Christopher Stewart

Music is what I feel most passionate about, the composition process in particular. Although I've often been told that I'm good at writing, thus far it hasn't grabbed my interest nearly as much as music does. I enjoy trying different things, like drawing and painting and writing screenplays, and eventually I'd like to direct mini-movies for some of my longer compositions, but ultimately music is where it's at for me. Nothing else compares in terms of elevating my spirits, except perhaps some well executed meditation session, or an inspired piece of Buddhist literature.

The opportunities were definitely there, but I can't say that I was encouraged, nor was I ever discouraged, to take them. There was definitely a decent place for the arts at home, but there wasn't any professional artists in the immediate family.

We had a piano and some of my sisters took classes for a while, but none of them really got far. I dabbled on it from time to time, but never really seriously or with an aim in mind. My mother used to play soprano saxophone (in some kind of marching band I think) but she stopped before I was born so I never had the chance to hear her play. My father was very creative, and was particularly good at things that demanded minutiae, such as building model airplanes and the likes. My brother Charles did some impressive painting jobs on model race cars and also was very good at drawing them. My sisters Patricia and Mary-Ann studied visual arts in college but never pursued it professionally. My sister Ruth studied drama and pursued a career for a number of years, but finally decided to move on to other projects.

We had a considerable and varied vinyl collection so I was exposed to a wide range of music as a kid. I remember lip synching to The Beatles and Elvis in particular, pretending I was a rock singer. And entire afternoons spent playing with legos while listening to my mother's selection of classical composers. I also remember being terrified by the first King Crimson album, both the cover art and the music, which makes sense given the impact the band had on me once I rediscovered them as a young adult... a future shock of sorts...

We didn't have cable TV, but thankfully the only channel we could receive clearly was Radio-Canada which included some very valuable cultural and artistic broadcasts in its programming, notably on the Sunday evening show « Les Beaux Dimanches » through which I was exposed to theater, ballet, opera, symphonic music, and other mind-broadening displays.

I was born and raised in Rivière-du-Loup, in the province of Québec, Canada, which is a small town located about 200Km northeast of Québec, the capital city of the province, where I currently reside.

Definitely during the second of my four years of studying electrical engineering at Université Laval in Québec. Through various friends and contacts I reconnected with progressive rock, a form of music to which I had already been exposed to in my youth. Hearing the music of bands such as Yes, Rush, Genesis, and King Crimson felt like meeting old friends, and quickly I knew I just had to do as those musicians did, although my prior experience with music had been minimal at that time.

I remember one piece in particular that had a very strong appeal to me, « Brother Of Mine » (by Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman, and Howe - who couldn't use the name Yes at the time), which interestingly enough had a chorus starting with « Long lost brother of mine...» The piece had me wanting to explore older Yes albums, and through doing this I recognized that I had a special connection to the music... the kind of experience from which there is no coming back.

My impression is that the cultural scene here is in good health and has been thriving in the recent years.

That being said, I use the word « impression » because I don't have the opportunity to actually experience it for myself as much as I would like to. There are relatively new venues that I still haven't visited, and bands I would like to hear live, but I don't have that much free time.

So no, I can't say that it influences my work very much...

In a sense it's hard to discuss the parallels between both processes because of the way they have intertwined and fed each other in my own experience.

That being said, for one, music for me is as much a spiritual practice as Buddhism is. The inspiration and elevation it provides is undeniable, and the many insights I have had while practicing an instrument or rehearsing a part are too numerous to recount.

And from that I would venture that the key element the artistic and Buddhist disciplines have in common is that they are ways to connect to what I would call higher intelligence, or perhaps universal intelligence. Buddhism does this by training the mind to notice and get rid of that which hinders what would otherwise be a natural and constant connection, while art does this by directing one's attention to it.

As such, both disciplines work very well as complement to each other.

What came to be known as Poligraf saw the light of day on February 6, 1998, following the collapse of a band that never really was, and much discussion about music involving me and my boss at the time. To make a long story short, after having discovered that we both liked the same bands, I sent him some of the music I was working on, and he liked it enough to have some friends he used to jam with listen to some of it, and eventually he brought them over to my place for a first rehearsal.

