“The Grammy awards that you see on stage? Unfortunately those are just props…the real ones come in the mail much later.”
Ron Korb would know. Not only did he attend the Grammys this past February, but he was part of Masa Takumi’s team that won Best Global Music Album at the ceremony.
Sadly, only Masa himself will receive a gold statue, but Ron will be honoured for his contributions with a certificate from the Academy, and it’s not even his first.
A previous nominee in his own right, Ron received another certificate this year for his contributions to the Best Immersive Audio Album.
That statue went to Ron’s friend Ricky Kej and collaborator, Stewart Copeland, former drummer of The Police.
For Ron, the Grammy experience was truly a multinational one. His appearance onstage received loud cheers not only from his friends and family back in the Toronto area, but from the other side of the world as well.
“Having all your Japanese friends say that they saw you on TV, and people reaching out that you haven’t seen in 20 years, that was really cool,” says Ron.
He also got to meet some of his musical idols, including the opportunity to have dinner with the noted American jazz flautist, Hubert Laws.
While the Grammy Awards were definitely on Ron Korb’s ‘pinch me,’ list, as one of Canada’s most accomplished instrumentalists, they were far from his only brush with fame.
Ron’s first musical memories came in childhood, and even in grade school he realized he could play instruments through learning by ear when his other classmates could not.
By his teenage years he was composing music as well, rare for a flautist, and began to realize the places that a life in writing and performing could take him.
He recalls seeing the great flautist and saxophonist Moe Koffman on television as a child, and then later spending his teenage years watching him play live at George’s Spaghetti House in downtown Toronto.
Later, Ron had the opportunity to know Moe as well, and had the pleasure of having Moe in the audience when he performed at a master class at the University of Toronto.
While Ron proudly divides his time between Toronto and Ajax, he still maintains close ties with Japan, his mother’s ancestral homeland. In fact, he’s able to trace his own ancestry in the nation over 1,000 years.
Ron moved to Japan in the 1990s, and said studying music there changed the way he played on both continents.
“In Japan I was studying court music, where there’s no vibrato at all. It was a hard thing to get used to because we’re inclined to vibrate every note, so this was learning another way to create expression,” says Ron.
Ron worked with artists throughout Asia, including performing at the World Expo in Nagoya, and writing songs for prominent Hong Kong artists.
Even though he’s back in Canada, some of his most recent successes (the Grammy win aside) have been widely celebrated in Asia.
In 2020, Ron played Chinese, Japanese, and Western instruments (including backing Andrea Bocelli) for the soundtrack to The Eight Hundred, which had the biggest box office ever in China and became the second highest grossing film Internationally of 2020.
“Because there are so many great musicians in China, the fact that they called me in to perform and that it was a whole Hollywood production – when they tell you you’re the only guy that can help, that’s wild,” says Ron.
While his own albums may not be on the Top 40 of mainstream radio, Ron does appreciate the growing level of music appreciation that artists like Lizzo have brought to the forefront. He says he appreciates that an instrument like the flute is finding its way into popular music.
Ron is also proud of his involvement with High Notes, and has been connected with the organization for several years now.
He’s seen firsthand the impact that COVID-19 lockdowns had not only on eliminating live performances, but on our overall sense of anxiety.
In his own experiences, he notes that the first time after re-opening that he took a plane, or was in a crowded room, it all felt “a little funny.”
In the meantime, he’s grateful to be performing again, and excited to be part of this year’s upcoming High Notes Avante gala.
“I’m always amazed at the calibre of people that Ingrid brings in,” says Ron. “Anyone attending the gala is really lucky.”