Canadian Consul General Bill Johnston says that music goes part and parcel with his long diplomatic career.

“Music is such a great distraction and it has become a part of my character I think,” the top Canadian diplomat in Ho Chi Minh City said, “It helps me to open many doors.”

Johnston started playing music when he was a teenager by learning piano and accordion.

A short time later, he was performing publicly at country fairs, hospitals and the town hall in his home town in the province of British Columbia.

“I was named Dizzy-Finger Johnston at that time,” he said, adding that the nickname referred to his playing speed.

A few years later he started playing acoustic guitar at university.

Johnston said music is a great way to make new friends while learning new songs and techniques at the same time.

He said he was able to communicate his emotions with local people through music in spite of his limited Vietnamese.

One memorable experience in HCMC was performing the song Suc Song Moi (New Vitality) on Vietnam Television‘s VTV1 channel on January 1 this year.

“There was a moment that I really got stuck when the lighting, cameraman and the master of ceremony were all directed toward me,” he said. “I still get stage fright some times.”

“But music is something to be enjoyed, so just do it and do not worry too much about perfection,” Johnston said.

Canadian style band in HCMC

The diplomat started sitting in occasionally with the well known Curtis King Band. “This was a great thrill for me to get back into band music with such an accomplished artist.” he said.

Later Johnston became a regular member of an expat HCMC rock band called The Crocks formed in February 2007.

He said the band was not just a way to entertain expatriates but also a cultural bridge between Canada and Vietnam.

The name Crocks had been shortened from Canada Rocks, Johnston said, adding it was invented by his wife Janice.

He said, “Our band really didn’t like the name at first because it refers to an English slang that means ‘old person’.”

Since then the band has gone through a few name changes, including “Commonwealth,” “Undercover” and “10-dollar bill.”

The band comprises five and sometimes six members including Paul Atkinson, lead-singer and guitarist who is also the Country Manager of Talisman Oil & Gas Company and Steven Buchanan, a young American student at Saigon South International School.

“We also have a Vietnamese drummer in our band named Thao. She is the best drummer I have ever played with, and she helps us reach local audiences,” Johnston said.

In the last six months, the band has played at many social and charity events including Operation Smile, Canadian Thanksgiving, Loreto Festival and the Terry Fox Run.

The city’s Canadian top diplomat said their next show would be the CanCham Christmas party at his residence next week.

Reported by Vinh Bao