Canadian Songbook
Canadian Songbook is a documentary-style podcast hosted by Juno-winning drummer and composer Ernesto Cervini, celebrating the diverse voices that define Canada's musical landscape. From opera stars and jazz artists to music educators and community leaders, each episode explores how music has shaped the life of one guest at a time, across generations and geographies.
Told through candid conversations and warm storytelling, these are the journeys of real people—musicians who honed their voice and found connection in childhood choirs, high school bands, smoky jazz clubs, and summer music camps. You’ll hear how one person's family, heritage, and community helped forge their path to international stages—and how collaboration, creativity, and mentorship continue to shape their uniquely Canadian sound.
Whether you are drawn to stories of growth and transformation, curious about creative culture, or simply interested in the lives behind Canada's creative scene, Canadian Songbook offers an intimate and inspiring portrait of what it means to grow through music in Canada.
🎵 This podcast is a growing archive of voices and visions, rooted in rhythm, memory, and home.
- Update frequency
- every 22 days
- Average duration
- 28 minutes
- Episodes
- 6
- Years Active
- 2025
Holly Nimmons
In this episode, Ernesto Cervini sits down with arts advocate and Canadian Music Centre CEO Holly Nimmons for a conversation that weaves music, memory, and social change into one remarkable story. Bo…
Elliot Madore
In this episode, Grammy-nominated baritone Elliot Madore recounts a journey shaped as much by passion as by serendipity - from childhood days walking around Toronto with a Walkman full of Brahms, to …
Allison Au
In this episode, saxophonist and composer Allison Au reflects on the winding path that brought her to a life in jazz—from childhood days pulling records off her father’s shelves in suburban Toronto, …
Mike Murley
Saxophonist Mike Murley traces his arc from jam sessions in Windsor, Nova Scotia - where musicians crammed his family’s living room - and the grade-seven trip that first let him hear Phil Nimmons and…
Jim Creeggan
On the inaugural episode of Canadian Songbook, host Ernesto Cervini rewinds the tape with Barenaked Ladies bassist Jim Creeggan, tracing his authentic, unscripted journey from camp jam sessions and h…
Introducing Canadian Songbook
Canadian Songbook invites you into warm, honest conversations with some of Canada’s most remarkable musical voices.
Hosted by Juno-winning drummer and composer Ernesto Cervini, this documentary-style …