Strathcona Choir Workshops!

Festival Singers, operating as the Sherwood Park Festival Singers Music Society, has been the recipient of grants under the Strathcona County Arts, Culture and Heritage Community Invesment Program since the fall of 2008.  Parts of these grants are used to fund choral workshops open to the members of Festival Singers and to singers in the community of Strathcona County and beyond.

Strathcona Choral Workshop - Saturday, February 27, 2010

Festival Singers hosted a Strathcona Choral Workshop on Saturday, February 27, 2010 at Bethel Lutheran Church in Sherwood Park AB.

The workshop started with registration from 9:00 to 9:30 AM, and continued with singing from 9:30 AM to 2:30 PM.  A short concert was presented from 2:30 to 3:00 PM featuring the songs learned during the day.  

The workshop was open to any interested singers.  The public was invited to the concert. 

Our guest clinician for the day was Elizabeth Turnbull.  She was excellent!

Here is the 'recipe' being used.
             

Past Workshops & Retreats

Strathcona Choral Retreat - Saturday, January 23, 2010

Festival Singers hosted a Strathcona Choral Retreat on Saturday, January 23, 2010 at Bethel Lutheran Church in Sherwood Park AB.  

• This retreat focused on the spring repertoire in preparation for our concert on April 25, 2010.
• The day consisted of sectional and mass rehearsals.  The Festival Singers section leads, Sarah Toane, Abra Whitney, Brian Lawrence and Scott Garland assisted our conductor, Elaine Myhre, and our accompanist, Denis Arseneau.
• It was open to anyone who sings!
• A great day of rehearsing!

Strathcona Choral Workshop - Sing for a Day! - Saturday, October 24, 2009

Festival Singers hosted a full day of singing on Saturday, October 24, 2009 at Bethel Lutheran Church, 298 Bethel Drive, Sherwood Park AB T8H 2C5.

The workshop sessions featured dynamics, phrasing, tone color, rhythm and articulation and a variety of choral reading sessions.  Clinicians were Elaine Myhre, Ardelle Ries, Jolaine Kerley and David Wilson.

Some of our clinicians were new to Festival Singers:

• Jolaine Kerley is active as a soprano soloist, clinician, adjudicator, conductor, and vocal instructor throughout North America. She is currently a sessional instructor of voice in the department of music at the University of Alberta. Jolaine has been featured as a soloist and with musical ensembles Pro Coro Canada, the Carmel Bach Festival Chorale, the Masterwork Chorus, the U of A Madrigal Singers, the Richard Eaton Singers, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Alberta Baroque Orchestra, da Camera Singers, and the Alberta Philharmonic Orchestra. This past performance season has included Haydn’s Harmoniemesse, Vaughan Williams Mass in g minor, Handel’s Solomon, J. S. Bach’s BWV 61, Zelenka’s Magnificat, and Handel’s Messiah. Jolaine was also featured as soloist in works for soprano and trumpet by Scarlatti and Melani in the 2009 Carmel Bach Festival. Upcoming 2009/2010 performances include featured works by Mozart with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, Haydn’s Creation with the University of Alberta Madrigal Singers, a newly commissioned work of Alberta composer, Alan Bevan with Pro Coro Canada, Bach’s BWV 141 and Haydn’s Kleine Orgelmesse with the Alberta Baroque Ensemble, and Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater with the Spiritus Chamber Ensemble.   
• David Wilson (B.Mus, M.Mus) is a Singer, Conductor, Voice Teacher, Yoga Instructor, and Respiratory Therapist.  He has served as Artistic Director for the Calgary Renaissance Singers & Players, Spiritus Chamber Choir, Debut Opera Society, Edmonton Recorder Orchestra, and Vocal Alchemy.  He has won both the ACF's Con Spirito Award and the International Contemporary Acappella Recording Award for Spiritus' CD, "Crossing Bridges".  In October 2004, David was invited to the the Évora Cathedral Music School to present his Master's Thesis, "Manuel Cardoso of Portugal".  In addition to his busy vocal studio, and singing with Edmonton Opera, the 2008-'09 season has included teaching Choral 10/20/30 at Concordia High School, and the presentation of over 50 choral conducting workshops, breath seminars and vocal master classes throughout Western Canada.  David has created Body, Breath & Voice Integrative Therapy to assist groups and individuals in reclaiming their natural breath and to unleash their full vocal potential. His website is body-breath-voice.com.  

