Toronto guitar teacher stages third cancer research-treatment fundraiser at Massey Hall
· Toronto Sun
See more Toronto Sun on Google — save as a Preferred Source
Toronto guitar teacher David Glabais is staging his third annual Unbreakable concert at Massey Hall on Nov. 15 to raise money for the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation .
Visit extonnews.click for more information.
But this year’s event, on the same day he’ll turn 65, has so much more meaning for Glabais, who was himself diagnosed with throat cancer in 2023.
The evening, which also features such Canadian musical guests as Sloan’s Chris Murphy and journalist Lisa LaFlamme as host, is dedicated to the memory of David’s brother, Brian, who tragically lost his own battle with pancreatic cancer at the age of 62 earlier this year.
“I just lost Brian back in April,” said Glabais, who’s been teaching guitar for over 35 years with his own private studio since 2002.
“Some people coin (it) the King of cancer (pancreatic cancer). And he had stage 4. And the reason is that cancer is so deadly and statistically you’re not likely to survive it, or at least not for very long, I believe it’s under 3% at stage 4.”
“It’s just very unlikely and that was the outcome for Brian,” Glabais explained. “Pancreatic cancer is so deadly because it’s very difficult to detect. His doctor told him, ‘You have about six months to live.’ He started the chemotherapy but it was too late. But he got eight months.”
Glabais began his own cancer treatment in December 2023, which included 35 rounds of radiation treatment and five rounds of chemotherapy, and wrapped up in February 2024.
He promised his students that if he survived he’d stage his annual student concerts, which began at small local venues, at Massey Hall.
$200,000 raised so far
So far he’s raised $200,000 and you can make direct donations through the website unbreakableconcert.com .
“It was rough,” Glabais said of the first show at Massey Hall in 2024. “I was still recovering but I was determined to do it. It was a great show. Just through strength and determination to make this thing happen and that’s how the Unbreakable thing came into fruition.”
The students playing with Glabais at Massey Hall this year range in age from 13 to 61 years old.
“That’s the heartbeat of the show, is me coming up there with my students,” said Glabais. “The students get to live the dream playing Massey Hall – are you kidding me?”
RECOMMENDED VIDEO
Famous students from basketball world
A more recent student was Toronto Tempo co-owner Scott Lake and among his more famous students over the years was former Raptors coach Nick Nurse.
“He just went on the web and he was looking for a guitar teacher for his son Noah, who at the time was 13,” Glabais said. “And Noah lived in Texas, but he was here for three months in the summer and Nick obviously had a house here when he was head coach of the Raptors.”
“And Nick would bring Noah, and he also had a little baby, Rocky, and he would sit out here in my dining room, and I’m in the studio teaching Noah. And he was like, ‘Man, I can’t believe it. This is fantastic.’ So Nick was always singing my praises as a teacher going, ‘Man, that guy is really just awesome teacher.’ And then Nick started taking lessons with me. So I taught Nick for two-and-a-half, three years, and Noah as well.”
Nurse famously played guitar with Hamilton pop-rockers Arkells on a cover of the song, Signed, Sealed, Delivered, at RBC Amphitheatre when they reopened it in 2019 post-pandemic.
“After they just won the NBA championship,” Glabais said. “I went down to the OVO Centre, where the Raptors train, on the Lakeshore. I was there every day up until the show, which was not too long after the championships, and was able to get him up on the stage.”
“I got him up there which was wonderful,” he said.