An award-winning composer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist, Mario Vaira has had his music featured everywhere from halls and theatres to clubs and living rooms in most countries around the world. His compositions focus on real instrumentation and performances, with strengths in guitar, piano, vocal and orchestral cues. Whether composing dark scores, uplifting themes, or vibrant happy tunes, Mario strives to bring honesty and truth to his compositions.
Mario’s recent work includes the CBC series “Hello Goodbye“, several Hallmark Originals including Jingle Around the Clock, Frozen in Love, and the series “Cedar Cove” starring Andie Macdowell, as well as other series for HGTV, Oprah Winfrey Network and the W Network, among others. His solo guitar score for “PostSecret: The Show” is being performed in national tours across the US, Canada and the UK.
His works have been featured in many award winning productions including “Melting Stars” (Best Short Film, International Wildlife Film Festival), “Boar Attack” (Best Animated Short, Worldwide Short Film Festival), the OLN/NatGeo series “Word Travels” (Best Documentary Series nomination, Gemini Awards), and “Kodiak” (Portable Choice Award, Portable Film Festival). In the gaming world, Mario has scored pieces for Sega (Aliens: Colonial Marines), EA (NHL 2015), Square/Enix (Tiny Food Truck), THQ (Darksiders II, Company of Heroes 2, Metro: Last Light), Finger Food Studios, Action Pants/UbiSoft and Relic Entertainment, among others.
Another focus for Mario’s career has been music for youth and children; larger projects include being the Feature Song Writer for LeapFrog’s “Letter Factory Adventures” DVD series, and his ongoing work as sole producer and co-writer for the acclaimed musical duo Bobs & LoLo, including thier national TV series Sing, Dance & Play on Treehouse TV, (CORUS) and Action Packed (TELUS OPTIK). He’s been credited six times with Juno nominations as a writer and producer, (Children’s Album of the Year), Western Canadian Music Awards and Parent’s Choice Gold Medals, among other awards. Having shared the stage with Charlotte Diamond, Fred Penner, The Kerplunks and Norman Foote, Mario also produced Ginalina’s “Home Is Family” (Juno Nomination, Children’s Album of the Year, WCMA Children’s Artist of the Year), and Will Stroet’s “My Backyard” (Best Children’s Album nomination, Western Canadian Music Awards), and “Walk & Roll”.
As a songwriter, Mario has written with and for such artists as Bobs & LoLo, Shad, Kyprios, Vince Vaccaro, Carly Rae Jepsen, Mackenzie Porter, Will Stroet, Randy Ponzio, DNA6, Quest Poetics, and Carmen & Camille. Mario is also the Co-Chair of the 2021 JUNOS Music Advisory Committee, and an active member of the Curriculum Advisory Committees for the Electronic Music Production Program & Singer/Songwriter Performance Program, both at Langara College in Vancouver, BC.