Festival Singers Retreat - Sing with Festival Singers! - Saturday, September 19, 2009 

This day long rehearsal was presented in conjunction with Alberta Arts Days.  It was held at Bethel Lutheran Church, 298 Bethel Drive, Sherwood Park and focused on the fall repertoire for Festival Singers, with singing from 9 to 5!

• Warm Up Your Voices!  A series of physical and vocal exercises with Elaine Vooys
• Sectional Rehearsals followed with Kim Denis, Meghan Rayment and Elaine Vooys
• Vocal Techniques with Kim Denis
• Afternoon Sectional Rehearsals with Elaine Vooys and Kim Denis
• African Choral Music with Kathleen Skinner
• Group Rehearsal under the direction of Elaine Vooys

Fees for the day were $30.00 per person (including lunch and breaks), with no charge for members of Festival Singers. Anyone joining Festival Singers after the Retreat, received a $30 credit towards membership fees.

Strathcona Choir Retreat Clinicians

We were pleased to welcome the following musicians to our retreat:
 

• Elaine Vooys, conductor and mezzo-soprano, has a broad background in choral music as both a chorister and conductor. A candidate for the Master of Music in choral conducting at the University of Alberta, Elaine also holds a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance from The King’s University College. She is currently the director of the All City Children’s Choir, Cantilon Primary Choir, and music director at Holy Spirit Lutheran Church. Former conducting positions include The King’s University College Concert Choir, University of Alberta Graduate Choir and Orchestra and St. Timothy’s Anglican Church Choir. Elaine’s teachers and mentors include Dr. Debra Cairns, Dr. Adam Con, Dr. Leonard Ratzlaff and Dr. Melanie Turgeon. Her accomplishments have been rewarded through various scholarships which include the Robert Tegler Award recognizing musicianship and academic excellence as well as the Social Sciences Humanities Research Council of Canada scholarship for her graduate thesis work on the acclaimed choral work Eulogies, composed by John Estacio.
  
• Kimberley Denis is known for her energy and enthusiasm both on stage and off, and is sought after as both a soloist and as a vocal clinician for high school, community, church and children's choirs.  Upon completion of both her commerce and music undergraduate degrees at Mount Allison University, Kim returned to Alberta to begin graduate studies in both choral conducting and voice at the University of Alberta.  She has won many accolades for her work as a soprano soloist and conductor, and has also received a research grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada for her thesis work on regionalism and nationalism in Canada as portrayed through choral arrangements of Eastern Canadian folk songs.  She recently had her recording debut as the soloist for Antonín Dvořák's Te Deum and is frequently asked to write choral arrangements for choirs of all shapes and sizes.  She currently directs the Kokopelli Apprentice Choir, Shumayela, in Edmonton, and the Nota Bene Youth Choir in Red Deer.  She is also currently the music director at Knox Presbyterian Church and is employed by Quest Theatre Projects.  
  
• Meghan Rayment received her Bachelor of Music in Camrose, Alberta at the Augustana Faculty of the University of Alberta.  She is currently working on a Master’s in Choral Conducting from the University of Alberta Main Campus.  Meghan’s conducting experience includes working with the Bethel Lutheran Children’s Choir, the Sherwood Park Primary Choir, the Four Leaf Singers, and the Graduate Recital Choir and Instrumental Ensemble.  Prior to coming to Edmonton, Meghan taught both privately and for the Augustana Conservatory.  The classes she taught included: Kindermusik, Keyboard Explorers, piano, and voice.  Meghan has been awarded several scholarships for her achievements, including: the Beryl Barns Memorial Graduate Award, the John and Logie Drew Graduate Scholarship in Choral Conducting, and the Swiss Ethnic Music Award.
  
