Description
Tod Dorozio was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, in 1968 from a musical family. His exposure to popular music as a youth was set into motion by his Dad, an avid cover band musician. This early influence has remained a catalyst in the formation of Tod's desire to combine the "heart" of popular music with the "intellect" of the classical genre. Tod began playing the electric guitar at the age of 12 but did not start performing until he was in his late teens. At first, the guitar was solely a vehicle for songwriting but in his twenties a new found interest in classical music emerged and he formed, recorded and performed in the new-music ensemble Zio, which consisted of 2 violins, cello, guitar, percussion and voice. At around this same time, Tod experimented with a type of musical composition which allowed him to create large tapestries of sound, while performing solo. This guitar counterpoint for one guitar and rds 4000 digital delay machine, was inspired by the guitarist Robert Fripp and his tape delay pieces. In his mid twenties, Tod enrolled in the music program at Vancouver Community College in order to learn the rules and craft of composition and to begin the process of mastering the guitar. During this period he began his study of the classical guitar and his "voice" as a composer began to take shape. Upon graduation, he was selected as a participant for Interplay, an annual symposium for composers hosted by Jon Washborn and the Vancouver Chamber Choir. At this time, he moved to Toronto where he is currently based and undertook private studies of the classical guitar with Eli Kassner, the renowned guitar pedagogue. His composition for solo guitar, Passion Prelude, was favourably reviewed by Christopher Parkening, and in 2008 at the Toronto Guitar Symposium, Rémi Boucher stated: Countryman's Prelude and Allegro is, "a fresh, pedagogically sound piece needed in today's guitar repertory". Currently, Tod is active as a composer/guitarist/teacher and resides in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
