Christian Stepien
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Christian in 2006. |
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| Born: | June 13, 1978 Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
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| Occupation: | Artist |
| Website: | christianstepien.com |
Music was an integral part of Stepien's upbringing. Born Christian Joseph Edward Stepien on June 13th, 1978 in Toronto, Ontario, his formative years were spent listening to records of all kinds. Stepien's mother, Mary Stepien, along with his father, Norbert Stepien, were always singing and listening to everything from Motown to ABBA. This sonic mosaic proved to be the foundation for Christian's love of all things musical, and explains why his own songs are so diverse in approach.
On his 18th birthday, Christian's parents rented him an acoustic guitar from a local music shop. Knowing his constant habit of short-lived interests, his parents didn't want to commit to purchasing an instrument until they knew he was going to stick with it. Stepien took to the guitar quickly and played for hours a day until, quite literally, his fingers bled. Within a few months he began writing simple songs and continuously experimenting with this new instrument.
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[edit] The Music Scene
A few month after picking up the guitar Christian met another musician by the name of Rick Bardos. The two hit it off and began writing songs together. After recruiting Rick’s friends Dan Parker and Chris Powell, the group "Sara's Lament" was formed. Together for roughly a year and a half, it was an introduction for Christian to the music scene in and around Toronto, and a lesson about how to write a song for a band.
When the group split in 1998, Stepien went solo and decided to perform under the name "Brodie". He released a 6 song EP entitled "In the middle of..." in September of that year, and soon after Dan Parker joined him forming a duo. For the next two years the two would release an EP and a full length album, have two of their tracks featured in a USA Network movie entitled The Stalking of Laurie Show, and play shows around Toronto meeting some of the up and coming bands in the city. They became a staple in the scene, playing along side friends like Billy Talent and The Meligrove Band, having gone to high school with the former. Eventually, the two went their separate ways and Christian decided to play solo for good.
As a solo artist, and still under the name "Brodie", Christian released another EP and yet another full-length album. In 2003 he decided to drop the name "Brodie" and start performing under his own name. This was simply due to the fact that he felt he was always trying to be honest with his music, yet by performing under a pseudonym it was as if he were hiding behind a mask.
[edit] Poetry Takes Over
In 2001, while taking a poetry course at York University in Toronto, Christian came upon the work of Allen Ginsberg. He immediately took to the poet, reading everything he could get his hands on. Over time, Stepien's lyrics had become more and more important to him, and he was starting to feel that it may be time to bring them out from behind the music. That year he published his first book of poetry entitled "I am not here". It was released in small numbers, but was a huge step for Christian as an artist.
The following year he released "I fall into oblivion", followed in 2003 by "The palimpsest mind of Christian Stepien". Both books were released to critical acclaim, and were accepted into some of the world’s most prestigious institutional libraries such as those at Oxford, Harvard and Yale. He began performing at poetry readings, and found that unlike the music scene, no one in the poetry world was out to make a buck. They were doing the art for the love of it, a notion that Christian has always adhered to.
[edit] Photography: A New Love
In 2004 Christian's father gave him his original Pentax Spotmatic camera, which he purchased in 1972. Stepien took to photography quickly, much like with music, and poured all his energy into this newly discovered art form. Shooting at anything and everything, he spent the first while getting used to the camera and figuring out the technical aspects of the art.
A few months later he discovered the work of Ansel Adams and he knew he had found his calling. Simply put, his goal was not to 'reproduce' the shots Adams took, but create a similar 'emotion' that Stepien himself felt when he looked at Ansel's work. He focused primarily on landscape photography, and spent much of his free time driving through the vast ridge that is the Niagara Escarpment with his brother, Damien Stepien, and girlfriend, Marina Stojanovic. In 2006 his first gallery exhibition was held in Mississauga, Ontario along side the work of his brother Damien and fellow photographer Susie Hanes.
[edit] On Art
"I took up the guitar because I loved music, but soon came to realize that it gave me an identity. Where once there was just an average teenager now stood a "Musician".
Later I turned to poetry because I loved the way simple words, if manipulated correctly, could evoke such strong emotions in people. I soon came to realize that in creating poetry I was reflecting upon my life, and in doing so it gave me a sense of self. Where once there was a simple musician now stood a self-aware human being.
I then picked up a camera and turned to photography because I loved the way the supposedly "mundane" could have its deserved moment in the spotlight. While making photographs I came to realize that in closely examining the world around me I was discovering where I, as an inhabitant of this world, fit in. Where once there was an egocentric artist now stood an empathetic human being.
For me, it has nothing to do with money, fame, or even the products themselves. For me, creating art is an exploration into the human condition. It is about becoming attuned to the world, both natural and human, and understanding that life is simply a small flash on a ripple in the whirlpool that is the universe. Empathy, humility, and wisdom are the goals for which I strive through a vessel that can be summed up in 3 letters: Art." - Christian Stepien
[edit] Works
[edit] Albums
- A Planet Made of Grass/ Porpoise Song (2004)
- Benihana (2004)
- I Fall Into Oblivion EP (2002)
- Beat Poetry (2001)
- The Ego Trip EP (2001)
- I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness... (2001)
- Brodie (1999)
- It's All Behind Us (1999)
- Brodie and SKG (1999)
- In The Middle Of..."' (1998)
[edit] Compilations
- Food For Thought: Vol. 1 (2003) (features the song "Nothing's Perfect"')
- Inside Your Eyes: A Tribute to Hayden (1999) (features the song "My Parent's House")
[edit] Publications
- The Palimpsest Mind of Christian Stepien (2003) ISBN 0-9730991-2-7
- I Fall Into Oblivion (2002) ISBN 0-9730991-1-9
- I Am Not Here (2001) ISBN 0-9730991-0-0
[edit] External links
[edit] General sites on Stepien
- Official Christian Stepien Website
- Ego Trip Records – Stepien's record label
- Christian Stepien on the Artist Direct website
- Christian Stepien on the CBC's "New Music Canada" site
- Christian's books at the Queen's College Library, Oxford University
- Christian's books at Harvard University
- Christian's books at the University of Toronto
[edit] Sites about specific albums and works
- Exclaim Magazine (Toronto), discussing "Brodie's" first album
- Chart Magazine (Canada), discussing "Brodie's" first album
- Mississauga News Interview