• Kathleen Skinner, M.Mus. Choral Conducting (University of Alberta, 2005), B.Mus. (University of British Columbia, 2003), is an emerging conductor and composer on the Alberta choral scene. She has had a composition published by Cypress Choral Music, and is continuing to compose and arrange pieces for choir. Her compositions have been widely performed by honour choirs in both Canada and the United States, and her work Da mi basia mille was premiered at Festival 500 in Newfoundland in July of 2005. She is currently in her seventh season as co-conductor of Òran, the senior ensemble in the Kokopelli Choir Association. As part of her post-secondary education, Kathleen spent two years as the assistant conductor of the University of Alberta Madrigal Singers under the direction of Dr. Leonard Ratzlaff. Kathleen was also the music director at Edmonton’s Holy Spirit Lutheran Church for the past four years and has been engaged as a clinician and vocal coach for high school and youth groups around B.C. and Alberta. In March of 2007, she was the guest artistic director of the Canadian Chamber Choir on their first Alberta tour.  As of this season, Kathleen is excited to be working full-time with the Kokopelli Choir Association as the new executive director for the organization.
  
• Denis Arseneau We are pleased to welcome Denis Arseneau, a resident of Sherwood Park, as the new pianist for Festival Singers.  Denis has been a pianist for sixteen years and as an accompanist for the last five, the majority of this with choirs.  He has worked with the Taylor College Choristers, University of Alberta Madrigal Singers and Sherwood Park Alliance Church Celebration Choir.  Denis has studied piano performance at the University of Alberta and has sung with the University of Alberta Madrigal Singers as well as the Concert Choir, under Dr. Leonard Ratzlaff and Dr. Debra Cairns, respectively.
  
• Katie Bakker Having grown up in a musical town in northern British Columbia, Katie Bakker has a deep love of music—especially the piano.  Over the last 15 years she has had many opportunities to pursue her love of music by playing in several festivals and accompanying a number of different bands representing a wide variety of musical genres. Katie is currently working as a Contemporary Music Coordinator at West End Christian Reformed Church and is extremely excited to be offered the opportunity to play with the Edmonton All City Children’s Choir! Going forward, Katie is looking into music programs at various schools and hopes to start her schooling next September.
  

Retreat Food  The day also included morning and afternoon coffee breaks and a hot lunch.  At the request of some of the choir members, lunch recipes (basically from the best of Cooking Light, published by Oxmoor House, 2004) are posted below.

Barbeque Beef Sandwiches -- Slow Cooker
10 servings

Combine 1 tbsp brown sugar and 1 tsp pepper.  Rub over both sides of 2 (1 pound) flank steaks.

Combine the following in a slow cooker:

•    1/4 cup brown sugar
•    1 cup chopped onion
•    1 cup tomato paste
•    3 Tbsp Worchestershire sauce
•    3 Tbsp molasses
•    3 Tbsp vinegar
•    1 Tbsp chili powder
•    1 tsp garlic powder
•    1 tsp dry mustard
•    1 tsp cumin
•    1/2 tsp salt

Add steaks to slow cooker.  High heat for 1 hour; low for 7 hours.  Remove steaks, reserve sauce.  Shred steaks with 2 forks.  Return shredded steak to cooker, stir into sauce.  Serve on submarine rolls.  Top with onion slices and pickles if desired.

Navy Bean and Artichoke Casserole with Goat Cheese
12 Servings

• Bread crumbs (4 slices of bread)
• 4 (15 oz) cans navy beans
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp sage
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 6 garlic cloves
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 (14 oz) can artichoke bottoms, drained and each cut into 8 wedges
• 2 cups crumbled goat cheese

Drain beans, reserving liquid.  Add water to liquid to make 2 cups. Combine beans, thyme, sage, pepper and 2 garlic cloves.

Heat olive oil and sauté 4 garlic cloves, onion, rosemary, salt, and artichokes for 5 minutes.  Stir in bean liquid mixture.  Cover, reduce eat and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat.

