CollaBorative Guitarist & Guitar Accompanyment
Available In Toronto, Canada
Hi! I'm Nostalgia
I’m a rhythm-focused guitarist located in Toronto, Canada. As of the start of 2023, I’ve been playing guitar for about 3 years combined. I have been focused on Japanese music as anime has been a big part of my life for as long as I could remember, and the music has a way of making me feel motivated and sentimental.
When I started playing guitar, I was focused on lead. Like many others, I thought riffs and solos were cool, compared to rhythm where you’d just play 3-4 chords on repeat. Japanese music, however, really challenged my thinking in that regard.
They love longer chord progressions that utilize borrowed chords, secondary dominants, diminished chords, and modulation to keep things interesting. As for strumming, they use a variety of patterns which uses a lot of syncopation, 16-beat strumming, and even funky patterns. That’s why I proudly label myself as a rhythm guitarist and prefer that role in a band.
Right now, I’d love to get more experience accompanying singers or joining bands for short-term projects, gigs, and video collaborations.
My Performance History
While I may be new to guitar, I have been partaking in performance arts since childhood, such as keyboard, clarinet, and viola. I got to perform with the piano at church and the viola at school.
I also took part in choir for a couple years, and one year, my middle school choir got to perform a long side other schools with a famous jazz singer at Roy Thompson Hall. I was also part of my high school’s drumline and we got to perform at a variety of places including Massey Hall, Juno Hoops, and other community events. I was took part in our school’s Little Shop of Horrors musical production. I’ve also gotten to dance quite a bit with my school’s cheerleaders and as a guest at Dolly Momoiro’s events.
With the anime cover band I created, I got to perform at the Japanese Culture Centre during the Pretty Heroes Convention, and at Dolly Momoiro’s Idol Revolution hosted at See-Scape.
All in all, I’m someone who values being part of a team, whether as the leader or as a member. I am someone who prefers to practice diligently until I can play a piece perfectly and consistently. I know how much pressure the stage adds, and I prefer to be prepared and someone my group can rely on.
Packed & Ready To Go
Right now, I have 4 guitars in my possession. My go to is my pink Ibanez S Standard. I also own an Epiphone Les Paul Special, Squier Stratocaster, and a black Jasmine Acoustic-Electric guitar.
Since my main goal as a guitarist was to perform, I got pretty much everything I need in my possession already, including spare cables and a wireless guitar system, clip-on tuners, a variety of standard earplugs, a Focusrite interface, a compression microphone, a variety of basic pedals (BOSS distortion, Amazon Overdrive, Sonicake Noise Wiper, and FLAMMA Preamp) with a pedal board, a Soundbrenner Core Steel Metronome Watch, and more.
I can learn most basic songs (just chords) in a day, but would prefer at least 3 days to familiarize myself with the song and to be able to play it without thinking much. For more complex songs that contain lead, complex progressions, or that are on the faster side, I would prefer at least a week. I have yet to really work on playing by ear, so be sure that chords or tabs are available.
