Hi,
Ayesha here, managing director of Peterborough Independent Podcasters. It’s March 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic has reached Peterborough. As I write this there are several known cases in the city and Health Canada is recommending all Canadians practice social distancing to prevent infection and to ‘flatten the curve’. (Learn more about preventive measures on the Health Canada website.)
I’ve always found comfort in listening to podcasts – it’s what got me interested in the field and wanting to start my own in the first place. So earlier this week, I reached out to the other members of PIP to see if we could create a resource so we might all keep each other company with our recorded voices in what may be lonely times for some of us.
So please find a selection of some PIP members’ favourite podcast episodes below, in alphabetical order by podcast name.
I hope you’re well.
The Antidote
Dave Hawkins: “It’s rare to have an artist release a debut album that takes the number one spot on The Antidote’s top ten list. Mirours did that last year and for good reason, their self-titled album is superb. Enjoy their music and The Antidote’s conversation with this husband and wife team.“
Discovering Jazz
Larry Saidman: “This episode helps us to form our own definition of what is and what isn’t jazz, using recordings from what were considered by some critics to be the best albums of 2019. Most of them are in the alt-rock, alt-country or ‘world’ genres, plus some that are clearly within the ‘jazz’ genre.“
The Musician Next Door
Stephen Stamp: “We love all of our episodes because we’ve been lucky to have such great guests, but the Bruno Merz episode is our favourite because Bruno is such an amazing musician but no one seems to know him. We stumbled upon his music because his wife is a client at our environmental hair salon and we were blown away by the gentle and haunting beauty of his songs. Of course, everyone has the initial reaction of thinking you’re saying Bruno Mars, but that is a made up name for the pop artist while Bruno Merz is our guest’s real name and we happen to think our guy is a much better musician. Enjoy the show.“
Peterborough Currents
Ayesha Barmania: I love the stories in this episode – they really feel like Peterborough to me. I also really enjoyed the process of making this episode, because there were so many talented contributors and community members who made it happen.
Pints & Politics
Bill Templeman: “Although this episode is now 18 months old, it catches the spirit of that moment of electoral transition in Peterborough from the older generation to the young. I particularly enjoy the interplay between the 4 panelists: Sylvia Sutherland, Alissa Paxton, Donald Fraser & Tim Etherington.“
Bill Templeman: “These two episodes are from last summer (July 2019). Sadly, this convo is still very topical. Opioid users are still dying in Peterborough. Again, it is the conversation between the panelists that is still interesting to me. The panel: Medical Officer of Health Dr. Rosana Salvaterra, Deputy Chief of Police Tim Farquharson, City Councilor Kemi Akapo, and former opioid users Alex Bierk and Andrew.“
Practical(ly) Zero Waste
Elsbeth Cossar: “Practical(ly) Zero Waste is all about making zero waste and eco-friendly living as practical as possible. In this episode my eco friend Theresa and I celebrate one year of podcasting, and have a great time chatting about it. I find it to be a good intro the podcast, the audio is great and Theresa and I have a great time celebrating zero waste in Peterborough!“
Seven Questions Peterborough
Andrew Wilton: “I think my favourite podcast was the one we did with Rick Fines. It was my favourite because of how Rick brought his guitar and interspersed the interview with song. Both Carol and I were captivated by both his talent and his story telling.“
Carol Lawless: “I loved the podcast Andrew did pretty much on his own because I was working – was the one where he conducted interviews with community partners and donors of the NCC for the 40th Anniversary. We kind of threw this in Andrew’s lap and he ran with it. Also, I have great love and admiration for the people he interviewed.”
Soundproof
LA: “I love this episode of SoundProof because the talk about the film The Night of the Hunter frames local filmmaker Peter Blow’s stories perfectly. Filmmaker Peter Blow’s current top film pick on the Criterion Channel is Night of the Hunter. He noticed an unexpected connection between the authors.“
Angel Hamilton: “Only then will your house be blessed on Soundproof and I love it because I am a huge fan of Harry Manx and it uplifts my spirit immensely.”
Sounds Like Life
Ayesha Barmania: This is one of my favourite episodes because it captures a memory of mine in an authentic way. Sounds Like Life is an audio diary and an exploration of sound – I feel like this episode really exemplifies those two aspects well and is a nice, peaceful listen.