LYDIA ADAMS, Conductor & Artistic Director Earth Songs, Love Songs Sunday, May 24, 2015 4:00 pm George Weston Recital Hall, Toronto Centre for the Arts an Ontario government agency un organisme du gouvernement de l’Ontario Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 1 Thank You, Ontario Trillium Foundation! The Amadeus Choir of Greater Toronto, Lydia Adams, Conductor and Artistic Director, received an Ontario Trillium Foundation capital grant in the 2013-2014 season for the purchase of risers and new computer equipment. Sincere thanks are extended to the Ontario Trillium Foundation for this special grant and for its ongoing support of the arts in Ontario. 2 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 3 Program Amadeus Choir of Greater Toronto presents I Will Sing Unto the Lord Earth Songs, Love Songs Lydia Adams, conductor Shawn Grenke, piano GUEST HOSTS: Salutation of the Dawn Eleanor Daley* Sanskrit (4th Century) Presentation to the Ontario Trillium Foundation Voices of Earth Ruth Watson Henderson* text from Canticle of the Sun by St. Francis of Assisi and poems by Archibald Lampman Prologue – I – II – III – IV – V – Epilogue Joan Andrews Anne Parks FEATURING: Bach Children’s Chorus and Bach Chamber Youth Choir, Linda Beaupré, conductor Eleanor Daley, piano Ruth Watson Henderson, piano Ed Reifel, percussion Samuel Morgenstein, percussion David Burns, percussion Sean Donaldson, percussion David Schotzko, percussion 4 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO Imant Raminsh* text from Psalm 104 Intermission Liebeslieder Walzer, Op. 52 Johannes Brahms text from Polydora by G.F. Daumer English translation by Basil Swift Laudate Dominum W.A. Mozart from Vesperae solennes de Confessore, K. 339 Prayer for Peace Eleanor Daley* attributed to St. Francis of Assisi *Canadian Composer Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 5 Program Notes and Texts I Will Sing Unto the Lord Imant Raminsh (text from Psalm 104) Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, thou art very great. O Lord, thou art clothed with honour and majesty. O Lord, how manifold are thy works! In wisdom hast thou made them all; the earth is full of thy riches. So is this great and wide sea which teems with things innumerable, both great and small. There go the ships: there the leviathan, whom thou hast made to play therein. These wait all upon thee; thou sendest forth thy spirit, thou renewest the face of the earth. I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my Lord while I have being. My meditation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the Lord. Praise the Lord. Amen! Voices of Earth Ruth Watson Henderson (text from Canticle of the Sun by St. Francis of Assisi, translated by Matthew Arnold, and from poetry by Archibald Lampman) Written in 1991, Voices of Earth is a major work that drew its inspiration from the beautiful poetry of Archibald Lampman, one of Canada’s finest nature poets. I interspersed some of his poems between verses from St. Francis of Assisi’s Canticle of the Sun that celebrate the wonders of nature in the Sun, the Moon, the Wind, Water, and Mother Earth. These verses, all based on the same musical material in a recitative style, serve as a unifying structural device. An opening Franciscan Prologue and the concluding Lampman Epilogue, although in different metres, employ similar musical material. The use of three different choirs allowed me to create a variety of colours to portray the evocative imagery in Lampman’s poetry. The Wind, for example, is expressed by fast-moving contrapuntal lines derived from material in the Prologue; they constantly weave in and out in mixed metres, demanding clarity and dexterity from the chamber choir, whereas the water in Winter-Store moves gently with the lovely, unsophisticated sounds of children’s voices. Of all the music I have written, this composition allowed me the greatest freedom to achieve rhythmic flow, descriptive word painting, and harmonic colour within a unified structure. Thank you, Archibald Lampman! Voices of Earth is dedicated to Lydia Adams and The Amadeus Choir of Scarborough who commissioned the work with the assistance of The Ontario Arts Council for performance on April 14, 1991 with the Elmer Iseler Singers and The Bach Children’s Chorus of Scarborough. — Ruth Watson Henderson Salutation of the Dawn Eleanor Daley (Sanskrit, 4th Century) Salutation of the Dawn was commissioned by the Amadeus Choir, Lydia Adams, conductor, in honour of Doris McCarthy’s 95th birthday. Listen to the salutation of the dawn. Look to this day, for it is life, the very life of life. In its brief course lie all the verities and realities of your existence. This bliss of growth, the glory of action, the splendour of beauty. For yesterday is but a dream and tomorrow is only a vision. But today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness, and every tomorrow a vision of hope. Look well therefore to this day, such is the salutation of the dawn. 6 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO Prologue O most high, almighty, good Lord God, to Thee belong praise, glory, honour, and all blessing. I Praised be my Lord God with all his creatures; and specially our brother the sun, who brings us the day, and who brings us the light; fair is he, and shining with a very great splendour; O Lord, to us he signifies Thee! The Sun Cup (from Lyrics of Earth) The earth is the cup of the sun, That he filleth at morning with wine, With the warm strong wine of his might, From the vintage of gold and of light, Fills it, and makes it divine. Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 7 Program Notes and Texts continued At night when his journey is done, At the gate of his radiant hall, He setteth his lips to the brim, With a long last look of his eye, And lifts it and draineth it dry, Drains till he leaveth it all Empty and hollow and dim. As if in mockery of me, And all the deadness of my thought, It mounted to the largest glee, And, like a lord that laughed and fought, II Praised be my Lord for our sister the moon, and for the stars which he has set clear and lovely in heaven. The Moon-Path (from Lyrics of Earth) The full, clear moon uprose and spread Her cold, pale splendor o’er the sea; A light-strewn path that seemed to lead Outward into eternity. Between the darkness and the gleam An old-world spell encompassed me: Methought that in a godlike dream I trod upon the sea. And lo! upon that glimmering road, In shining companies unfurled, The trains of many a primal god, The monsters of the elder world; Strange creatures that, with silver wings, Scarce touched the ocean’s thronging floor, The phantoms of old tales, and things Whose shapes are known no more. As if I had been dead indeed, And come into some after-land, I saw them pass me, and take heed, And touch me with each mighty hand; And evermore a murmurous stream, So beautiful they seemed to me, Not less than in a godlike dream I trod the shining sea. III Praised be my Lord for our brother the wind, and for air and cloud, calms, and all weather, by which Thou upholdest in life all creatures. The Wind’s Word The wind charged every way and fled Across the meadows and the wheat; 8 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO It whirled the swallows overhead, And swung the daisies at my feet. Took all the maples by surprise, And made the poplars clash and shiver, And flung my hair about my eyes, And sprang and blackened on the river. And through the elm-tree tops, and round The city steeples wild and high, It floundered with a mighty sound, A buoyant voice that seemed to cry: Behold how grand I am, how free! And all the forest bends my way! I roam the earth, I stalk the sea, And make my labour but a play. IV Praised be my Lord for our sister water, who is very serviceable unto us, and humble, and precious, and clean. Winter-Store (from Lyrics of Earth) I shall stray by many a stream, Where the half-shut lilies gleam, Napping out the sultry days In the quiet secluded bays; Where the tasseled rushes tower, O’er the purple pickerel-flower, And the floating dragon-fly— Azure glint and crystal gleam— Watches o’er the burnished stream With his eye of ebony; Where the bull-frog lolls at rest On his float of lily-leaves, That the swaying water weaves, And distends his yellow breast, Lowing out from shore to shore With a hollow vibrant roar; Where the softest wind that blows, As it lightly comes and goes, O’er the jungled river meads, Stirs a whisper in the reeds, And wakes the crowded bull-rushes From their stately reveries, Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 9 Program Notes and Texts continued Flashing through their long-leaved hordes Like a brandishing of swords; There, too, the frost-like arrow-flowers Tremble to the golden core, Children of enchanted hours, Whom the rustling river bore In the night’s bewildered noon, Woven of water and the moon. V Praised be my Lord for our mother the earth, which doth sustain and keep us, and bringeth forth diverse fruits, and flowers of many colours, and grass. May The broad earth smiles in open benison, An emerald sea, whose waves of leaf and shade On far-off shores of misty turquoise fade; And all the host of life steers blithely on, With joy for captain, fancy at the helm: The woodpecker taps roundly at his tree, The vaulting heigh-ho flings abroad his glee In fluty laughter from the towering elm. Here at my feet are violets, and below— A gracile spirit tremulously alive— Spring water fills a little greenish pool, Paved all with mottled leaves and crystal cool. Beyond it stands a plum-tree in full blow, Creamy with bloom, and humming like a hive. Epilogue Voices of Earth (from Alcyone & Other Poems) We have not heard the music of the spheres, The song of star to star, but there are sounds More deep than human joy and human tears, That Nature uses in her common rounds; The fall of streams, the cry of winds that strain The oak, the roaring of the sea’s surge, might Of thunder breaking afar off, or rain That falls by minutes in the summer night. These are the voices of earth’s secret soul, Uttering the mystery from which she came. To him who hears them grief beyond control, Or joy inscrutable without a name, Wakes in his heart thoughts bedded there, impearled, Before the birth and making of the world. 10 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO Liebeslieder Walzer (Love Song Waltzes) Johannes Brahms, Op. 52 (text from Polydora by G.F. Daumer, English translation by Basil Swift) 1. Answer maiden, all too lovely, did those eyes in trust so tender, and those glances, deep with promise, try to tell me of surrender? Will your heart with love awaken; would you rather keep me burning, never heeding, never turning, oh, then, will you share my yearning? Would you rather keep me burning, not one moment would I weaken. Come to me, you dark-eyed maiden, meet me when the stars are greeting. 2. Deep in thunder roars the tide, ev’ry shore retrieving; if your heart has never sighed, love will enter, grieving. 3. Oh these women, oh these women, how they lead me close to heaven! I’d been long a monk in cloister were it not for women! 4. Like the evening sunset’s rapture might my weary spirit glow. Someone, someone did but love me, then my joy would endless flow. 5. The tender hopvine wanders, with winding stem the earth apart. The young and graceful damsel, how heavy lies her heart. Oh, hear me, tender hopvine, why droop your head from heaven’s rest? Oh, hear me, graceful damsel, why weep with grief possessed? 6. There was a tiny, pretty bird who saw the garden fruit, then took his fill, and more. Were I a tiny, pretty bird so free, I’d linger not, but take my chance as he. Lime twigs to trap him, hidden in that bait, that luckless songbird couldn’t know his fate. Were I a tiny, pretty bird so free, I’d rather stay than take a risk as he. That songbird found a dainty loving hand, and there does he a willing captive stand. Were I a tiny, pretty bird so free, I’d linger not, but take my chance as he. 7. How dear, alas was life together with my beloved, with my beloved; then he was true and kind, and always on parting, kissed with ardent fervor. Now all has ended. When I approach or try to speak and linger nearer, he turns both glances and heart from me. How may the vine be soaring, if no one brings it strength or aid? Then how may a damsel flourish, when far her love has strayed? Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 11 Program Notes and Texts continued 8. When your eyes so fondly seek and so dearly hold me, ev’ry care and trouble flees, as your love enfolds me. ‘Tis a sweetly burning flame leave it not untended! Never shone a love so true, may it ne’er be ended. 9. On Danube’s border, doth stand a house, and there a rosy young maid looks out. That maiden they guard full well from flight, with ten bars of iron her door is bolted aright. Ten boltings of iron that I must pass; I’ll split them as though they were naught but glass. 10. Oh, how calm the river flows, through the meadows winding. Oh, how sweet when lovers do know such tender binding. 11. No, I will not listen to them with their chiding, all one does, they talk about it, criticizing. 13. Ev’ry bird that soars the sky, seeks a branch for nesting; and each heart a heart desires for the spirit’s resting. 14. See how bright the fountain gleams from the moon above her! If my love can light your dreams, love me, dear, forever! 15. Nightingale, you sing so sweet, when the stars are sparkling. Yield your love, my fondest heart, kiss me when ‘tis dark’ning. 16. My love is a well of sorrow, a dark and a perilous madness; I fell in alas, unguarded, since then I’ve suffered in vain, in place of my former gladness, I’ve longing and bitter pain. 17. Don’t wander, my light, out yonder where meadows greet; the dampness hidden there may linger, and harm your feet. All through the paths and walks there glitters a silver sea, Where late at night my tears have fallen and sought for thee. If I’m cheerful, then they say I’m 18. evil-minded; Each tender leaf is trembling, if I’m sad, that means by foolish as through the branch there flutters love I’m blinded. a bird in flight. 12. Locksmith, go and bring me padlocks, many padlocks, large and small. Then the spiteful gossip will I silence once for all. 12 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO In such a way my spirit begins to shake and flutter, when tasting joy and sadness, my heart seeks thine. Laudate Dominum W.A. Mozart from Vesperae solennes de Confessore, K. 339 Laudate Dominum omnes gentes Laudate eum, omnes populi Quoniam confirmata est Super nos misericordia eius, Et veritas Domini manet in aeternum. Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto. Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper. Et in saecula saeculorum. Amen. Praise the Lord, all nations; Praise Him, all people. For He has bestowed His mercy upon us, And the truth of the Lord endures forever. Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and forever, and for all generations. Amen. Prayer for Peace Eleanor Daley (Peace Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi) Prayer for Peace was commissioned by Jean Ashworth Bartle for the 700 singers at the Norbusang Festival in Bodø, Norway, May, 2003. Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, let me sow pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. O divine master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 13 Artist Profiles Lydia Adams, one of Canada’s most distinguished conductors, has been Conductor and Artistic Director of the Amadeus Choir of Greater Toronto since 1984 and of the Elmer Iseler Singers since 1998. A native of Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, Lydia received her musical education at Mount Allison University, New Brunswick, Canada and at the Royal College of Music and the National Opera Studio, London, England. During this time she worked and performed with many leading conductors, composers and arrangers including Sir David Willcocks, Sir Neville Marriner, John Rutter, and Bob Chilcott, among others, and while there she was awarded the Sir Adrian Boult conducting award. Under her direction, the Amadeus Choir has experienced tremendous musical and organizational growth and has become one of the leading choral forces in Canada. Lydia Adams has conducted many award-winning compact discs with her Toronto choirs and has extensively toured and conducted throughout Canada and the United States. The Canadian Music Centre declared that: “Lydia Adams is the new leading exponent of the Canadian choral composer.” She has worked with celebrated Canadian composers such as R. Murray Schafer, Harry Somers, Louis Applebaum, Harry Freedman, Eric Robertson, Bert Carrière, Srul Irving Glick, Christos Hatzis, Ruth Watson Henderson, Eleanor Daley, Peter Togni and many others, premiering and promoting their work through concerts, recordings and broadcasts. Ms. Adams has also conducted several Canadian Provincial Youth Choirs, the National Youth Choir of Canada and has served as a guest conductor with ACDA Honor Choirs in Michigan and Colorado. Most recently, in the summer of 2012, she was guest conductor at Tasmania’s Festival of Voices. The recipient of many awards, she has been honoured by the City of Scarborough, the Women’s International Network, the Ontario Choral Federation and Mount Allison University. In 2003, Ms. Adams received an Honorary Doctorate from her alma mater, Mount Allison University, for her service to music in Canada. In 2009, Lydia was named as one of 50 Ambassadors for the Canadian Music Centre – honoured for her outstanding contributions to Canadian music. Lydia Adams won the prestigious 2012 Roy Thomson Hall Award of Recognition, and most recently she won the 2013 Ontario Premier’s Award for Excellence in the Arts. Lydia Adams possesses extraordinary musicianship and a true passion for the choral art form - her expertise, unique approach and dedication make her a vibrant and inspiring musical force. • 14 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO Photo by Tony Tse Photo by Maura McGroarty LYDIA ADAMS, Conductor and Artistic Director AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO Part of Toronto’s arts community for 40 years, the award-winning Amadeus Choir is a semi-professional mid-sized choir of auditioned voices from all parts of the GTA and surrounding areas. Led by conductor and artistic director Lydia Adams since 1984, the Amadeus Choir champions the best of choral music and premieres works of Canadian and international composers through a self-produced Toronto concert series, guest