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Johnny Hiland coming to Appleby College By Dominik Kurek OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF When Johnny Hiland is not performing his own music or playing guitar with such country stars as Toby Keith or Ricky Skaggs, he finds time to teach. He teaches on a regular basis in Nashville, Tennessee where he lives and has conducted guitar master classes across the U.S. and around the world. Next week, the country musician will bring his guitar stylings to a classroom at Oakville's Appleby College where he will be teaching at Guitar Workshop Plus, something he says he's looking forward to doing. "It is important for all guitarists today to keep the spirit of guitar alive. That's what makes Brian Murray's Guitar Workshop Plus so invigorating for guys like myself to take part in. It's great to meet other players that you get inspired by," he said. "When he contacted me and told me what he was doing, I was very excited to take part. Anytime I get to teach is really awesome." He said the program is an effective way to keep people interested in guitar. He added that anytime he has students with a willingness to learn, it's a fun experience to be the teacher. Hiland is one of a number of guitarists at this year's two Guitar Workshop Plus sessions. He will be performing and hosting a Q-and-A session for students on Tuesday (July 17) and teaching a lesson on Wednesday (July 18). Other notables on the agenda include Ian Thornley of Big Wreck and acoustic guitarist Tommy Emmanuel, along with many more. Hiland has performed in New Brunswick and Alberta before but this is his first time coming to the Toronto area -- saying he's welcoming the chance to meet other musicians like himself who will be teaching at the workshop. He said many young musicians who get into guitar go into a rock or jazz music direction. Hiland explained he intends to bring a more bluegrass/country-type of flavour to the program. "I really became known as a `chicken picker', a country guitar player. That's a style that's broadened over the years but it's still kind of new for guitar players," he said. "I have some fun exercises, scales and techniques that I can teach students that will actually work in any genre of music but come from a country background." On his own albums, Hiland includes a rock sound to go with his country. However, he admits that his latest record, All Fired Up, is more country than anything else. "I'm still trying to keep the true country guitar style out there and it's made me a lot of fans, which I'm real proud of. I've had a blessed career thus far," he said. Even though he's legally blind, Hiland plays a slew of instruments, something he's appreciative of. "I have so much fun playing music and I really just thank God for the gift to do it," he said. "I was growing up in a really small town in Maine with an eye disease called Nystagmus. My parents were wondering what's this boy going to do with his life. I sincerely thank God for the gift to play because it's made a wonderful life for me." A second Guitar Workshop Plus session runs from July 22-27 at the Oakville school. The organization will also put on a third session in Vancouver in August. For more information, visit www. guitarworkshopplus.com. Artscene 29 · Friday, July 13, 2012 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.insideHALTON.com SUBMITTED PHOTO Teaching HIS TRADE: Nashville, Tennessee-based guitarist Johnny Hiland says he's glad to be teaching a guitar workshop in Oakville next week at Appleby College. The blind guitarist will join other notable musicians, such as Ian Thornley of Big Wreck and acoustic guitarist Tommy Emmanuel. Forty years worth of fibre art The owner of Joshua Creek Heritage Art Centre and founder of the Oakville Stitchery Guild, Sybil Rampen, will be putting on a display of some of her own work. The exhibit at the art centre, titled Epoch of Stolen Moments, will feature her work that spans 40 years of stitching, something she has done a lot of in between raising five boys and 22 goats. It opens Saturday (July 14). The exhibit will also feature the work of Tschoy Go, a "differently-abled" artist who uses vivid characters and complex colours. The centre is a place for exhibitions, meetings, lectures, workshops and other community events. It is run by volunteers and has a mandate to work with emerging artists. There will be an opening tea party on Sunday (July 15) from 2-5 p.m. The exhibit ends on Aug. 13. The centre is located at 1086 Burnhamthorpe Rd. For more information and gallery hours, visit www.joshuacreekarts.com. Oakville NissanFamily Series PINKALICIOUS (ages 2 to 10) October 21 CANADIAN OPERA CO: HANSEL & GRETEL (ages 6 to 12) November 25 OUTERBRIDGE: THE TIME CAPSULE (ages 8+) December 22 PETER & THE WOLF (ages 6 to 10) January 27 TALES OF THE GARDEN (ages 5 to 10) March 12 & 13 BOO! (ages 4 to 12) April 7 THE OAKVILLE CENTRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS To order tickets call: 905-815-2021 or go to All performances are at www.oakvillecentre.ca Sybil Rampen NIKKI WESLEY / OAKVILLE BEAVER