Position Opening: Music Director of Victoria Choral Society

Now entering its 77th season of choral excellence, the Victoria Choral Society is an auditioned 120-member SATB symphonic chorus which presents at least three major concerts yearly, collaborating frequently with the Victoria Symphony. They are now seeking an enthusiastic, skilled choral director with artistic vision and a broad knowledge of choral repertoire to lead the choir beginning in September, 2012.

See the complete job posting here. 

Informations générales – Choralies internationales 2012 Du 8 au 15 juillet 2012 - Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Merci pour votre intérêt au festival des Choralies internationales 2012 qui auront lieu du 8 au 15 juillet 2012. Le projet avance bien et nous serons ravis de vous recevoir chez nous!

Quoique nos Choralies ne seront pas de la même envergure que celles de Vaison-la-Romaine (nous n’avons malheureusement pas d’amphithéâtre romain de 5000 places!), nous aurons une belle panoplie d’ateliers avec du répertoire et des sujets à plaire à tous les goûts et niveaux. Nous avons aussi une des plus belles salles de concert sur le continent, soit le nouveau Winspear Centre for Music. Jusqu'à présent, tous les chefs contactés ont répondu qu'ils seraient ravis de participer!

Voici une liste de ce qui est au programme à ce jour :

Choral Concert with host Peter Togni, August 28, 2011 9:00 - 11:00 am, (9:30 - 11:30 NL) on CBC Radio 2

Festival 500 - Sharing the Voices

This Sunday Peter Togni wraps up the summer in St. John’s Newfoundland, with a special 2 part series celebrating the spirit of Festival 500, one of Canada’s most treasured choral festivals.

Singing in Newfoundland and Labrador has been a way of celebrating, mourning, and telling their community's stories for over 500 years. That community spirit is still at the heart of  Festival 500, as St John’s now reaches out beyond its shores to bring in choirs from across Canada and around the world, to celebrate the power of song

This Sunday we’ll hear a the highlights of this year's Festival 500 recorded at the Arts and Culture Centre and Gower Street United Church in St. John's.

You will also hear a full performance of the “Missa in Honorem BVM” (Mass in honour of Mary) by the great Franz Joseph Haydn in a wonderful performance with the Trinity Choir and the Rebel Baroque Orchestra.

Want a feast for the eyes as well as the ears? Check out the Indonesian Cordana Youth Choir from Festival 500  on the Choral Concert blog at: http://cbc.ca/choralconcert

Edmonton Columbian Choirs Announce Auditions for 2011/2012 Season

The Edmonton Columbian Choirs (Edmonton’s family of choirs), under the direction of Artistic Director Heather Bedford-Clooney, is pleased to announce auditions for its 45th Season.  Auditions will take place on Tuesday, September 6, 2011 at St. Joseph Catholic High School (10830 109 Street) starting at 6:30PM.

The Atlantic Voices Choral Composition Contest 2011

REMINDER:  The deadline of October 31st, 2011 is fast approaching!  Don't miss out, get your contest entries in early!

Atlantic Voices: The Newfoundland and Labrador Choir of Ottawa is a mixed-voice (SATB) community choir that sings music from and about Atlantic Canada.  This is our second Choral Composition Contest, and the choir is looking for quality choral music with an East Coast flavour.  We are offering two prizes, a 1st prize of $500 and a 2nd prize of $200, for original choral works by Canadian composers.  The winning works will be programmed on Atlantic Voices’ spring 2012 concert.  This competition is open to all residents of Canada, of all backgrounds and all ages.  Note: the winning entrant need not have a particular connection to the Atlantic region.

25th Annual Amadeus Choir Seasonal Song Writing Competition

Established in 1987 by Conductor and Artistic Director, Dr. Lydia Adams, the competition is open to composers of all ages and levels of experience. In honour of the 25th anniversary, composers are invited to submit songs in celebration of the Winter Solstice in addition to those relating to the traditional Christmas and Chanukah themes.

