Most returning Redwood students knew the rock-and-roll sounds of Redwood’s so-called “mega-band” Canopy, a merging of what was two Advanced Performance Workshop bands, Sequoia and High Tide. But when over half of the band members graduated last year, seniors Bryte Darden, Matty Michna and John Van Liere, as well as alumnus Aaron Halford who will not begin college until the spring semester, looked to other musicians in their community as they moved to a “new phase of the band,” according to Van Liere.
“We’ve got some very talented musicians coming up from other schools that we’ve met through the years of playing,” Van Liere said.
One such musician is Marin Academy senior Timmy Stabler, a bassist. Stabler first met the members of Canopy when his former band, Raspberry Planetarium, opened for a benefit show for Ecuadorian earthquake relief put on by Canopy.
“For some reason I didn’t really see [the ask] coming even though it did make a lot of sense. I was really happy with it and it’s gone as well as I could have hoped,” Stabler said.
Additionally, Berkeley High senior Jasim Perales, who plays the trombone, has been featured in recent gigs with the band.
Veteran Canopy members noted that the new members were able to quickly connect and form a bond together.
“We became friends with Jasim within the first 30 seconds of meeting him and same with Timmy. We’re all there to play music; we might as well get to know each other,” Van Liere said. “I feel like that’s the other half of being part of a band―you have to be friends with the people you play with because you’re able to communicate a lot better.”
According to Michna, including new members has also allowed the group to expand their musical style.
“Everybody listens to different music, but [the new members] were influenced by different people through their instrument and through their background, so they can influence us with stuff we haven’t heard or played before,” Michna said.
Stabler said that joining Canopy has allowed him to diverge from the style of music that he played with Raspberry Planetarium for the past two years. Raspberry Planetarium tended to play a jazz-fusion style with a recurring theme of arranging music, while Canopy usually plays “easier-listening” music, according to Stabler.
“I had departed from [rock, soul and funk music] for a couple years,” Stabler said. “So when I got this ask, I realized I would have to dig back into music that I had stopped playing for a long time, which has been a refreshing process. But it’s cool to go back through a lot of my older musical tastes—it’s kind of a nostalgic thing.”
Furthermore, Stabler appreciates the band’s ability to improvise in moments where gigs might not go as planned, such as when there is a faulty generator or the band must play longer than planned.
“I think those are some of my favorite moments, when things derail a little bit and we have to think on our feet, and Canopy’s a really good band for that,” Stabler said.
One of the biggest challenges for the band has been coordinating their various schedules as they prepare for upcoming gigs. However, when they do practice, the process of working with new members has been smooth, according to Van Liere.
“The actual rehearsal part of it where we are playing the music and learning the parts hasn’t changed that much,” Van Liere said. “That will pretty much be the same no matter who is in the band—you have to play the part together before you can exhibit that to your audience.”
The band plans to continue to play together throughout the year and into the next summer, and all current senior members hope to pursue music, in either the performance, production or management aspects, as a major in college.
The next chance to see Canopy live will be at the Presidio Yacht Club on Nov. 11.
