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My Little Comox Shack Paul Michelin |
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Born in London in 1895, Paul Michelin came to Vancouver Island with his uncle David in 1910. As a child he used to pump the organ in a London church and earned the right to practice on it after hours. At the age of seven he was already studying piano, cello including the organ. He had a retentive musical memory and often fooled his teachers into thinking he could read music when he could not read a note. At age 12 he first played organ at Albert Hall in London. "The man with the Million-Dollar hands" as he was nicknamed, also won recognition as a composer and concert artist. His greatest skill was playing "atmosphere" music for silent films. He learned to play over 12,000 songs from memory both in the classical and popular genres. After a time, Michelin left Victoria, came to Vancouver, and landed a job playing organ in the small Princess Theatre and became an immediate success. People came to hear him as much as to see the film. His success spread and he developed his own style while playing in 1917 at Vancouver's Colonial Theatre, the leading theatre at that time. He also incorporated other sounds for silent films including train whistles, steam engines, and battle scenes, but was criticised by the Musicians' Union because he was doing the work of a sound effects man. When 'talkies' marked the beginning of the end for silent music organists, Michelin continued for a short time to play at intermissions. Michelin was also a gifted photographer and at dances would take pictures of the party-goers and have them developed before the dances were over. During the war, Michelin left Vancouver and became an army entertainer and concert-party leader, entertaining troops on Vancouver Island. After the war, he returned to his community of Cobble Hill where he taught music and raised golden hampsters. Asked why he returned to this quiet community he responded: "I'm like a salmon - I want to end my days where I started them." Paul Michelin died in Cobble Hill in 1955. My Little Comox Shack is a sentimental piece evoking a 'home sweet home' atmosphere, atmospheric music being his greatest accomplishment.
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