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Hard-rocking violinist is more Gwen Stefani than Vivaldi
- Jamie Calvert |
Crowd control isn't typically a concern at violin recitals, but then Eugene Draw isn't your typical violinist. At the Beaches Jazz Festival this summer, so many people crammed the narrow stretch of Queen Street East to watch the sprightly 23-year-old electric
violin virtuoso hammer out high-octane concertos that police were forced to shut down the show. The next day, the Moscow-born, Montreal-based violinist's 2004 album, The City-which had been languishing on shelves-sold out at record stores across the GTA. His rise to fame may be the stuff of rock 'n' roll legend, but his music defies any such pat formulas. A curious fusion of classical, disco, rock, blues and folk beats, with reggae and electronica mixed in, Draw's beat-packed fiddling references Mingus and Marley, Beethoven and Bowie. Raised in
Toronto, he took lessons at the Royal Conservatory of Music but honed his wild sense of showmanship busking and breakdancing at the corner of Yonge and Bloor -- a mixed pedigree that's equally in evidence whether he's jamming onstage with the Barenaked Ladies or livening up swish private functions for Louis Vuitton and Dom Perignon. Now known as Dr. Draw, he's flown to Prague to play at product launches and New York to entertain Russian diplomats at the consulate. Jumping through frenetic sets, cartoon eyes popping, bleached-blond hair flying, Draw is a blur to behold. Like his music, he just can't be pinned down.
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