The RDSO and Luminous Voices recording for Wandering with Wonder. (Jennette Miller)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

wandering with wonder

Red Deer Symphony Orchestra creates unique film to further truth and reconciliation

Sep 29, 2022 | 4:35 PM

A new film production from the Red Deer Symphony Orchestra tells a musical story, inspired by the land, water and sky.

Wandering with Wonder is, more importantly, an effort in truth and reconciliation as it includes Indigenous musicians — Sherryl Sewepagaham and Walter MacDonald White Bear — who composed parts of the film’s soundtrack and acted in it. Alongside them were a number of non-Indigenous artists also working and creating.

The makers describe it as a call to action through music about reinvigorating our values of community, creativity, love, compassion and living sustainably within our environments.

It’s also made possible through funding by the Canada Council for the Arts and Government of Alberta, as well as corporate sponsorship from Servus Credit Union.

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The film, shot in Alberta, will get its full release in a virtual launch event on Oct. 14 at 7 p.m., and then will be available for free on rdso.ca.

Samantha Whelan Kotkas, Wandering’s creator and writer, is also artistic director for Storyfair Productions, and 25-year RDSO trumpet player.

To be working with the RDSO on this means the world to her, she says, as it means furthering truth and reconciliation.

“Arts and culture brings people together, whatever type it is. The Calls to Action, 83 and 84, which we are addressing, urges for artists to create, and this project really did that. It did that in ways that were profoundly beautiful,” says Whelan Kotkas.

TRC Call to Action 83: We call upon the Canada Council for the Arts to establish, as a funding priority, a strategy for Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists to undertake collaborative projects and produce works that contribute to the reconciliation process.

TRC Call to Action 84: We call upon the federal government to restore and increase funding to the CBC/Radio-Canada, to enable Canada’s national public broadcaster to support reconciliation, and be properly reflective of the diverse cultures, languages, and perspectives of Aboriginal peoples, including, but not limited to:

i. Increasing Aboriginal programming, including Aboriginal-language speakers.

ii. Increasing equitable access for Aboriginal peoples to jobs, leadership positions, and professional development opportunities within the organization.

iii. Continuing to provide dedicated news coverage and online public information resources on issues of concern to Aboriginal peoples and all Canadians.

Samantha Whelan Kotkas, Sherryl Sewepagaham, Yukichi Hattori and Walter MacDonald White Bear filming for Wandering with Wonder. (Jennette Miller)

“This work was inevitable in that I was going to do something with my longtime friends Sherryl and Walter eventually. That’s important because we know reconciliation happens because there is a relationship,” says Whelan Kotkas. “It’s not because I decided that Wandering was going to have Indigenous artists on it, it happened because these are the artists I wanted to work with. They happen to be Indigenous. In the end, we’re really pulling on those TRC Calls to Action.”

Whelan Kotkas and White Bear agree that the fact the film’s launch fell around Sept. 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, was a happy accident, as work began on it last year.

White Bear is from the James Bay, Ontario area, the land of Treaty 4 and Treaty 9, and portrays the film’s Bear character in addition to having worked on the music.

“Art is one of the best vehicles to get us to true reconciliation. To have people from all walks of life, from the four directions of the medicine wheel, be part of this is a step in the right direction,” says White Bear, who is Swampy Cree.

“People are getting to know about all the atrocities that took place, and the ripple effect of them. Both of my parents went to residential school and because of that I was raised around family violence, alcohol abuse, abandonment and a lot of other tough things.”

White Bear forgave his parents once he realized it wasn’t their fault.

“We were raised by traumatized parents who didn’t know how to properly be parents,” he says. “They were taught children could be brutalized, and I’m a byproduct of it.”

Walter MacDonald White Bear recording music from the Native American flute for Wandering with Wonder. (Dean Bareham)

Perhaps what White Bear is most proud of when it comes to Wandering is that his Native American flute-playing is backed by a full scale professional orchestra on a piece called Bear Love.

“To be a part of that, and have 40 trained classical musicians with a Native American flute player,” he adds, “is worth its weight in gold.”

He, nor Whelan Kotkas are aware of any other such piece existing.

Wandering with Wonder‘s orchestral soundtrack was composed by Chris Andrew, Sherryl Sewepagaham, Matt Epp, Walter MacDonald White Bear, and Jordan Andrew. RDSO Music Director Claude Lapalme orchestrated this work and TD Grand Jazz award-winning composer and pianist Chris Andrew joined him in the process.

CREW

Written and Created by Samantha Whelan Kotkas
Directed by Dean Bareham
Film Production: Roadwest Pictures
Sound and Audio Engineering: Paul Johnston and Erin Yamabe
Music: Chris Andrew, Matt Epp, Sherryl Sewepagaham, Walter MacDonald White Bear, Jordan Andrew
Orchestral Musicians: Red Deer Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Claude Lapalme
Jazz Trio: Chris Andrew, Rubim de Toledo, Jamie Cooper
Choir: Luminous Voices – Artistic Director, Tim Shantz
Dance and Choreography: Yukichi Hattori
Puppetry: Green Fools Theatre
Costume Design: Anni Kuhn
RDSO Executive Director: Jennette Miller

To register for the Wandering with Wonder virtual launch, fill out this form.