riding the rails to share songs from new CD

Bryan Moyer Suderman rides the rails over 9,000 km to share songs from new CD\

What better way to celebrate the release of a new CD than to ride the rails for a month, covering over 9,000 km from Toronto to Vancouver and back, with plenty of singing stops in between?

That’s what Bryan Moyer Suderman is doing from September 15 to October 15, eager to share the songs from his new CD “A New Heart: songs of faith for small and tall.”

Moyer Suderman describes his newest CD, the 4th released on his SmallTall Music label, as the most “playful” and “ambitious” of any recording he’s done so far. With original songs that are evocative, engaging, and simple without being simplistic, Bryan sings from Genesis to the Gospels, Esther to Ephesians with a top-flight crew of backing musicians in styles ranging from folk and bluegrass to zydeco, bossa nova, and New Orleans jazz.

It’s easy to see why Moyer Suderman has become known for his unique gift of crafting songs and performances that draw from the deep wells of biblical vision and wisdom while being accessible and fun for young and old alike. Since the release of his first CD in 2002, Bryan’s “songs of faith for small and tall” have become favourites with families and churches across North America and beyond, and have been published in various hymnal, songbook, curriculum and other resources.

But why travel by train?

While travel and performing is an important part of Moyer Suderman’s work (he recently returned from Paraguay, where he was part of the song leading team at the Mennonite World Conference Assembly), he also struggles with how to carry out this vocation in a way that is sustainable economically and ecologically as well as sustainable in terms of healthy relationships with his family and local community (he attends Community Mennonite Church of Stouffville Ontario).

As a result, Moyer Suderman works to keep his long-distance travel schedule confined to a limited number of weeks per year, and then to “make hay while the sun shines” and perform as much as possible while he is on the road. The CanRail Pass offers a way to do that at a low cost and in a way that reduces the carbon emissions that would result from more “one-off” flights to long-distance engagements. Moyer Suderman completed a coast-to-coast USA railroad tour last spring, and has begun planning for the next one as well. “Besides,” Moyer Suderman says, “I love to travel by train!”

Another key component of Moyer Suderman’s long-term strategy is what he calls his “Community Supported Music” system. This is an innovative online delivery system for music that is patterned after the “Community Supported Agriculture” (CSA) approach, making regular “deliveries” of new songs that are “fresh, home-grown, and always in season.” Since pioneering this alternative business model for the arts which is entering its fourth year, Moyer Suderman has made 12 “deliveries” of new songs - complete with music notation, chords, thoughts and reflections, and activity ideas and tips for using the songs in home, school, and congregational settings. Various other artists have picked up on the idea as well, have been applying this model to their own work.

For more about Bryan Moyer Suderman recordings, downloads, and performances, visit www.smalltallmusic.com, follow his touring adventures on his blog www.smalltallmusings.blogspot.com, and discover more about his “Community Supported Music” system at www.bryanmoyersuderman.com.

Moyer Suderman will be performing an all-ages concert at the Old United Church in Duval, SK on Sunday, October 4th. There will be a potluck at Newschool Arts (the old school) at 5:00 p.m. with concert to follow in the old United Church at 7:00 p.m.