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Colin studied jazz arranging with Fred Stride, and world rhythms and Balinese gamelan with leading teachers in those fields.  The Vancouver-based Fringe Percussion commissioned and recorded the percussion quartet Enginuity. His compositions have been premiered by the Turning Point Ensemble, Continuum Contemporary Music, Ad Mare Wind Quintet, and The Microscore Project. Two of his compositions were part of the successful Vertical Orchestra spatial-music performances at the Vancouver Public Library.  In 2006 he formed his own chamber orchestra, The Colin MacDonald Pocket Orchestra, to present his original works.  Colin’s debut CD recording, Circle of Wind, was released on Cryptic Music Records in 2011.

Colin was a founding member and co-artistic director of the new music group Ensemble Symposium from 1995 – 2005. He has been a member of the Saxophilia saxophone quartet since 1996, and produces concerts of his own music as a soloist.  He has performed with and composed for the Balinese gamelan semara dana called Sekaha Gong Gita Asmara, and sang with the One Voice Harmonic Choir, a men’s overtone choir.  

He has worked as a reviewer of new music events for the Georgia Straight newspaper, Discorder magazine, and Musicworks magazine, and hosted the radio program Are You Serious? Music on CiTR 101.9 FM for three years. In 2003 he was made an Associate Composer of the Canadian Music Centre.