performances and special events. Known well beyond Toronto through tours, festivals, recordings and nation-wide and international radio broadcasts, the Amadeus Choir partners and collaborates with many professional performing arts organizations in the GTA. The Amadeus Choir engages in educational and community outreach through choral workshops for students and conductors and through performances of commissioned works by established and upcoming Canadian composers. In addition to the Amadeus Choir’s regular concert series, the choir takes an active role in Ontario’s choral community by working in collaboration with other prominent local ensembles, such as the Elmer Iseler Singers, Bach Children’s Chorus, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Hannaford Street Silver Band, Gryphon Trio, Ontario Philharmonic Orchestra, Trillium Brass and True North Brass. In 1987, Lydia Adams created the Amadeus Choir’s Seasonal Song-Writing Competition which presents an opportunity to compose a song of up to 5 minutes’ duration to celebrate Christmas, Chanukah or the Winter Solstice. The competition has grown over the years to include submissions from around the world. It now serves as an inspiration to composers of all ages and experience to write new works, enriching Canada’s outstanding choral tradition. In 1994 the Choir recorded Ring-a the News which featured a number of winning carols from this competition. The Amadeus Choir regularly competed in the prestigious biennial CBC Choral Competition, winning awards in 1992, 1994 and 1996 before becoming ineligible due to the Choir’s semi-professional status. Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 15 Artist Profiles, continued In 2000, the singers traveled to Alberta on their first tour, and were enthusiastically received at each of their concerts. They performed at two prestigious festivals (ACCC and ISME), and took the opportunity to launch their CD Songs of the Spirit, featuring works by Canadian composers Eleanor Daley, Srul Irving Glick and Barry Peters, and a work by Andrea Gabrieli, Missa 4 Vocum, which had just come to light after 300 years. This CD received the biennial award for “Outstanding Choral Recording” 2001-02 by the Association of Canadian Choral Conductors. Shawn began his musical training as a chorister and pianist with the Hastings County Board of Education Concert Choir under the Direction of Rudolf Heijdens in his hometown of Belleville, Ontario. Holding a Bachelor of Music degree (2000) from Mount Allison University (New Brunswick), and a Master of Music degree (2002) from the University of Toronto, Mr. Grenke has served as organist and Music Director at various churches throughout Ontario and the Maritimes for almost twenty years, and is a member of the Royal College of Church Organists, the Royal School of Church Music, and a fellow of the Honorary Company of Organists. The Choir’s CD Voices On High, a combined project with the Hannaford Street Silver Band, was released in 2002, and features music by recent Juno Award winner Bramwell Tovey, Harry Somers and Stephen Chatman, conducted by Bramwell Tovey and Lydia Adams. Also in that same year, Dr. Adams conducted both the Amadeus Chamber Singers and the Elmer Iseler Singers on the CD Everlasting Light – Footprints in New Snow, featuring the music of Christos Hatzis, available on the CBC Records label. In concert, Mr. Grenke has made appearances in Poland, at the ‘Let the Future Sing’ Choral Festival in Sweden, the ‘Le Mondial Choral Loto-Québec World Choral Competition’ in Laval, Québec, ‘Xinghai Choral Competition’ in China, Roy Thomson Hall, and at various festivals, concert series and recitals throughout Canada the United States and Europe. In February of 2014, Shawn accompanied the Elmer Iseler Singers on a northern Canada tour of Yellowknife, Banff and Edmonton. In August Shawn also traveled to Seoul, Korea with the Hamilton Children’s Choir where they participated in the 10th Annual World Symposium of Choral Music. • In 2006, the CD The Tokaido – The Choral Music of Harry Freedman was released by the Canadian Music Centre, and featured the Amadeus Chamber Singers, Elmer Iseler Singers, and Aeolian Winds, all conducted by Dr. Adams. In 2008, the Choir toured once again, traveling to Sackville, New Brunswick to perform at ‘Podium’, the ACCC (Association of Canadian Choral Conductors) biennial conference, and then on to Antigonish and Glace Bay, both in Nova Scotia. SHAWN GRENKE, Piano Shawn is pleased to be the new Artistic Director of the Woodstock Fanshawe Singers. He is also the Director of Music at Eglinton St. George’s United Church in Toronto, Accompanist to the Amadeus Choir of Toronto under the direction of Lydia Adams, Accompanist to the Elmer Iseler Singers of Toronto and Artistic Director of the 90 member Burlington Seniors’ Centre Choir. Mr. Grenke is also the past Assistant Conductor/Accompanist of the internationally famed Hamilton Children’s Choir where he served for 9 exciting years. 16 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO Photo by Dean Palmer In May of 2014, Amadeus Choir returned as the keynote choir to National Conference: Podium 2014 CHORALSCAPES. The choir was presented with the ACCC National Outstanding Innovation Award 2014 for its Music of the Spheres collaboration with the Elmer Iseler Singers, The Ontario Science Centre and The Roberta Bondar Foundation – Lydia Adams, conductor. • LINDA BEAUPRÉ, Conductor and Artistic Director Conductor of award-winning choirs for more than 25 years, Linda Beaupré is the co-winner of the 2006 Leslie Bell Prize for Conducting awarded by the Ontario Arts Council and Choirs Ontario. She has also been honoured with a Bi-Centennial Award of Merit from the City of Scarborough, an award given to individuals whose achievements have brought honour and recognition to the City of Scarborough; a 2002 Guelph YM/YWCA Women of Distinction Award in the arts and culture category; and in 2013, the Queen’s Diamond Jublilee medal for service to her community. Most recently, she was named the 2014 recipient of the Helen Hosmer Award for Excellence in Music Teaching by the Crane School of Music at the State University of New York at Potsdam. Ms. Beaupré maintains an active schedule as clinician and adjudicator for other choirs. She has led major training projects for the Toronto District School Board and has conducted children’s choir camps, workshops and honour choirs throughout Canada, in the US, and as far away as Indonesia. Along with Jean Ashworth Bartle and Eileen Baldwin, she is co-author of a series of theory and ear-training workbooks and CDs entitled A Young Singer’s Journey. This integrated musical literacy programme of workbooks and CDs is distributed by Hinshaw Music Publishing. The first five of six workbooks are in use throughout North America and beyond. Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 17 Artist Profiles, continued ELEANOR DALEY, Composer/Piano Linda Beaupré received a Bachelor of Music degree from the State University of New York at Potsdam, and a Master of Music degree from the University of Western Ontario. She has taught music in Australia and Nova Scotia, and for several years she was a professional singer with the Elmer Iseler Singers and The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir. From 1991-2013 she conducted Guelph Youth Singers. • Eleanor Daley received her Bachelor of Music Degree in organ performance from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, and holds diplomas in both organ and piano from the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto and Trinity College in England. She has been Director of Music at Fairlawn Avenue United Church in Toronto since 1982 and is currently the conductor of three choirs there. As a freelance accompanist, Eleanor has worked with numerous choirs, including the Toronto Children’s Chorus, the Canadian Children’s Opera Chorus, The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, and the Elmer Iseler Singers. She has been the accompanist of the Bach Children’s Chorus since 1995, and was the accompanist of the Amadeus Choir under Lydia Adams’ direction from 1991-2006. BACH CHILDREN’S CHORUS and BACH CHAMBER YOUTH CHOIR The Bach Children’s Chorus (BCC), founded in 1987 by Linda Beaupré, consists of 200 auditioned singers in choirs at differing levels of ability. Singers aged six through university age are divided into three treble choirs (BCC I, II and III) and an SATB choir for boys with changed voices and girls aged 16 and up. BCC is a Company-in-Residence at the Toronto Centre for the Arts. BCC choirs have been awarded The Elmer Iseler Choral Award for Best Choir of the Toronto Kiwanis Festival in seven recent festivals, including 2013. They have won several first place awards at both the provincial and national levels of the Canadian Federation of Music Festivals, including three first place awards at the national level, and the overall award for best choir, in 2013. They have also twice been awarded first prize in the Children’s Choir category of the CBC/Radio-Canada National Competition for Amateur Choirs. A prolific composer, Eleanor has a remarkable gift for melody and sensitive interweaving of text and music. She has over 140 choral compositions in publication, and is commissioned extensively throughout North America and Europe. Her compositions have been performed and recorded throughout North America, Great Britain, Europe, South Africa and the Far East. Eleanor’s compositions have twice received the National Choral Award for Outstanding Choral Composition of the Year by the Association of Canadian Choral Conductors at their national conference. In 2005, Eleanor was invited to be the first Composer-in-Residence at the international choral festival, Festival 500, in St. John’s, Newfoundland. The choirs of Fairlawn Avenue United Church have recorded two CDs featuring the choral music of Eleanor Daley: Canticle to the Spirit (2000) and What Sweeter Music (2003). Magnificat Live! which features the Magnificats of John Rutter and Jonathan Willcocks was released in 2009, and a Christmas CD called Gloria was released in 2012. • The BCC has released six solo CDs, and can be heard on several soundtracks and a video by the Canadian Brass. Members of BCC II and III have had many opportunities to work with composer Stephan Moccio, including recording his song “I Believe” for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. Auditions for placement in the Bach Children’s Chorus take place in May for entrance in September. For more information, visit the website at www.bachchildrenschorus.ca • 18 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO RUTH WATSON HENDERSON, Composer/Piano Photo by Linda Locke Past tours have included trips to the Atlanta International Music Festival; Festival 500 in St. John’s, Newfoundland; Suas E! Festival in Cape Breton; and the Children in Harmony Festival, Disneyworld as part of the Honour Choir. In 2012, BCC III competed in the Golden Gate Children and Youth Choral Festival in Oakland, California and received three gold standards. In 2013, BCC members attended the International Choral Festival in Missoula, Montana, where they performed with choirs from 16 countries. Ruth Watson Henderson enjoys an international reputation as one of Canada’s leading composers and as an admired pianist and organist. Known especially as a composer of choral works, she began to compose while she was the accompanist of the Festival Singers under Dr. Elmer Iseler (1969 -1978) and has gone on to produce a large body of SATB work. She has also produced a wealth of compositions for treble voices using expertise gleaned over 29 years as the accompanist of the Toronto Children’s Chorus under Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 19 Artist Profiles, continued Guest Host Biographies Jean Ashworth Bartle, and accordingly, has done much to promote the artistry of children. Ruth’s works are acclaimed, performed and recorded worldwide. JOAN ANDREWS Recognized for her lifetime of service to music, Ruth has been paid many tributes by the music community. These include: an honorary Fellowship (FRCCO) by the Royal Canadian College of Organists; the National Choral Award from Choral Canada for Voices of Earth, named Outstanding Choral Composition for 1991-1992; a Choirs Ontario Distinguished Service award; and the celebratory performances of concerts devoted entirely to