Greg Simm
Greg has been a prominent figure on the East Coast music scene for over thirty-five years. Beginning with performing for country-dances when he was fifteen years old, he has been in constant demand as an instrumentalist, arranger, teacher and producer ever since. He is a product of the Windsor Regional High School band under the direction of Brian Johnston.
In 1987 he performed in his first theatrical production “Hank Williams-The Show He Never Gave” at Ship’s Company Theatre in Parrsboro NS. This began a twenty-five year professional relationship with the company with duties that included musician, musical director, sound-scape composer and board member. His music has been heard in fifteen main stage productions at SCT. In partnership with then Artistic Producer Pamela Halstead he founded the Ship’s Company Theatre Fiddle Camp in 2006 and the popular autumn Main Stage Concert Event the same year.
Teaching and presenting music workshops has taken Greg across the country many times from Coast to Coast to Coast. Most notable is his ongoing relationship with the Tusarnaarniq Sivumut (An Inuktitut word meaning “Music For The Future”) Association that he co-founded with Lunenburg County educator Julie Lohnes. The organization (TSA) is dedicated to provide ongoing musical education for Inuit Youth in some of the most remote communities in Canada. Since 2007, he has been presenting workshops on around Baffin Island and he is also a board member of the organization.
Greg has been recognized four times as a finalist for Music Nova Scotia’s “Educator Of The Year” for his work across the country and as a private instructor in Nova Scotia.
As a multi instrumentalist (guitar, bass, mandolin, banjo, tuba, bouzouki, and keyboards), Greg has been heard in a variety of live performances and recording sessions over the years. He has appeared with and/or recorded with artists as diverse as Grammy Award winner Denny Doherty (lead singer of the Mamas and Papas), Lennie Gallant, Kendra MacGillivray, Richard Wood, John Gracie, Teresa Ennis, Alistair Macdonald, Kelli Trottier, Brian Vardigans, Finnan Haddie and children’s entertainers Donna And Andy. For over twenty-five years, he has worked with Master Fiddler Gordon Stobbe on a variety of musical projects across the country. His current group “Prairie Sea” features longtime musical friend Jim Bell on Hammered Dulcimer and Saskatoon based violinist Kim deLaforest. Their debut CD “Prairie Sea” was nominated for a 2013 Music Nova Scotia Award in the “Traditional Folk” category.