 “As always, the competition’s goals are to inspire new compositions, to motivate composers to develop their craft and to augment the existing choral seasonal repertoire,” said Lydia Adams, Conductor and Artistic Director, the Amadeus Choir.  “We are proud to be able to provide such a unique platform for composers to share their works with the world.”

Choral Concert with host Peter Togni, August 21, 2011 9:00 - 11:00 am, (9:30 - 11:30 NL) on CBC Radio 2

Winnipeg Soloists Choir perform “Song of the Forest”

This Sunday Peter Togni brings you a concert from Winnipeg with the Winnipeg Soloists Choir and the Manitoba chamber orchestra conducted by Elroy Friesen. You’ll hear them in a world premiere by Sid Robinovitch, the “Cantus Borealis: Song of the Forest”. It’s a piece that combines choir, string orchestra, narration and an electronic soundscape to evoke the spirit of Canada’s boreal forest.

You’ll also hear our first picks of the latest CD releases by Canada’s amateur choirs. We have been gathering up recent releases and are happy to celebrate this country’s high level of amateur choral singing by bringing you the best of what we have found. This week you will hear recent releases by the Edmonton Swiss Men’s Choir and the Calgary Renaissance singers and players.

All that plus an incredible performance of the entire Mass in E minor by Anton Bruckner with the Corydon Singers and the English chamber orchestra.

Visit the Choral Concert blog at:  http://cbc.ca/choralconcert

New Setting of "In Flanders Fields" Available

Belgian composer Eddy Avonds has chosen to commerate the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the First World War (1914—1918) with a new setting of the well known poem, "In Flanders Fields" by Canadian John McCrae. A poet, doctor, author and artist, McCrae was a surgeon at the front during the Battle of Ypres and was burried in the Commonwealth War Graves only a few kilometres from the coast of Boulogne.

As a token of respect for all countries that lost fellow countrymen "In Flanders Fields", Eddy Avonds has written a new setting of the poem for 4-part choir (SATB) and is making complimentary PDF copies of the composition available to anyone interested.

To receive the PDF for use with your choir, please contact Carolyn Nielsen: carolyn.alto@gmail.com.

Mozartfestival October 13—16, 2011

Come sing Mozart's Great Mass in c-minor, KV 427, with choristers from Germany, Austria, France, Japan, Argentina, Mexico, Danmark and Switzerland under the direction of the Cathedral Music Director, Prof. Janos Czifra. The concert will be organized as charity for the “red cross Austria society”.
For information visit: www.cultours.at.

International Music Prizes for Excellence in Performance and Composition 2011

Call for Submissions

The National Academy of Music, a public educational charity of the State of Colorado, is pleased to announce a call for submissions for this year’s ‘International Music Prizes for Excellence in Performance and Composition’. The competition is organized by the Secretariat of the International Music Prizes™ in Greece. For information on submissions visit these sites:
International Music Prize™ for Excellence in Performance 2011
International Music Prize™ for Excellence in Composition 2011

Singsation Saturdays 2011-12 Season

Choral Workshops for all, an outreach program of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir

The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir (TMC) presents Singsation Saturdays, a series of choral workshops where anyone who loves to sing is invited to join with noted guest conductors, other singers and TMC choristers to sing selections from some of the great choral masterpieces and gain insight into these notable works. Music scores are available for participants to borrow at each workshop.

During the successful 2010-11 season, between 70 and 120 singers participated in each workshop. Singers came from all parts of Toronto and many sing in church or community choirs as well. These events are enjoyable and educational, and help build the Toronto choral community.

TMC is offering five Singsation Saturdays during the 2011-2012 season.  Singsation Saturdays take place at Yorkminster Park Baptist Church, Cameron Hall, 1585 Yonge St. from 10:30 am to 1 pm. The fee per workshop is $10 which includes refreshments. Participants can register at the workshops, or in advance by completing the Singsation order form.  For more information call TMC at 416-598-0422 or visit online at www.tmchoir.org.

