India Gailey - Cellist / Composer / Improviser

India Gailey - Cellist / Composer / Improviser

Author: Israel Ekanem March 2, 2026 Duration: 26:17

India Gailey is a cellist, composer, vocalist, and improviser who appears most often in the realms of classical and experimental music.

Named by CBC as one of “30 hot Canadian classical musicians under 30,” India moves fluidly as a soloist, chamber musician, and interdisciplinary collaborator, performing across the western hemisphere. She has written music for concerts, films, dance, and theatre, often exploring environmentalism and magical realism in her work.

In 2022, she composed music for Symphony Nova Scotia to illustrate Mi’kmaw poet Rebecca Thomas’s children’s book I’m Finding My Talk, followed by her own cello concerto Butterfly Lightning Shakes the Earth (Redshift Records), the recording of which received an East Coast Music for Composition of the Year and a 2025 Juno nomination for Classical Album of the Year.

India is the recipient of numerous honours, including awards from Arts Nova Scotia, the Nova Scotia Talent Trust, the Canada Council for the Arts, Upstream Music, and Acadia & McGill Universities.

Learn more @india.yeshe


Tune into Blackout Podcast for a series of intimate, unfiltered conversations hosted by Israel Ekanem. This isn't about polished soundbites or superficial interviews; it's a dedicated space where guests from various walks of life-artists, thinkers, creators-open up about the real stuff. You'll hear genuine discussions that weave through the complexities of making art, navigating culture, and the personal journeys that shape us, all while touching on themes of mental health, family dynamics, and the significant beginnings and endings we all face. The podcast lives up to its name by cutting through the noise, offering listeners a chance to sit in on dialogues that are as much about asking honest questions as they are about finding truths. Each episode feels like a deep dive into the experiences of people doing remarkable things, framed within the broader contexts of society, film, and television. If you're looking for a podcast that values depth and authenticity over pretense, where conversations flow naturally from the profound to the everyday, this is the series for you.
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