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John Agius A.R.C.T.
John Agius Quick Facts
Main Areas: Piano Performance, Performance Anxiety, Teaching-Overcoming Learning Blocks, ComposingBest Sellers: The Healing Touch, Soulo Piano, A Little Something For Christmas
Career Focus: Piano Performance, Creative Teaching
Affiliation: Light Seeker Music, RCM
John Agius was born in downtown Toronto in the fall of 1957. At the age of two, he first remembers seeing a friend of his father’s play the piano.
Fate had eloquently steered John's life into the world of music.
Prior to his interest in learning to play the piano, John was an actor. In 1978, he relocated to Saskatchewan in response to an acting contract and ended up being adopted by the Indians on the Mistawasis Indian Reserve. He was made the grandson to a revered elder on the reserve. It was here John was deeply affected by the differences between city life and the natural Indian way of life through sweat lodges, peace pipes, smudging and Pow Wows.
In 1980, John decided to live his life completely dedicated to music. In 1985, John started teaching Piano at Powell Music Studio. He joined the Royal Conservatory (amongst various other schools where he trained throughout his career) and had private piano lessons with Ena Moffat in Toronto, Ontario. John graduated in 1991 and already had original material which would eventually result in the release of his first CD a decade later. It was during his time at the Royal Conservatory John discovered two of his most powerful influences:Tete Montoliu from South America and the great Oliver Jones.
In 1986, John became the music columnist for 'Dynamite Write` - a children's paper published in Toronto. John would continue to write for 'Dynamite Write' until 1989 and teach at Powell Music Studio until 1996.
During this time John wrote numerous classic original piano pieces inspired by his experiences living all over the globe. In 1993 he lived in Port of Spain, Trinidad where important profound spiritual experiences occurred that would affect his outlook on life forever. It was here he wrote 2 of the tunes on his CD entitled 'Soulo Piano'. In 1996 John moved to Vancouver, BC where he wrote and recorded 'The Healing Touch', released in 1997.
By 1997, John's skills were exceptionally diverse - composing original pieces for stage performances, teaching with various organisations and writing his first Solo original music CD { Soulo Piano }. In 2003, John produced and released his CD "A Little Something For Christmas". In the fall of 2004, John performed on the prestigious China Orient Express.
Whether John is wandering around a campus building in Toronto, or a back street in Trinidad, he always seems to stumble mysteriously, perhaps instinctively, upon a piano to play. It is this calling that has made John an amazing piano composer and brings forth a record that changes the way we hear the piano today. Soulo Piano, John's first entirely original piano album, brings piano composing to a new and innovative level.
Favorite Quotes & Thoughts from John Agius
"There is always a way that's best for you."
"Make the choice for yourself, knowing you can always choose again."
"Deciding to start, and actually beginning, is a good part of any task or project."
Getting Started With John Agius
Most people come to me by referral. These days, many will start communicating directly to me through the contact page on my website.
