About Shaun

Shaun began his foray into music and entertaining at age 3 with piano lessons.  The disciplined and repetitive nature of classical piano didn’t sit so well with him.  He regularly improvised on Etudes that were supposed to be memorized by wrote and much to his teacher’s chagrin he asked about these things called ‘changes’.  Classical music did lay a great foundation and set him up for a further interest in symphonic music as he learned Clarinet and Saxophone.  By 10 he was starting his first gigs and by 12 playing regular weekend gigs and weekly rehearsals with local big bands and rock pickup groups.  Shaun was also a member of the Niagara Youth Orchestra and associate with the Niagara Symphony which broadened his  horizons and connections.

Upon finishing high school early he took up a position with Carnival Cruise Lines in Miami at age 17.  By 18 he was a Musical Director and in charge of the Entertainment Department on board and leading his own 10 piece ensemble in the main lounge.  Cruise Ship life was fun for the next five years with stints on both Carnival and Royal Caribbean.  In between ship gigs Shaun would return to Toronto and appeared with his own ensembles, those of his mates such as Jeremy Ledbetter’s Canefire.  He also toured and recorded with Soca legend David Rudder and stopped in to ‘church’  at Grossman’s with his friends the Happy Pals at every opportunity for some 20s danceband fun.

The travel bug had him though and after having his fill of ship life Shaun began consulting online; first with Cruise Ship entertainers and then increasingly with a variety of clients around the globe.  These included Vegas show acts and European touring shows.  Thankfully with the internet Shaun was able to foster this new career and also live in some great locales like Mexico, Thailand and eventually Australia.

Now Shaun lives in Melbourne, Australia with his partner Samantha.  He has a new publishing company on the way and is interested in creating new opportunities for those with original music to bring to market.  His love for New Orleans and Swing music will also be evident with the new releases from his PepperHorn Music publishing company.