Sound Ground, in a surprise twist, derives from the idea of a Sonic Playground. This duo, composed of Sean Buckley and Nia Devetzis, approaches music with a sense of play, exploration and adventure in the same way a young child fearlessly climbs up the tallest part of the playground. 

Buckley and Devetzis have extensive performance history together over the last decade in their home base of Calgary, AB. Respected educators in the community, they facilitate the Academy percussion program at MRU Conservatory and are founding faculty members of the MRU Summer Percussion Institute. Answering a call by the Music Performance Trust Fund to showcase women in music, they joined forces as Sound Ground in October of 2024. Leaping into the sandbox with both feet, Sound Ground highlighted six pieces composed by women of this century on their inaugural performance, including three arrangements created by the duo. 

Sound Ground finds joy in showing off the fascinating and playful contrast inherent to the percussion instrument family. This focus results in diverse repertoire and expressive performances, ranging from tunefully buoyant, to grounded and earthy, to curiously theatrical – and of course featuring a vast collection of sounds. With Buckley’s ear for interpretive details, and Devetzis’ genius sound artistry, the duo looks forward to upending audience expectations and nurturing musical curiosity for years to come.