I had two things I really needed to do in 2025. Get married to my longtime partner/fiancé Patrick, and release at least one song. The wedding, from planning stages to the big day and then recovery in the aftermath, was a massive undertaking. During this time I snuck in one immersive music production weekend in March. After the wedding I wanted to have original music to accompany the wedding video, so I got to work recording trumpet and vocals to finish an upbeat tune I’d made in that little window in March. 

It wholly encapsulates the love that I was feeling that day. Giving and receiving, it was one of the most intense and extraordinary experiences of my life. I did not anticipate how much MORE happy I would become with a beautiful ring on my finger encompassing my deep love and partnership with Patrick. The etchings of our beloved beardies Rey and Louis tying our little family into one unit. Love spills all over the song. There is a depth of warmth I’ve never quite captured before. The title “Family” came organically as I realized that in 2025 family was my theme for the year. 

So today I present to you my year end project and new favourite song. This optimistic and curious melodic refrain can set the mood for 2026, where love, hope, truth and authenticity and will carry us all forward. 

As always, thank you for listening,

Anita

P.S. the full music video is coming soon. Final edits are happening now. 💛

Song Credits:
Music production by Anita Eccleston. 
Mastered by Chris Gestrin (Public Alley 421).
Cover and promo photography by Roberto Florencio.
Cover art design by Anita Eccleston and Patrick Collins.
Ring design/creation by Alex Christian (Treedgems). 

Family is ONE STOP for any music supervisors interested in sync.

I have two lovely things to share with you today.

First – I have published the long awaited full concert video of Gala Gardens LIVE at Frankie’s After Dark on Youtube. CHECK IT OUT It’s really cool to hear the album come alive and I’m so grateful for the excellent video and sound coverage by David Spidel from Spi-Fi Mediahat beautiful night. Shout out to Infidels Jazz for having us.

Second -- BIG NEWS: I have a concert in Vancouver next week to do it again for Jazz Vespers at St Andrew’s-Wesley United Church (1022 Nelson St). Sunday June 1st, 4-5PM.

Jazz Vespers is a presentation imbued with spirituality and depth. The sextet will perform selected songs from Gala Gardens. Improvised sections flowing through refrains over hypnotic beats. It is serene music about rebirth, growth and patience.

Tickets are by donation, all are welcome. 4-5pm June 1st 2025

Anita Eccleston Sextet: 
Anita Eccleston - Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Vox Pads, Vocals 
Ashley Pearce - Electric Guitar 
Elizabeth Eccleston - Electric Ukulele, Oboe, English Horn 
Dean Thiessen - Keyboards, Piano 
Russell Sholberg - Electric Bass 
Nino DiPasquale - Drums

CDs will be available at the performance by cash or card.

Have a great week! I love you all. ♫

It has been a strange year. 

While tracking demos for a future vocal album a war broke out in Ukraine. I wrote a song for the people of Ukraine. These are compositions I am working to release, however I got sidelined unexpectedly. 

During March I felt overwhelmed. I started learning midi because I wanted to make beats for a chill track, quick and unapologetic. A song for me without any regard for what I had ever made before. I tried to make a lo-fi track in a day. It was so fun. By April I’d created 11 songs. A mosaic of melodies, the songs are comforting and relaxing. Warm vocal harmonies paint soundscapes for intricate refrains and counterpoint. Improvised trumpet and electric ukuleles groove over laid back lo-fi hip hop beats. Being able to create it all on my own was so liberating. I was putting solid ground under my feet and taking control of my life through creation. It felt natural. 

Throughout the pandemic my garden has been a safe haven. A place where I’ve spent many hours, be it in the labour of growing the vegetables, or simply reading in the afternoon sun with my bearded dragon. When reflecting on the feelings I expressed through each song, I found aspects of wonder and a connectedness to the natural world. Where these songs came from and how they were connected to my own relationships to nature. 

I am pleased to release my new instrumental album, Gala Gardens on November 4th, 2022. I wrote, produced and mixed it myself, and brought in Chris Gestrin (Public Alley 421) to master it. I enlisted Emily Valin (EACV Designs) to create the artwork, a fantasy garden fit for a gala. The first single is “Golden Hour” for which I co-produced a super sweet music video with Patrick Collins (Alwaysfurther Films). 

So yeah, I accidentally made an instrumental lo-fi jazz album this year and it’s my new desert island disk. I have changed, grown into a different kind of creator. It is a new chapter on my musical journey and in my life. I remain plotting my next vocal release, anticipating now a shift in style and interpretation. All good things in time. 

Please sit back and enjoy Gala Gardens. It is the best music I have ever made.

Here are some things that you can do to support this work and help it reach to more ears. It all makes a huge impact and means everything to me to have your help. 

• Purchase a digital copy or CD + digital directly from my website
   
• Save it to your library or "heart" it on your streaming service of choice 
   
• Add songs from Gala Gardens to playlists 
   
• Follow me on Spotify and Subscribe on YouTube 
   
• Use these songs as your "sound" on TikTok vids or Instagram reels & stories 
   
• Mention it to friends, play it for them when they visit, share it on your socials, etc. 

Thank you so much! xo Anita

So I started a band this summer with my twin sister Elizabeth Eccleston (Blythwood Winds, Prof. Queens), and my best buddy Doug Gorkoff (Black Dog String Quartet, KSO). It all started with a Sound of Music and Phantom of the Opera Medley for my brother's wedding in May (the wedding theme was musicals). We killed it and never thought about it again until jazz fest. As Lizzie and I plotted future plans for my solo act, we also began a list of all the songs we've always wanted to play. And the list got long and longer and continues to grow. I guess we are kind of a cover band at the moment, picking tunes hearkening back to our teenage years, while tinging our sets with peculiar, quirky contemporary songs. Who knew that Gollum's Song would pair well with Daft Punk's Instant Crush?

Our rather unusual instrumentation challenges the cover band format, ukulele paired with cello, highlighted by oboe and english horn supporting our twin vocal harmonies dancing above.

A concept we've maintained with Girl A Girl B is to invite guests to sit in wherever possible. It began with my other brother Wesley (Prof. TRU) and his secretly amazing voice as the Phantom in our epic medley, and spawned this summer into guests from Las Estrellas de Vancouver (Michelle Cormier and Jocelyn Waugh) for Rich Girl and a slow-jam version of La Bamba. Our most recent guest, violist John Kastelic (Salt Thief, Black Dog String Quartet, KSO) practically played the whole show with us and even graciously let me sing his amazong original song Lovely Day. Previously recorded with Black Dog String Quartet, we were lucky to have Elyse Jacobson sit in on first violin and Elizabeth covered vocal harmonies and 2nd violin on her oboe.

As summer came to a close my twin Elizabeth headed back to Toronto to teach at Queens University, freelance in orchestras and produce shows with her woodwind quintet (Blythwood Winds) while I'm still plotting my future plans, which now include this unexpectedly delightful project. We began writing songs in the final days of summer, inspired by those artists we've covered and that have influenced and driven us through the years.

To keep up with Girl A Girl B please follow us on Instagram: @girlagirlbmusic, Facebook: @girlagirlbmusic and Twitter: @GirlAGirlB to see where this whimsical voyage is leading.