Spread half of beans and spices in baking dish, top with half of goat cheese.  Spread artichoke mixture over cheese, top with remaining bean mixture and remaining cheese.

Combine breadcrumbs and 1 Tbsp oil, sprinkle over goat cheese.

Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes or until lightly browned.

Sugar-Snap-Pea Salad with Sweet Ginger-Soy Dressing

Serves 10

Dressing:

•  4 tsp sesame oil
• 2 Tbsp minced ginger
• 2 Tbsp minced garlic
• ½ tsp crushed red pepper
• 2 Tbsp oyster sauce
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• ½ tsp salt

Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Add ginger, sauté 2 minutes.  Add garlic and crushed red pepper, cook 1 minute.  Stir in oyster sauce, soy sauce sugar and salt, bring to a simmer. Remove from heat, cool.

Salad:

•  2 lb sugar snap peas, trimmed
• 1 cup julienne-cut carrot
• 1 cup drained, canned sliced water chestnuts
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1 cup julienne-cut red bell pepper
• 4 tsp sesame seeds, toasted

Combine peas and remaining ingredients except sesame seeds. Drizzle dressing over salad, toss well. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Spinach Salad

A mix of spinach, strawberries, almonds, red onion slices and feta cheese with poppy seed dressing.
   

Sing for a Day!  October 25, 2008

Festival Singers, operating as the Sherwood Park Festival Singers Music Society, was thrilled to offer our first Strathcona Choir Workshop to the residents of Strathcona County on Saturday, October 25, 2008.
This was a one day workshop held at Bethel Lutheran Church in Sherwood Park.  Sixty-two singers attended to Sing for a Day! 
We were excited to welcome the following excellent clinicians:

• Melanie Marlin, the Director of Festival Singers, got everyone warmed up with an excellent session of physical and vocal exercises.  A singing hello!!  She also conducted two Choral Reading Sessions in the afternoon and then closed off the day with a sessions entitled Learn a New Song!
• Dr. Debra Cairns is a Full Professor in the Department of Music at the University of Alberta where she co-ordinates and co-supervises the graduate program in choral conducting, teaches undergraduate and graduate conducting, choral literature, and diction, and directs the University of Alberta Concert Choir.  She offered two workshops:  On Being a Choral Singer -- Choir 101 and Learning to Read Music -- Sight Singing 101.  She also conducted two Choral Reading Sessions during the afternoon.
• Brian McIntosh is a Professor of Voice and Opera at the University of Alberta.  He impressed us all with his full bass-baritone voice.  He also surprised us during two sessions:  Diction for Singers and Vocal Techniques for Choirsters.  The surprise?  It's amazing how big a range one can sing!
• Brendan Lord holds a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from the University of Alberta, works as a freelance musician and is the Executive Director of the Alberta Choral Federation and a member of Pro Coro Canada.  He was the third conductor for Choral Reading Sessions on the afternoon.

We were also very fortunate to have three accompanists for the day: 

• Tristan Cleveland Thompson is the accomp;anist for Festival Singers, an organist, tenor and composer.  He sings with Kokopelli Choir and the Canadian Chamber Choir.
• Denis Arseneau is a third year piano performance major at the U of A and sings with the University of Alberta Madrigal Singers.
• Allison Luff is a fourth year piano performance major at the U of A.

It was a full day of singing and food! 

Sing for a Day!  January 31, 2009 

Festival Singers, operating under the Sherwood Park Festival Singers Society and funded through the Strathcona County Arts, Culture and Heritage Community Investment Program, hosted our second Strathcona Choir Workshop for the residents of Strathcona County on Saturday, January 31, 2009 at Bethel Lutheran Church, 298 Bethel Drive, Sherwood Park AB.  We were pleased to have 47 singers in attendance, about one third of whom joined us specially for the day.

Morning and afternoon sessions opened with Starting to Sing!  These were half hour sessions led by Melanie Marlin, the Music Director of Festival Singers.  Everyone was well warmed up with physical and vocal exercises.  Lots of bend and stretch, counting and clapping.