her work, presented by many different choirs, often with Ruth at the piano. The ultimate tribute paid to her will be today’s performance and upcoming recording of Voices of Earth by the Amadeus Choir, which has always championed Ruth’s music, and which commissioned and premiered the piece in 1991. Ruth is delighted to be a part of this concert, and looks forward to seeing fulfilled her longtime dream of having Voices of Earth recorded. She is truly grateful to Lydia Adams, the Amadeus Choir Board of Directors, and all of today’s performers for this great honour. • Joan Andrews has been assistant conductor of the Amadeus Choir for more than 20 years. She is also its longest-serving member, celebrating 40 years with the choir this season! Joan began her musical education studying piano and flute in Ottawa where she grew up, and went on to receive a BA with honours in Music Education from The University of Western Ontario. Her career as a high school instrumental and vocal music teacher culminated at Dr. Norman Bethune C.I. in Scarborough where she was head of the music department prior to her retirement. Since then she has been artistic director and conductor of Village Voices, a large community choir in Markham, Ontario. Joan’s keen interest in choral music was inspired by conductors such as Robert Shaw, Sir David Willcocks, Elmer Iseler, and Lydia Adams, under whose batons she has had the privilege to work at various points in her career. She continues to hone her flute-playing skills as a member of The Encore Symphonic Concert Band in Toronto. Joan’s strong belief in the value of music-making inspired her to take an active role in CAMMAC (Canadian Amateur Musicians/Musiciens Amateurs du Canada), where for many years she helped to initiate and organize various workshops, music readings and music camps for people of all ages and performance levels. • Sincerest thanks to Joan Andrews and Anne Parks for hosting this afternoon’s performance, and to all others who have made this performance possible, especially the administration and technical crew of Toronto Centre for the Arts, George Weston Recital Hall; Colourcomm Printing Ltd.; Amadeus Choir Front of House Manager, Harry Howie; and all of our valued volunteers. 20 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO ANNE PARKS Music has always been a vital part of Anne’s life. Born in Toronto to music-loving Scottish parents, Anne studied piano from an early age and sang in choirs at both church and school, including Riverdale Collegiate. After completing her ATCL in piano as a teen, she began to study voice and was the silver medalist when she received her ARCT in vocal performance and teaching from Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music. As a teacher with the Toronto and Scarborough Boards for 31 years, she taught kindergarten and music and led choirs. Anne’s husband, Lorne, is also a singer, and together they raised four sons. In the 1970’s, while a member of St. Mark’s United Church choir, Anne became a founding member of the Amadeus Choir and sang with the choir for 30 years. “The Amadeus Choir continues to be a very important part of my life. I have many dear friends who sing with the choir and I never miss a concert. I continue to admire the choir’s accomplishments and musical excellence under the leadership of Lydia Adams.” • Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 21 Amadeus Choir of Greater Toronto 4386 Sheppard Avenue East, Unit N Toronto, Ontario M1S 1T8 Phone: 416-446-0188 Email: [email protected] Web: www.amadeuschoir.com Charitable Registration Number: 11921 2165 RR0001 PATRON His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, C.C., C.M.M., C.O.M., C.D., Governor-General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada HONORARY PATRONS The Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson, PC, C.C., C.M.M., C.O.M, C.D. The Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, C.C., C.M.M., C.O.M., C.D. Jean Ashworth Bartle, C.M., O.Ont. Howard Cable, C.M. Leslie Fagan Mary Lou Fallis, C.M. Vern and Elfrieda Heinrichs Rut Watson Henderson Ben Heppner, C.C. John B. Lawson, Q.C. Doreen Rao Wayne Riddell, C.M. Bramwell Tovey, O.M. Peter Togni Sir David Willcocks, CBE, MC Catherine Wyn-Rogers BOARD OF DIRECTORS Sue Woodland, President Jocelyn Kervin, Executive VicePresident Joseph Murray, Treasurer Janet Fryer, Secretary Bruce Yungblut, Chair of Marketing Gerald Loo, Chair of Development Sari Goldenberg, Co-Chair of 40th Anniversary Committee Kathy Howie, Co-Chair of 40th Anniversary Committee CONSULTANTS TO THE BOARD Phyllis Doherty, Past Treasurer Alex Jozefacki, Jozefacki • Fielding, Barristers • Solicitors ADMINISTRATION & PRODUCTION General Manager: Olena Jatsyshyn Business Manager: Vivian Lee Graphic Designer: Susan Sinclair Webmaster: Brad Weaver, ComputerAid International Like us on Facebook at Amadeus Choir of Greater Toronto Follow us at: @AmadeusChoirGTA 22 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO 2014-2015 Season Membership Lydia Adams, Conductor & Artistic Director Joan Andrews, Assistant Conductor Shawn Grenke, Accompanist SOPRANO 1 Anne Bornath Jennifer Boyd Virginia Gies June Higgins Leah Jackson Marina Mooney Nanette Murray Joanne Nasmith Carole Nelles Cathy Robinson Catherine Ross Kathleen Tapp Mock* SOPRANO 2 Barbara Adams Joan Andrews Marina Boehm Mikaela Boutilier Naomi Buck Jane Gorman Marianne Hamilton Pamela Hetherington Kathy Howie Ilana Lucas Aviva Lufer Mishy Moffitt Frances Pairaudeau Sandra Parsons Eugénie Riesenkampff Tonie Robinson-Miller Debbie Scoffield Elizabeth Seo Carol Stairs Judy Tracey Julie Winn ALTO 1 Gwyneth Buck Lynda Clark Karen Freedman Janet Fryer Sari Goldenberg Inge Hermann Laura Hope Joyce Kenno Christine Kerr Elizabeth MacLean Corinne McDonald Alison Roy* Wendy Simone Tatyana Sukhodolska Judith Young ALTO 2 Anne Compagnie Cherie Crosby Phyllis Doherty Kathy Irvin Jocelyn Kervin Kelli Korducki Bonnie Tepperman TENOR 1 John Darrigo Matt Gaskin* Alki Leontarakis Paul Marshall Will Reid* Michael Sawarna* TENOR 2 Mitch Bondy Joshua Boutilier Eric MacKeracher* Chris Norman Ed Oikawa BARITONE David Barlow John Brooker James Musselwhite Graham Robinson* Zlatko Sakač Richard Scott