After agreeing on a general aim and formula, we started meeting on a somewhat regular basis to develop a repertoire. There was no lead singer at that point and as far as vocals were concerned, we had agreed that we would do a « Yes/90125 » thing, meaning that we would exchange the lead vocals depending on the requirements of the music, and as our respective abilities allowed.

I don't recall us having a name either, as we were basically gathering to toy around with some of the stuff that I had written, occasionally record some of the ideas that came out of it, and just having plain fun with the music.

The name « Poligraf » wasn't even close to be around, and in fact wouldn't be until the winter of 2001. At some point I was interested in naming the band « The Debate Club » and even went as far as designing some draft logos, but even if it would have been very representative, it didn't gel. We also considered the name « Golem » for a while, but we finally dropped it as we discovered that another local band had used it before us.

Over the following years, the band saw many musicians orbit around a central core that finally dissolved in February 2003. The repertoire grew, but the lineups would rarely last long enough for us to get out of the basement.

After a hiatus of about one year, I met new musicians and formed a second core which is still at the heart of the current incarnation of the band.

Since then, the repertoire has been developed even more, and we had the chance to leave the basement on several occasions, but I can't say that the band has taken off yet.

Actually, I could go on and on about the history of the band. There's a lot more to say on where it has been, where it is now, and, hopefully, where it is going. But I guess you will have to stay tuned to my blog posts for that...

Well,thanks for mentioning it. It's always a pleasure to contribute to a network where people express their appreciation. Interestingly enough, I never really asked myself the question but yes, as far as I can remember I have always enjoyed writing. Actually, I have plans for one feature film and one science fiction novel that I would like to see brought to completion eventually, but I never really considered writing as a way to earn a living.

I don't know if they count as new bands, but these days I very much enjoy Porcupine Tree, and also Coheed & Cambria and Muse which both have progressive elements to their music. The recent « Radiation » EP by UKZ is very pleasing to my ears, and I hope they release a full-length album soon. There are podcasts that I listen to in the hopes of staying connected to what's new and upcoming, namely the Epileptic Gibbon Podcast music show, and the Rogues' Gallery on The Dividing Line. Through those I keep discovering great new bands, such as the Joff Winks Band and American Hollow.

I should also mention that I try to keep current on the musical activities of the more recent King Crimson alumni, such as Trey Gunn, Pat Mastelotto, and Gavin Harrison.

I remember as a kid singing with classmates at an end-of-the-year « stage show» and having lots of fun (partly because school was over though).

At one point I started playing the violin, but found the whole thing rather uncomfortable, not to mention difficult. At the time I also tried flute and clarinet, and had trouble with the former, but lots of fun with the latter. I also bought a vibraphone that I found very inspiring to play. These days I want to try the alto saxophone. I'm mostly self-taught except for music classes during elementary school, and about 5 hours each of guitar and vocal coaching. I'm a do-it-yourselfer at heart... That being said I don't have the pretension of being anywhere good on most of these instruments. I can play a few things and that's about it. I'd say I'm most at ease on guitar, bass, vocals, and keyboard, in that particular order.

Well, I used to play. These days I'm (unofficially) retired. Maybe I'll play again in the future, but for now I feel my energy is better invested elsewhere. I've had the chance to catch quite a few games of the FC Barcelona this past winter, and I quickly became a fan. They play a very effective passing game that is a beauty to witness, and have some of the most talented and spectacular players on the planet in their ranks. And I was a very happy fan this summer when Spain won the World Cup.

That being said, I've just learned that my favorite player, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, has left them to join A.C. Milan, so I may just find myself with two favorite teams pretty soon... I don't think I would give up music for anything else at this point in my development, but if you had asked me that same question about 15 years ago it would have been one very tough choice, as I was training hard at the time, and two serious teams had expressed their interest in having me play with them. But a torn ACL in my left knee had me reconsider that particular future...