Music: Where it All Began
Before communication strategy, visual art, producing and cultural leadership, there was music.
Music was Adrian Luces’ first creative language and remains the foundation beneath much of what he does today. From his early years at St. Michael’s Choir School in Toronto to studying jazz and contemporary voice at Berklee College of Music and vocal performance at New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, music taught Adrian far more than how to sing.
It taught him how to listen. How to interpret. How to tell a story. How to communicate emotion. How to stand before an audience and create a connection.
Those lessons have followed Adrian throughout his life, influencing his work as a communication strategist, artist, producer and creative leader.
While his creative world has expanded considerably beyond the stage and recording studio, music remains an important part of who he is.
It was where Adrian first discovered the power of a voice to move people, and where his lifelong passion for creating, communicating and connecting began.
The great Burt Bacharach passed away on February 8th, 2023 and many paid tribute to him then. I grew up with his music and the singers, like Dionne Warwick et al who sang his songs, were of great influence upon my own attempts to be a singer, songwriter and artist. Bacharach labelled “Alfie” his favourite of all the songs he had written, and he was not short of choices. In particular, he lavished praise on Hal David’s emotive lyric, which referred to love as something ‟even non-believers can believe in”. So here, I pay tribute to Burt Bacharach with my rendition of this timeless and gorgeous song. I am accompanied by the great George Koller on bass, and my good friend and outstanding guitarist, Peter Mathers. I hope you enjoy
Click on the link for the full video of my rendition of Alfie. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCQVknX1Xv8
“The Long and Winding Road” is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1970 album, Let It Be. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. When issued as a single in May 1970, a month after the Beatles’ break-up, it became the group’s 20th and last number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States. In January 1970, four months after John Lennon’s departure from the group, the remaining Beatles finished the album with the completion of the title song “Let It Be”. “Let It Be” was released on March 6, 1970 as a single, and (in an alternative mix) as the title track of their album Let It Be.
Click Here to get my version of “Lead Me To Your Door” on iTunes now.
Click Here to get my version of “Lead Me To Your Door” on Spotify now.
Click Here to view my video of “Lead Me To Your Door” on YouTube
“If” is a song written by American singer-songwriter David Gates in 1971. Originally popularized by his group Bread, the song charted at number four on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 when released as a single in 1971 and number six in Canada. The song also spent three weeks at number one on the U.S. Easy Listening chart, and one week at the top of the Canadian AC chart. In the U.S., Bread’s version was the shortest song title to become a top ten hit until 199
In March of 2021 Adrian recorded the song “If”. It is one of his favourite songs from his favourite decade of music, the 1970’s.
Adrian’s recording of “If” is available on iTunes now. Google Play, Spotify and most other online services soon.
Click Here to pre-save “If” on Spotify right now:
Healing Hands, Changing Lives. In 2012, Adrian along with Patti Jannetta were Executive Producers of a song that together with Danny Turco, they wrote and performed along with 18 of Canada’s top entertainers the song, “Healing Hands, Changing Lives” in aid of the Herbie Fund. To view the video please click HERE
“Danny Boy”. A popular song that has gone on to epitomise Irish culture, Danny Boy is a ballad with an ancient Irish melody. Despite the lyrics being penned by an Englishman, Danny Boy is associated with Irish communities. The tune is taken from the ‘Londonderry Air’, a folk-song collected by Jane Ross of Limavady. Arguably the most famous of all Irish songs, Danny Boy has become culturally symbolic for those in the Irish diaspora. For years, the meaning of Danny Boy has been heavily debated, with multiple narratives developed to reflect individual circumstances. Regardless of Danny Boy’s meaning, the song has been covered by famous artists from all over the globe: Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Celtic Woman, and one of Adrian’s personal friends, John McDermott, are only a few of the artists who continue to popularise this nostalgic Irish melody.
Adrian has performed this song many times at funerals, memorials and concerts, including every year for the Irish Society at the St. Patrick’s Day Mass at St. Michael’s Cathedral Basilica in Toronto. To view the video please click HERE
Music taught Adrian to listen, interpret, communicate and connect — lessons that continue to influence almost everything he does.
Create • Communicate • Connect