Norman Wiggett BASS Scott Bell Leonard Bick Reid Brownscombe Andrew Kellogg Nelson Lohnes* Jamie McGill Raimo Toiviainen Bruce Yungblut * Section Leads Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 23 Bach Children’s Chorus and Bach Chamber Youth Choir Alexandra Carroll Isabel Maddocks Danielle Carron Claire Mason Daniella Castello Emmanuel Mathi Guin Cordon Ezekiel Mathi Laura Coyne Kendra Melville Hannah Curtis Kiera Melville Yasmin Emery Kyleigh Melville Savannah Ford Priscilla Menezes Francesca Fortino Julia Naus Alexandria Gerard Peter Naus Julianna Gerard Katie Pinhorn Tait Gould Sathoori Ratheeshan Julien Hagens Olivia Ray Sophie Hagens Amanda Rodrigues Francesca Hauser Annabelle Rodrigues Rachael Henfrey Aanika Roy Hannah Hertel Maria Saba Beatrice Hugh-Harris Ricshe Saldanha Emma Kazal Rebecca Slater Christine Kim Erin Strachan Rebekah Kim Dhaanyah Thanabalasingham Anya Knight Arima Thorne Alyssa Krogh Tamia Walker Anne Lai Meredith Wanstall Samantha Lalonde Sylvie Wichert Ashley Lyn Allison Winn Emily Lynch Tricia Wrigglesworth Miranda Lynn Melanie Yip Beatrix Maddocks 24 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO OUR DONORS* Conductor’s Circle ($1,000 +) Lydia Adams Joan Andrews In memory of Liz Drury Sponsorship/Catherine Wyn-Rogers Apr.12/14 David Barlow Matching Funds Campaign Eleanor Daley Sponsorship/Meredith Hall Apr.12/14 Carol Competition Sponsorship Phyllis Doherty In Memory of Liz Drury Sponsorship/Lydia Adams Apr.12/14 Carol Competition Sponsorship Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Sari and Ron Goldenberg Tour Fund Sponsorship/Concertmaster’s Chair Apr.12/14 Matching Funds Campaign Harry and Kathy Howie Corinne McDonald Matching Funds Campaign Joseph Murray Avalon Neale Tour Fund Matching Funds Campaign Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Edward Oikawa Anne Parks Sandra Parsons Sid Robinovitch Recording Fund Ed Mock and Kate Tapp-Mock Sue Woodland Tour Fund Judith Wyse Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Bruce Yungblut Matching Funds Campaign Supporters ($500-$999) Audrey Azad Reid Brownscombe Matching Funds Campaign Classical 96.3/MZ Media ComputerAid International (Brad Weaver) John Fenton Matching Funds Campaign Pamela Gallagher Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Elizabeth Gray Tia Henderson Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund THANK YOU June Higgins Matching Funds Campaign Ellen Jaaku Matching Funds Campaign Dorice P. Johnston Memorial Fund (Marjorie Sharpe) Gerald Loo Don and Janet MacKeracher Matching Funds Campaign MacPherson Builders Anne Mollenhauer Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund RBC Employee Volunteer Grant Program (John Stairs) Julie and Colin Winn Carol Competition Sponsorship Matching Funds Campaign Kathryn Winning In memory of Florence Adams Helen Ziegler Sustainers ($200 -$499) Karen Albert In memory of Betty Mercer Woodman In memory of Flora Boasie Hilary Apfelstadt Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Donald Bartle Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Linda Beaupré In honour of Florence Adams Byron Bellows Heather Benson Anne Compagnie Cherie Ann Crosby Carol Competition Sponsorship Colleagues of Nikki Cule In memory of Liz Drury Jane Gorman Carol Competition Sponsorship In memory of Anna Loane Matching Funds Campaign Elfrieda Heinrichs Matching Funds Campaign Jim and Becky Hilton Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Peter and Verity Hobbs In memory of Liz Drury Laura Hope Matching Funds Campaign Carol and Ralph Ingleton Patrick Jordan Sid Robinovitch Recording Fund Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 25 OUR DONORS* Joyce Kenno In memory of Florence Adams Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Donald Kramer Linda and Stan Locke Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Paul Marshall Matching Funds Campaign Nanette Matys Toshi Oikawa Frances Pairaudeau Matching Funds Campaign Lisa Philpott In memory of Verta Calvert and Phyllis Adams Debbie Scoffield Elizabeth Seo Bonnie Tepperman In memory of Liz Drury In honour of the birth of Sam Reid Tepperman In honour of the marriage of Aaron Tepperman to Janina Dourgounis Matching Funds Campaign in memory of Stanley Solomon Judy Tracey Tom and Esther Welsh Matching Funds Campaign Kathleen Wooder Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Anonymous (1) Friends (up to $199) Robert Accinelli Matching Funds Campaign Barbara Adams Matching Funds Campaign Karen Albert In memory of Betty Mercer Woodman Catherine Ambrose Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund David Ambrose Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Gwen Atkinson Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Carol Bailey In memory of Doug Turner Jean Ashworth Bartle John Bell Matching Funds Campaign Sheila Berg Leonard Bick Matching Funds Campaign 26 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO THANK YOU Daniel Bogue Caroline Bonner Judy Boundy Jennifer Boyd John Brooker Carol Competition Sponsorship Allan and Kathryn Brown Matching Funds Campaign Gwyneth Buck William Buhlman Marcia Bunston Anne-Marie Calhoun Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Susan Chernin Barbara Clark Lynda Clark Nadine Corrigan In memory of Liz Drury Susan Culver Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Wendy Deacon Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Amy Dodington Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Thomas Ferry Matching Funds Campaign Lucia Flaim George Fleming Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Nancy Foster Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Mary Freedman (Morrison) Janet Fryer Virginia Gies Dianne Goldsmith Matching Funds Campaign Jeanne Graham Tom Graungaard Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Harry Gregg Shawn Grenke Sheila Haimes Inga Hansen Rosalie Hatt In memory of Liz Drury Catherine Havery Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Deborah Henderson Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Karen Henderson and Christopher Cameron Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU Greg Hughes Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Joan