Magic Music

For sheer persistence and musical integrity, few can rival the Canadian songwriters Frank Phillet and Neil MacIver, who essentially constitute the duo Magic Music. Across nearly three decades of collaboration, the pair has steadily pursued an independent path of artistic growth despite receiving almost no backing from commercial interests or record companies. Their initial musical partnership formed in 1970, when they secured their first paid assignment by writing and performing an original score for Bertolt Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle, a project commissioned by the University of Alberta. The following year brought an original score for Wilfred Watson’s play Up Against the Wall Oedipus, along with two symphonic commissions from the University of Alberta Symphony Orchestra; Watson had previously worked with Marshall McLuhan. Incidental music for radio and theater became another recurring activity beginning in 1972, one they returned to intermittently throughout their career. Songwriting remained their core focus, however, and Magic Music issued its debut single in 1975. Six additional singles and EPs appeared on Attic and First International Records between 1975 and 1990. Record executives repeatedly cited a perceived absence of “commercial potential” as the reason for rejecting the material, which accounts for the limited discography. Extended stretches passed with no label interest at all, and even when releases did surface they rarely gained traction. This outcome did not stem from any shortfall in talent: four of their compositions were recorded by other artists, two of them becoming Canadian hits, and the duo twice earned the BMI Canada Certificate of Honor. Their debut album, Dark to Light, took shape sporadically between 1985 and 1988 whenever studio funds could be assembled, received its final mastering only in 1995, and stands as further evidence of their determination. The project simply represents one more rung on a ladder the pair continues to climb through ongoing composition and performance.