn’t composing, and I think I was a little burnt out. I remember sitting in my room finishing compositions for my Masters that wouldn’t be played…it was pretty depressing, obviously.”
“There was a lot of self-reflection. “Eventually I started playing music by myself and I realized that I really missed it, and that was a good feeling. Once it started happening again it was incredible. I‘ve had a bunch of indoor shows in Montreal just in the last month…it’s picking up for sure.”
Claire’s also been teaching privately since she was in high school. It’s helped keep her afloat financially during the last year-and-a-half, despite the challenge of conducting virtual lessons. “Seeing the enthusiasm of people starting out is contagious, even if I’m feeling kind of down about music, that kind of inspires me.”
But the pandemic has been a game-changer, as it has for many musicians.
“I had so much momentum going when it hit. I did feel disconnected from music for awhile. I wasn’t practising much, I wasn’t composing, and I think I was a little burnt out. I remember sitting in my room finishing compositions for my Masters that wouldn’t be played…it was pretty depressing, obviously.”
“There was a lot of self-reflection. “Eventually I started playing music by myself and I realized that I really missed it, and that was a good feeling. Once it started happening again it was incredible. I‘ve had a bunch of indoor shows in Montreal just in the last month…it’s picking up for sure.”
“Covid’s been a real roller coaster. It’s been really, really difficult for artists to feel valued by society, and to understand your own value in this time. I’ve definitely struggled a lot, but I think it’s really nice things are coming back, and I’m feeling quite hopeful now. I’m noticing there are a lot of people in the audience I’ve never seen before. And they’re extremely attentive, they’re not just chatting at the back of the room. Before it would be a crowd of friends and other musicians but it seems to have changed.”
She’s also doing what she calls a “side hustle” - freelance computer programming that she took a course for during the pandemic.
“It’s a little extra money, and unrelated to music. I’m diversifying and finding different streams of income because one of the things I learned during the pandemic is that I really don’t want to play background music. What I care about most is an attentive audience, whether it’s pop music, jazz, Indie, whatever. I don’t want to play wedding receptions.”
“It’s hard to make a living in music right now. We don’t know where the world is going. But if I can get back to playing shows and touring and playing my own music…that’s the dream.”
She’s also doing what she calls a “side hustle” - freelance computer programming that she took a course for during the pandemic.
“It’s a little extra money, and unrelated to music. I’m diversifying and finding different streams of income because one of the things I learned during the pandemic is that I really don’t want to play background music. What I care about most is an attentive audience, whether it’s pop music, jazz, Indie, whatever. I don’t want to play wedding receptions.”
“It’s hard to make a living in music right now. We don’t know where the world is going. But if I can get back to playing shows and touring and playing my own music…that’s the dream.”