Pax Christi Chorale Celebrates 25 Years

Photo by Betsy Moss

Pax Christi Chorale launches its 25th anniversary season this October with rarely-heard masterpieces for choir and orchestra, joined by the youth choir and exceptional vocal soloists.

Pax Christi Chorale was first led by Dr. Robert Loewen, later by Lee Bartel and then John Ford.  In 1996, the baton was handed over to Stephanie Martin, who has been the Artistic Director of the choir ever since. Pax Christi Chorale was founded by Dr. Loewen, current President Emily Burgetz and Ron Sawatsky, inspired by the success of a choir assembled for the Toronto celebration of the 1986 Bicentennial of Mennonites in Canada.  Some of the original 35 singers are still in the choir today.

From Ms. Martin’s first season as Artistic Director, she raised the bar and challenged the choir with its first performances with orchestra, which included Vaughan Williams' Dona Nobis Pacem and Benjamin Britten's Rejoice in the Lamb. The choir has steadily added to its oratorio repertoire, enriching Toronto choral music lovers with memorable performances and gaining a reputation as one of Canada’s finest oratorio choirs.

Choral Concert with host Peter Togni, August 14, 2011 9:00 - 11:00 am, (9:30 - 11:30 NL) on CBC Radio 2

Mozart’s Mass in C Minor with the Cologne Radio Choir

This Sunday on Choral Concert Peter Togni will bring you the great Mass in C Minor by Mozart. It’s a large scale work that he never finished, but it has since been beautifully reconstructed. Peter Togni says the transcendent opening points to the fragility of life and in some ways, to Mozart’s own destiny. You’ll hear it in an incredible performance by the Cologne Radio Choir and Symphony Orchestra.

You’ll also hear the Elmer Iseler Singers doing the music of JS Bach, the Belle Canto Women’s choir doing the music of Brahms.

Alliance des chorales du Québec Present the Jean-Pierre Guindon Prize

On July 23rd two representatives of the Alliance des chorales du Québec, Mr. Paul Belzile, president, and Mr. Charles Martin, treasurer, presented Madame Jocelyne Beaulieu with the Jean-Pierre Guindon prize.  Madame Beaulieu was overwhelmed to receive such a distinguished award which honours choir directors of more than twenty-five years experience and which stresses the unconditional support these choir directors give to their choirs and to their regions.  This was the first time that a choir director from the Abitibi region has been so honoured.

Alliance des chorales du Québec : remise du prix Jean-Pierre Guindon

Le 23 juillet dernier, madame Jocelyne Beaulieu s’est vue décerner le prix Jean-Pierre Guindon par deux représentants de l’Alliance des chorales du Québec, monsieur Paul Belzile son président et Charles Martin son trésorier. C’est avec beaucoup d’émotions que madame Beaulieu a accepté cette reconnaissance qui récompense les chefs ayant plus de vingt-cinq  années d'expérience en direction chorale  et qui souligne le soutien inconditionnel de ses  lauréats envers leurs chorales et leurs régions. C’était la première fois qu’une personne de la région de l’Abitibi recevait cet honneur!

Choral Concert with host Peter Togni, August 7, 2011 9:00 - 11:00 am, (9:30 - 11:30 NL) on CBC Radio 2

Vivaldi’s “Gloria” with ensemble Caprice.

This Sunday on Choral Concert Peter Togni will bring you the Juno Award winning performance of Vivaldi’s “Gloria” with Montreal’s ensemble Caprice. Give it a listen and find out why Peter says this is one of the most beautiful openings of any piece of music.

You’ll also hear the King’s Singers, some Eric Whitacre, music that sounds like opera but isn’t by Verdi, and the wonderful Hamilton Children’s Chorus led by Zamfira Politz.