The morning continued with excellent historical and technical sessions led by Dr. John Brough and very helpful and challenging group vocal sessions led by Mireille Rijavec.

Dr. Brough is a sessional instructor at the University of Alberta, Choirmaster and Director of Music at Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Artistic Director of the Da Camera Singers and interim Director of Music of the Richard Eaton Singers.  He holds a Bachelor of Music in Organ Performance, a Master of Music and Doctor of Music in Choral Conducting, and associate degrees with the Royal Conservatory of Music and Royal Canadian College of Organists.

Mireille Rijavec is well known as a mezzo soprano soloist.  She is a sessional instructor in Music at the University of Alberta's Campus Saint-Jean and at Concordia University College.  She holds a Bachelor of Music and a Master of Music in Vocal Performance.

The afternoon featured choral reading sessions led by Dr. Brough and Melanie Marlin, and individual or paired voice lessons with Mireille Rijavec.  Dr. Brough 's sessions focused on Sacred Music and Folksongs.  Melanie led sessions on Broadway Songs and Canadian Folksongs.  The day ended with a mass choir under the direction of Melanie Marlin who introduced us to a new song - Son de Camaguey, a Cuban Folk Song arranged by Stephen Hatfield.  This will be one of the pieces performed by Festival Singers at our Spring Concert on Tuesday, April 28 at Festival Place.

Accompanists for the day were Tristan Cleveland Thompson and Denis Arseneau.

The fees for the full day were $30.00 and included coffee breaks and a hot lunch (lasagna for all)!

It was a full day of singing for all!
 

Nathaniel Dett Chorale

Festival Singers was invited to participate in a workshop presented by the Nathaniel Dett Chorale on Thursday evening, February 5 at Festival Place.  About 30 singers (including some extras), plus our Director, Melanie Marlin and Accompanist, Tristan Cleveland Thompson attended.  Brainerd Blyden-Taylor, the Artistic Director of the Chorale, led the workshop.  It was a very interesting, informative and enjoyable hour+!!

The Nathaniel Dett Chorale performed at Festival Place on Friday evening, February 6, 2009.  An exceptional conductor, twenty very talented singers, and one fabulous accompanist entertained a very appreciative audience.  Marvellous concert!  The Chorale is based in Montreal, and their appearance in Sherwood Park was the first in a tour of western Canada.

The following information about the Chorale is from their website:

Musical Heritage

A note from Brainerd Blyden-Taylor, founder/artistic director

I founded The Nathaniel Dett Chorale in 1998, in response to a musical void in Canada. To the best of my - or anyone else's - knowledge, there had never before been a professional ensemble dedicated to the dissemination of Afrocentric choral music, and the response received in Canada and the United States of America since its inception has certainly given credence to the founding vision. I am indebted to Mary Lou Fallis and the Canada Council for the Arts for prompting and supporting this initiative, respectively.
When determining a name for the ensemble, I wanted to honour Canadian African musical heritage. I was inspired by the life and work of R. Nathaniel Dett in general, and in particular by his essay The Emancipation of Negro Music, for which he won the James Bowdoin literary prize from Harvard University in 1920. I am again indebted to Margaret Leask for first bringing Dr. Dett to my attention, and to the biographical works of Vivian Flagg McBrier - R. Nathaniel Dett: His Life and Works (1882-1943) - and Anne Key Simpson - Follow Me: The Life and Music of R. Nathaniel Dett - for expanding my awareness. With the acquisition of this information, it was an easy step to make Nathaniel Dett the ensemble's namesake.

Arts & Culture Council Gala

Festival Singers was part of the Arts & Culture Gala at Salisbury Greenhouses, Sherwood Park on Saturday and Sunday, February 14 and 15.

We presented a short program featuring some of the music for our Spring Concert which will be on April 28 at Festival Place.  We were pleased to welcome the people who stopped by our booth and hope to see you at our rehearsals or concerts!
 

For further information about Festival Singers and choir events, please email us at festival.singers08@gmail.com.  You may also phone (780) 922-4450 for details.