A Passion Coming Full Circle

By Daphnée Lacroix

It’s 9 p.m. on a February night and, while most businesses along Bloor Street West are closed, light still emanates from the Bloor West Music Studios (BWMS). A catchy melody fills the confines of the music school where six adults are gathered, playing music in unison. They’re rocking it out in the school’s designated “band room,” each of them either strumming a guitar or a bass, pounding on a set of drums, activating the keys of an electric piano, or singing through a microphone. Bobbing their heads to the beat or focusing on their technique, eyes locked on the movement of their hands, they’re all lost in the moment one way or another. All, except for one. 

Rather than mirroring the group’s groove, Doug Hibovski is attentive of the other musicians before him. He’s taking mental notes of pointers and feedback to suggest once the song is over – for he isn’t a member of the band, he’s its instructor. 

Doug teaches about a dozen bands and numerous individual lessons at the BWMS, which he co-owns with his wife, Karen Hibovski. The couple opened the music school in November 1990, after Doug graduated from the University of Toronto in classical music in 1987. During that three-year gap, Doug worked at a produce warehouse but kept in touch with music by playing after work hours. He also taught at the Toronto Faculty of Music, another music school located on Bloor Street West, the year before he opened the BWMS. 

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While Karen is responsible for the administrative work, including scheduling, taking phone calls, event planning and greeting students, parents and newcomers, Doug focuses on transmitting his fever for the art. Over the years, he has become an expert teacher, for work and play have been one and the same since he was 14. He’s been infatuated with music ever since his first introduction to rock bands, back in the late 60s and early 70s.

Doug remembers the faint melody of a rock band invading the street where he grew up, and lingering over the neighbourhood like an unwavering musical fog. The blaring music came from the home of his neighbour Benjamin (Benny) Brown, who was five years older than him and an adept of rock music. Next door neighbours, the two boys spent quite a lot of time hanging out. Descending the staircase to the unfinished concrete basement of his friend’s home, Doug would find Benny and his “hippie” friends dressed in blue jeans, crazy-coloured shirts, long hair hanging from their heads, playing rock music. One was at the bass, another at the drums, there was a singer and two guitarists. Too young and inexperienced to join the group, Doug would resolve to sit on a couch and observe the live show before him. In awe of the band’s talent, he silently wished to become as good as them one day. 

“I always wanted to play in a band…. But ironically, now, I train people to be in rock bands,” Doug said, reminiscing about the vivid childhood memory. His fondness for bands and the many benefits he finds in them, including the confidence students gain in their instrument and the motivating property of the social setting, are the reasons he launched the band program. The BWMS currently manages 10 bands of all age groups – from 12 year-old kids to mature adults.

One of Doug’s students, Ed Lundsberger, who has been playing in one of the adult bands for the last four years, said that the experience expanded his music repertoire and challenged him vocally. “There were [songs] I never ever would have sung or had no familiarity with, so that really stretched me outside of what I was used to and actually developed me as a singer,” he said.

Ed also said that his experience in the band was notably enhanced by Doug’s ability to adapt his method of teaching to each student and, more particularly, his cheerful attitude. “Doug is what I call a very happy-spirited person, very bohemian and artistic and well-grounded, he’s just so easy-going and good-natured and positive,” he said. “We have our practices on Fridays and that’s my favourite day of the week… I’m at the top of the world after that so it’s just a great feeling to have.”

Another student, 18-year-old Bronson Aguiar, who has been taking lessons at the BWMS since the age of 11 or 12, said he mostly enjoys being in a band for its cordial atmosphere and its social aspect. “I think it’s just a great opportunity, like a safe environment, to get comfortable playing music with other people,” he said. “I’ve met several people that I still play music with, like even outside of the music school. I’ve made friends through that program, which is really cool.” 

In addition to all of this personal growth, Doug firmly believes in the importance of fostering a relationship with the community. He teaches this value to his students by taking them out on Bloor Street West to serenade the people passing by. “Sometimes [people] smile, sometimes you get a little crowd going. And then sometimes they try to give you money and we’re like ‘oh no that’s not why we’re doing this,’” Bronson said, laughing.

Students are also encouraged to play in a cafe, an event that the studio organizes once a month. Friends and family gather around small tables to chat, sip on a coffee and munch on baked goods, all while encouraging the students performing. The convivial setting eliminates the formalities of a recital, Doug explained, making it easier for students to express their creative selves.

Many students really enjoy these gigs, including Bronson. “I’m actually really grateful for those experiences because Doug sets these up so regularly, I don’t really have any performance anxiety anymore,” he said.

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Bronson looks forward to studying jazz at Humber College next year, as well as creating and performing his own music, or teaching, like Doug. “I would love to be able to make a full time living off my music. I just want to be playing music for as long as I can,” he said.

The feelings and dreams that music creates within Ed and Bronson are exactly why Doug teaches the art. “I love seeing people transform. Students grow up and they end up enjoying, understanding music that’s more artistic maybe… and they go into higher things,” he said. “If I can get a student to listen, to understand or to be able to play something that moves them inside, that’s one of the great joys and great gifts of life.”