User:GaryPaulGillespie

Gary Gillespie

                                                                        BIOGRAPHY

Gary Gillespie's musical journey began in Montreal at the age of seven, when he was singled out in music class for the voice with the perfect pitch. Soon after, at age 11, he wrote and performed his first song. It wasn't until his teen years, living in Nova Scotia, that his musical talent truly blossomed. As lead singer of the Halifax-based band, Broken Toys, Gary was able to hone his stage presence and songwriting style. After developing a strong local fan base, Broken Toys went on to win the semi-finals of CBC-TV's regional "Battle-of-the-Bands" and toured the country from coast-to-coast.

It was on the second national tour that Gary decided to relocate to the West Coast. It was in Vancouver, along with guitarist/violinist Ian Cameron of Strange Advance, that the band Faith & Desire was formed. Their first independent release, via Spinner Distribution, garnered rave reviews from as far as Europe and landed them live gigs at the prestigious Whiskey-A-Go-Go in Los Angeles and as the opening act for Richard Marx in Hawaii.

The first single, "One Condition of Love", received strong radio support across Canada that gave Faith & Desire a "Top Adds" mention in The Record. The second CD, Heavy Mellow, was released independently in Canada and picked up internationally by Sony ( Germany, Austria, Switzerland ) and Escape Records ( U.K. ). The single, "Fool For A Day", ended up on a CD compilation from Valentine Music Productions (Singapore) that was distributed in countries such as China, Korea, and Malaysia, and was included in the television series Higher Ground. Gary was also awarded a CDI scholarship in Write On, a national songwriter’s competition.

Live performances include Anchorage Alaska, Molson Indy Vancouver, Grey Cup, Disney World Florida and singing the national anthems at G.M. Place for the Vancouver Canucks. His acting credits include playing the part of singer Georgie Fame in the T.V. movie, The Linda McCartney Story.

Gary’s desire to work with children, combined with his interest in learning styles that support creativity and individuality, led him to studying to become an Orton-Gillingham therapeutic multi-sensory tutor. Soon after completing his training, Gary was hired to work at Fraser Academy, a school specifically developed for students with language learning disabilities.

In addition to one-on-one tutoring, Gary is involved in many other aspects of the school including teaching music grades 1 to 6, writing and directing musical and theatrical performances. He also wrote the school song.

His combined love of music and working with children has led him to the decision to offer his own music program based on the successful working model offered at Fraser. His vision is to reach more children in this way — people of all ages and backgrounds who are touched by the gift of music — and give young performers the opportunity to discover and develop their gifts and strengths, and learn that dreams can be made a reality.