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By Emily Putnam

Those from the �Ӱ�ԭ�� community tuning-in to the this weekend may get to see a familiar face on screen.

, who is now a Juno nominated composer, started her journey at �Ӱ�ԭ�� in 2002 to study jazz guitar.

Brandon says she feels overwhelmed and excited for her first-time nomination.

“It’s wonderful to have this acknowledgement from my peers and to be in the company of the other nominees I admire so much, such as Dinuk Wijeratne, Emilie Lebel and Nicole Lizée.”

Brandon is nominated for Classical Composition of the Year for , a piece recorded with and cellist , who she says she wrote the piece for.

“Simulacra is essentially a sonification of my own experiences with identity”, says Brandon. “Like many others, I’ve often felt intense pressure to alter aspects of my fundamental self in order to better ‘fit in’.”

“I express this in the piece by making the timbre of the cello a metaphor for this kind of self-inhibition and self-suppression – it travels from the narrowest of timbral ranges to the fullest, undergoing continuous transformation, eventually ending in an uneasy balance.”

Brandon’s compositions have been described as “…gut wrenching and horrific” (Critipeg), and “otherworldly, a clashing of bleakness with beauty” (Minor Seventh).

“I get great satisfaction from creating music that has a certain physicality, although sometimes that quality is not necessarily beautiful in the traditional sense. But to me, this manipulation of timbre is what carries the most communicative aspects of music.”

The piece, conducted by , was first performed at the in 2023 and was supported by , and .

“The title of the cello concerto, Simulacra, refers to Baudrillard’s famous book on semiotics, and the concept of ‘a copy that does not have an original’. This is a nod to the idea that sometimes we create our identities out of nothing, creating a kind of hyperreal self that replaces us in the real world.” says Brandon.

She says her education at �Ӱ�ԭ�� helped to instill important values that she carries with her today.

“I worked with Wayne Eagles, Garry Elliott, Tim Bedner and , all of whom had a profound impact on me musically and as a person. I was lucky to have had the chance to work further with Roddy beyond my degree – we toured a little together on the East Coast and he is featured on my first album, ‘‘ which was released in 2016. He’s a brilliant guitarist and composer.”

“I also took classical guitar lessons from Garry even after I graduated. His approach to teaching gave me a foundation of discipline which I relied on later in life as I moved into composition. He taught me that nothing good comes without effort and practice, which is a philosophy I use to this day twenty years later.”

Brandon says �Ӱ�ԭ��’s music program was always encouraging of her innovative and unique sonic interpretations.

“One thing I appreciated about �Ӱ�ԭ�� as a whole was its openness to musical ideas and influences from beyond the traditional conservatory system. I never felt that my musical ideas, however outlandish, were considered unwelcome. This musical openness definitely laid the foundation for my later approach to composition and performance in more experimental and free improvisational styles.”

She says her compositions help bring her internal emotions outward.

“For me, composing is as simple as wanting to take everything that I hear inside, and bringing it outside. Simulacra, and all my pieces are these kinds of personal communications to ‘the outside world’.”

“I’m grateful that other people have found these expressions to be something worthwhile, and I cherish all the collaborations with performers that have come from that.”

This year’s winners will be revealed in Halifax, Nova Scotia at the  Presented by Music Canada on Saturday, March 23 and The on Sunday, March 24, live on CBC.