Music: {allcanada} Albertan wins WOF song title

Thursday, September 1, 2011

{allcanada} Albertan wins WOF song title

Calum Graham of High River, Alta., is the winner of Canada's Walk of Fame's "A Song For Canada" competition, it was announced Thursday.

More than 600 submissions were received nationwide following the Walk of Fame's call for song lyrics that "capture the true essence of the Canadian spirit."

Graham, 19, wins a $25,000 prize, a trip for two to the 2011 Canada's Walk of Fame Awards and Inductee Charity Ball in October, and studio recording time at Metalworks Studios valued at $10,000.

Graham's entry was chosen by a panel of judges that included Chantal Kreviazuk, Raine Maida, Rick Campanelli, Nikki Yanofsky, Canadian jazz-pop singer Stephan Moccio and Walk president Peter Soumalias.

A minimum of one line from Graham's submission will be included in the song (yet to be titled), which will be co-written, composed and arranged by Moccio (I Believe, 2010 Vancouver Olympics theme song). Kreviazuk and Maida will co-write the lyrics and work with Moccio on the melody. The finished song will be made available on iTunes later this month.

"Calum's entry resonated strongly among the judges," Moccio said in a statement. "His poem celebrates the cultural mosaic that is Canada. He has captured the diversity of this country -- something that we as a nation are renowned for and proud of -- and which we (the judges) felt symbolizes the true Canadian spirit."

To view Graham's submission, go to www.canadaswalkoffame.com, or watch his video entry below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=kO55uXBJtIM

The second-place winner is 10-year-old Catherine Brenan of Oakville, Ont., and Vince Dixon of Sydney, N.S., placed third.

To date, 131 Canadians have been honoured on the Walk. This year's inductees are Burton Cummings, Russell Peters, Sandra Oh, Daniel Nestor, Dr. Roberta Bondar and (posthumously) Mordecai Richler.