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......................... AWARDS
CGMA
2009 Canadian Songwriter Full-time, Silver Heart Award
CGMA 2009 Canadian Female Vocalist Full-Time, Silver Heart Award
CGMA 2009 International Female Vocalis FT, Runner-Up
CGMA 2009 Canadian Instrumental Artist, Silver Heart Award
CGMA 2009 International Instrumental Artist, Runner-Up
CGMA 2009 Canadian Bilingual Artist,Silver Heart Award
CGMA 2008 Canadian Female New Artist of the Year, Silver Heart
Award
GMA 2008 International Instrumental Semi-Finalist
2004 Teacher of the Year,South Okanagan & District Arts Council
'Her'story
Before
I could walk or talk, my mother says I was singing on pitch. At
8 years old I started piano lessons. In church and school, I was
involved in every musical thing possible, singing, playing piano
or violin. From age 12, I was accompanying and performing regularly.
Music has always been my passion. I can’t get enough of
it! I love all styles of music. It gives me great joy to see my
children and my music students catch the passion for it too. I
thank God for the amazing gift of music.
LOVE
+ MUSIC =
LIFE
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Penny's
Music Journey
Her
music has been said to have movie theme quality, including ballads,
blues, soft jazz, and traditional sounds. She grew up in a loving
Christian home where music was always enjoyed. Penny loved to
sing in school choirs, playing and singing frequently in church
and fundraisers. After an 8 year career in nursing, Penny became
certified to teach the Music for Young Children program, so that
she could be a stay-at-home, very busy mom of 6 children. After
a very fulfilling 19 years of teaching young and advanced students,
received "Teacher of the Year" Award 2004, from the
S. Okanagan & District Arts Council. But, a visual handicap
was taking its toll. It was becoming increasingly difficult to
teach. Now legally blind, due to retinitis pigmentosa, a gradual
vision loss genetic disorder, Penny and her family seriously considered
a change of pace. June 2007, they moved from the S. Okanagan of
BC, to the prairies of SE Saskatchewan. The timing was perfect
to bring out the dream of performing her own music, which had
taken a quiet back seat in her life.
"If life is a road, then... ”
It was a 2005 spring trip to Mexico
that brought this dream to the forefront. While visiting La Paz,
Baja, California, she volunteered to help with a fundraiser concert
for a senior’s home. She arrived at the venue, expecting
to share the stage with several local artists, only to find that
not only was she to be the only performer, but that the university
had purchased a beautiful brand new Yamaha grand piano for the
event!
"...
music is the scenery!"
This music teacher of nearly 20
years was treated like a celebrity and returned to Canada motivated
to make a CD. She had written songs while teaching and preparing
lessons for her students. The CD, entitled “Soulmates Forever”,
released December 1, 2006. It was recorded by her encouraging
brother Jason Buhr, of Winnipeg, MB, in his home studio. The magic
feeling of the Mexico experience inspired Penny to make the effort
to begin learning Spanish, with a new motive to sing and write
in this beautiful language of love.
Penny
discovers Mexico...
February,
2007, Penny and her husband returned to La Paz, Baja. They left
a CD as a thankyou gift for their Casa Buena B & B hosts,
Milton and SuSu Sanders. Immediately she was offered an opportunity
to perform for a local church group. This began the chain of events
that lead up to Penny becoming the warm up artist for Eddie Woolsey’s
concert, a very popular praise band in Mexico. The event took
place at a sold out concert hall with 1,500 guests in attendance.
Mexico discovers Penny...
Unknown
to ”Penny, a Canadian Recording/Mastering
artist, was in the audience. When he heard Penny, he offered her
an opportunity to work with him on a project to make a professional-quality
CD. Grateful to God for blessing her with opportunities and wonderful
new friends, she is especially appreciative of the genius work
of Stephen M. West. Penny is excited to announce the 2008 Christmas
release of her new CD!
The
Serendipitous Journey Continues...
The
rural folk of Saskatchewan towns, Wawota, Moosomin and Carlyle,
were wonderfully responsive to Penny's concert series over the
winter of 2008. It was a Sunday in late may, when Randy King,
a CGMA award winner, came as a guest singer to the Wawota Methodist
Church. After a time of chatting, Randy invited Penny to the CGMA
Convention taking place in Saskatoon the following week. She made
it, and made many new artist friends as well. At the end of the
week, she was surprised with the award of 2008 Female new Artist
of the Year.
Silver Heart Award.
Highlights
in Artist Development
August,
2008, Penny attended the GMA Songwriter's Convention, "Music
in the Rockies", in Colorado, USA. There she became a
Semi-Finalist in the Instrumentalist category.
In
October of 2008, she joined two of her new CGMA artist friends
(award winners: Aven Grace and Candice Wilson) on a Central USA
tour, singing their way to the International CGMA Convention in
Branson, Missouri. There she had several opportunities to perform,
learn more about music-making: business aspects to jamming, new
friends, and the ministry in music which has the power to heal
and change lives.
"A
Penny for your thoghts..."
“Dream.
You will have to try harder, and even find a different
way to do it. But, God truly is there for you, ready to help you
and give you wonderful opportunities and people-shaped gifts.
Look for them. My desire is to draw people to God's Truth and
Heart of Love, and draw those who know Him, closer."
Promises
"The Lord your God is with you. He is mighty to save. He
takes great delight in you. He will quiet you with His love. He
will sing and rejoice over you!" Zephaniah 3:17
"Dream. Keep your vision!”
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