Kagan Anne Kear Sarah Keating Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Andrew Kellogg Jocelyn Kervin Ed and Lana Korb Michael and Vivian Lee Barbara MacDonald Donald MacInnes Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Eric MacKeracher Matching Funds Campaign Elizabeth MacLean Marathon Learning Materials Ltd. Jean McDiarmid Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Kathy McGrath Margaret McGroarty Del Mehes Barbara Naylor Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Carole Nelles Chris Norman Melanie Noviss Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund D.J. Parsons Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Catherine Patterson Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Lydia Pedersen Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Ralph Peters Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Mary Prime Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Gordon Robb Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Betty Robinson In memory of Liz Drury Cathy Robinson Andrea Rowan John Francois Roy Matching Funds Campaign Elizabeth Sakac Matching Funds Campaign Eardley Samuels Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Edith Sawyer Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Helen Simeonov Matching Funds Campaign Wendy Simone Jacqueline Smith Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Lawrence Smith Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Carol Stairs Ted Teal Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Julia Topping Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Freda Urbas James Wanstall Matching Funds Campaign Andrea Warren Susan Watt Ruth Watson Henderson Recording Fund Pamela Wightman Matching Funds Campaign Virginia Winn Anonymous (3) *List reflects donors from January 1, 2014 to April 30, 2015 at the level receipted. If we have made an error or omitted your name from this list, please accept our sincere apologies and contact us at [email protected]. Earth Songs, Love Songs | May 24, 2015 27 THANK YOU Amadeus Choir gratefully acknowledges support from Government agencies: Amadeus Choir gratefully acknowledges media support: Amadeus Choir gratefully acknowledges support from: Concert Sponsor: Sandra Parsons …and the very generous contributions of many individual and corporate donors. 28 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO TCA HOUSE LIST General Manager, Pim Schotanus Director of Operations, Janette McDonald Director of Finance & Administration, Neil McGivney Director of Production & Facility Services, Kristopher Dell Production Manager, Zoë Carpenter Production Manager, Vadim Beili Production Manager, Bruce Bennett Box Office Manager, Liz Bragg Payroll Manager & Accounts Coordinator, Alice Lin Booking Coordinator, Jannelle Armorer Office Coordinator & Bookings Associate, Elsa Nealon New Media & Marketing Coordinator, Amanda Fleming Education & Outreach Coordinator, Lanrick Bennett Jr. Front of House Manager, Marg Goodwin Duty Manager, Lynn Reeve Maintenance Supervisor, John Hood Building Operators, Loreto Canillo, Bin Ren Housekeeping Supervisor, Lascelles Charlton Security Supervisor, James Phoxay Stage Technicians are represented by I.A.T.S.E Local 58 North York Performing Arts Centre Corporation Board of Directors Board Members: Mayor John Tory Councillor John Filion Councillor Norm Kelly Councillor James Pasternak Councillor Jim Karygiannis Bob Cooper Michael Feldman Nina Iordanova Leonard Glickman (Chair) Sheldon Mahabir Warren M. Rudick Valerie Ann Sterling Officers: Giuliana Carbone, Treasurer Alison Fowles, Solicitor Ulli Watkiss, Secretary PLEASE NOTE: Latecomers may not be let in until a suitable break in the performance and only at the discretion of management. The use of cameras, recording equipment, radios or any playback device is not permitted in the auditorium. Patrons are kindly asked to ensure that watch alarms and cell phones do not sound during the performance. Smoking is prohibited throughout the building. LOST AND FOUND ARTICLES: Please approach our ushering staff to assist in locating lost items or call our facility at (416) 733-9388 with a full article description. 30 AMADEUS CHOIR OF GREATER TORONTO Subscribe now to our 2015-2016 Season Early Bird Bonus: Subscribe before June 30 and receive a free ticket to our opening concert on November 1 for each subscription purchased. Luminosity The Season of Joy Sunday November 1, 2015 - 4:00 pm Eglinton St. George’s United Church 35 Lytton Boulevard, Toronto Saturday December 19, 2015 - 7:30 pm Carmina Burana: The Spring Emerges Serenade to Music Yorkminster Park Baptist Church 1585 Yonge Street, Toronto Sunday June 5, 2016 - 7:00 pm Eglinton St. George’s United Church 35 Lytton Boulevard, Toronto Sunday April 3, 2016 - 4:00 pm Toronto Centre for the Arts 5040 Yonge Street, Toronto Regular Subscription Senior Subscription Under 30 Subscription Student Subscription (# seats (# seats (# seats (# seats DONATION Handling Fee TOTAL ) x $135 ) x $105 ) x $85 ) x $45 = = = = = = = $3 Name: Address: City: Prov: Phone Day: Evening: Postal Code: Email: ❏ Yes, please add me to the Amadeus Choir email list. PAYMENT INFORMATION ❏ Cheque enclosed, made payable to Amadeus Choir ❏ VISA ❏ Mastercard Card #: Name on card: Credit Choir Member: Expiry: / MAIL TO: The Amadeus Choir • 4386 Sheppard Ave E, Unit N, Scarborough, ON M1S 1T8 416-446-0188 • www.amadeuschoir.com THANK YOU! ANNOUNCING OUR 2015 / 2016 SEASON LUMINOSITY THE SEASON OF JOY Eglinton St. George’s United Church 35 Lytton Boulevard, Toronto Yorkminster Park Baptist Church 1585 Yonge Street, Toronto Sunday, November 1, 2015 4:00 pm CARMINA BURANA: THE SPRING EMERGES Sunday, April 3, 2016 4:00 pm Toronto Centre for the Arts 5040 Yonge Street, Toronto Saturday, December 19, 2015 7:30 pm SERENADE TO MUSIC Sunday, June 5, 2016 7:00 pm Eglinton St. George’s United Church 35 Lytton Boulevard, Toronto Subscribe before June 30th and you’ll receive an additional ticket to LUMINOSITY, our opening concert of the coming season. Fill out our audience survey and you could win a subscription for two! Amadeus Choir • 416-446-0188 • www.amadeuschoir.com All dates and programs subject to change
© Copyright 2024