ACCC announces the winners of the 2013 National Competition for Canadian Amateur Choirs!

A treasured Canadian choral tradition, the ACCC National Competition for Canadian Amateur Choirs inspires choirs to strive for excellence, provides visibility for amateur choirs of all types and traditions, and encourages the creation and performance of Canadian works. The Competition is open to all Canadian amateur choirs and attracts diverse participants from coast to coast. The 2013 Competition winners were selected by a national jury of esteemed Canadian choral conductors, consisting of Douglas Dunsmore, Jean-Pascal Hamelin, Graeme Langager, Zimfira Poloz and Leonard Ratzlaff.

The prestigious Canada Council for the Arts Healey Willan Grand Prize, for the finest overall performance in musicianship, technique, and program, was awarded to the Spiritus Chamber Choir, from Calgary, AB, conducted by Timothy Shantz. Spiritus Chamber Choir also took first prize in Category 11 (Contemporary Music), and in Category 6 (Mixed-Voice Adult Choir).

Each choir that enters the Competition must perform an original Canadian piece. The prize for the Best Performance of a Canadian Work in any category was awarded to Quintessential Vocal Ensemble, from St. John’s, NL, conducted by Susan Quinn, for their performance of The Dance of the Mayflies, by Kathleen Allan. Quintessential Vocal Ensemble was also awarded second prize in Category 11 (Contemporary Music).

Cash prizes were also awarded for the top performances in each category. See 2013 Winners.

Winners were announced on Tuesday, July 9 at Festival 500 Sharing the Voices, an international festival of choral music in St. John’s, NL.

All of the winners, finalists and other participants can be heard on CBC Music, where links to competition audio are available from the ACCC National Competition for Canadian Amateur Choirs portal page.  Selections by the winners will also be featured on CBC Radio 2's Choral Concert on Sunday, July 14th. 

The National Competition of Canadian Amateur Choirs is a signature program of the Association of Canadian Choral Communities, Canada’s national service organization for choirs and the choral community. For more information please visit www.choralcanada.org.