Why we do what we do
Looking at the Stars is a Registered Federal Charity (Charitable Registration No. 77958 5298 RR0001), authorized to issue tax receipts for charitable donations.
The Vision
Our main purpose is to restore dignity and create hope in the hearts and minds of the imprisoned by means of gifting them interactive classical music performances presented by world class musicians — bridging the disconnection between society and the incarcerated.
The Audience
We provide our classical music gifts to prisoners serving long-term sentences in federal correctional facilities — maximum, medium and minimum security prisons and Regional Treatment Centers.
The Music
We do not entertain. Rather, we create a unique environment of respect and reflection. We invite world-class musicians to present a repertoire of classical and contemporary compositions. The prison concerts we produce promote intimate interaction between performers and prisoners, elevating passive consumption to interactive engagement.
Dmitri Kanovich
Social Entrepreneur
Founder and CEO
Looking at the Stars Foundation
Dmitri Kanovich was born, raised, and educated in the anti-Soviet Baltic state of Lithuania. He was an average student at school and university, and advanced in sports-basketball, soccer and trap shooting. He is a dedicated fan of Janis Joplin, Dave Clark Five, Deep Purple, John Denver, Cliff Richard, Mick Jagger, Chicago, Joe Cocker, and dozens of other representatives of the golden days of rock. He was a committed local soccer games attendee and a dedicated fan of Canadian hockey teams, fighting the soviets in the 1972 series. After experiencing a traumatic car accident, he was pronounced dead on arrival to intensive care before being pulled from the morgue where he had been placed accidentally.
Dmitri has his master’s degree in economics and math from a Lithuanian university followed by a mix of jobs ranging from a poorly paid scientific research officer and programmer to the less glamorous but well paid occupations of bookbinder and fish smoker, followed by his exit from Lithuania to Canada as a refugee in 1983.
Dmitri arrived in Toronto with $300 American dollars and a lot of unfounded optimism about the future. He successfully delivered pizza and cleaned warehouses prior to getting a series of junior to senior jobs in small and large companies learning a few things along the way about how bad management can be. Going through ups and downs, running, tripping, falling and leaving for a 17-year world tour in 1997, Dmitri had encounters with Nelson Mandela, Ross Perot and Russian oligarchs. He watched the Twin Towers burn on the other side of the Hudson River, drowned in the Mediterranean and more. Climbing and falling the career ladder, Dmitri was balancing on the edge of moral and material bankruptcy. Finding light at the end of the tunnel when hope was lost.
In 2014 he finally returned to Canada with a much better sense of what is important …
Lukas Geniušas, Founding Musician
Russian-Lithuanian pianist Lukas Geniušas has firmly established himself as one of the most exciting and distinctive artists of his generation.
Praised for his “brilliance and maturity” (The Guardian) he is invited to give recitals in the most prestigious venues all over the world such as Wigmore Hall, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Salle Gaveau, Auditorium du Louvre, Frick Collection New York, Phillips Collection, Gilmore Keyboard Festival, Teatro Carlo Felice, Sala Verdi in Milan and the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory. He is also regularly invited to festivals including La Roque d’Anthéron, Piano aux Jacobins, Rheingau, the Ruhr Piano Festival, Schloss-Elmau and the Lockenhaus Music Festivals.
Lukas performs with numerous orchestras including the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre national de Lyon, NHK Symphony Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Stavanger Symphony, St Petersburg Philharmonic, Kremerata Baltica, Russian National Orchestra, Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra, Victoria, Montreal and Toronto Symphonies, Warsaw Philharmonic, and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, under the batons of conductors such as Valery Gergiev, Mikhail Pletnev, Leonard Slatkin, Charles Dutoit, Andrey Boreyko, Tugan Sokhiev, Saulius Sondeckis, Dmitry Sitkovetsky, Antoni Wit, Rafael Payare, and Dmitry Liss, to name but a few.
Known for his innate curiosity and extensive musical interests, Lukas explores a wide range of repertoire, from the baroque to works by contemporary composers. His repertoire spans from Beethoven Piano Concerti through to Hindemith’s Ludus Tonalis and John Adams, as well as a strong interest in Russian repertoire such as Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov and, of course, Prokofiev. He is an avid chamber musician and an extremely inquisitive performer and enjoys working on new works by modern composers, as well as resurrecting rarely performed repertoire.
These aspects of his career are reflected in Lukas’ critically acclaimed discography, which includes works by Beethoven, Brahms, Rachmaninov (the complete Preludes); Chopin (Etudes opus 10 and 25) and works by Stravinsky, Desyatnikov, and Tchaïkovsky with Aylen Pritchin at Melodiya.
Born in Moscow in 1990, Lukas Geniušas graduated from the Chopin Music College Moscow, in 2008. He is the laureate of several prestigious international competitions, notably Silver Medalist at the 2015 Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow and at the 2010 International Chopin competition.
Since 2015, Lukas has been a featured artist of “Looking at the Stars,” a philanthropy project based in Toronto, whose purpose is to bring classical music to those who may not have an opportunity to experience it live in a traditional setting – prison inmates and long term care institution residents.
Forthcoming highlights in the 2019/2020 season include concerto debuts with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Yomiuri Mainichi Symphony Orchestra, Aalborg Symphony Orchestra, Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra and in recital at the Gilmore Keyboard Festival and at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées. Lukas will also return to the Grands Interprètes de Lyon, Salle Gaveau, Schloss Elmau and the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra this season.
S. Gordon Harwood, Artist in Residence
Gordon supports Looking at the Stars as Artist in Residence, creating abstract works of art during the musical performances with the musicians in the correctional institutions in Ontario and Quebec. In describing his abstract work, “I consider myself a colourist; possessing a growing appreciation for the relationship between colour, brush stroke, and the emotive energy that can engage the viewer. He enjoys the collaborative effort of working alongside the musical performers associated with Looking at the Stars.
His work can be found at www.GalleryPapillon.net.
Mychol Scully, Technical Director
Mychol Scully supports Looking at the Stars as Technical Director, managing the Foundation’s website, and consults on marketing and social media initiatives. His past experience as Systems Analyst, Project Manager, Facility Designer, and owner of CORE Design Services provides a diverse skill set that enhances the work of the Foundation.
Our Board of Directors
Dmitri Kanovich (Chairman / CEO / Secretary / Treasurer)
Founder
Gwen Burrows (Secretary)
Executive Director, International Partnerships, University of Toronto
Stan Harwood (Director)
Artist in Residence
Saverio Veltri (Director)
VP, Wealth Management TD
Larry Jackson (Director)
Journalist, former Global News Anchor
Peter J. Lambert MSc, CIM (Director)
Investment Advisor, Bank of Montreal
Let us know if you’d like more information about what we’re doing. New interactive music series are constantly under development. We’re also working on pubic fund-raising events you will want to attend.
Our Supporters
