Bernstein & Duruflé
Digital Program

Bernstein and Durufle Digital Program

Welcome Messages

From Mary Gray, Board Chair
“Kathleen’s spirit and talent as a musician, leader and creative artist are exceptional, and we are thrilled to introduce her to you today.”
 
Concert programme notes from Threnody at St. John’s York Mills Church in October 2019 – Kathleen Allan’s first concert as Artistic Director Conductor of the Amadeus Choir.
 
We thank you all for joining us for our final concert of the 2024/25 season and we congratulate Kathleen on her 5th anniversary with the Amadeus Choir! These past five seasons have brought unexpected challenges and blessings. A warm welcome to Kathleen’s on her return from a year’s absence as she welcomed her second child.
 
We are grateful to Lydia Adams for leading the choir through most of this season in our community. Our singers have been spoiled with the best of Canada’s choral conductors this year.  
 
Thanks, also, to Emma Milutinovic, our Interim Executive Director, for her commitment to keep the Amadeus community strong. We wish her all the best as she welcomes her second child.
 
The Amadeus Choir of Greater Toronto appears to get greater every year! Thank you to our supporters, volunteers and audience members for enjoying choral music with our community of singers.  Amadeus concerts are beautiful adventures that we are pleased to share with our friends and family and beyond.  
 
We look forward to sharing our plans for next season. 
 
Happy Spring!
 
Mary Gray
Chair, Amadeus Choir Boar
From Kathleen Allan, Artistic Director

Welcome to the final concert of our 2024–25 season! It has been an extraordinary year, and I’m thrilled to be back on the podium. I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to Conductor Emerita Lydia Adams for her inspiring leadership during my parental leave. It is a gift to return to such a vibrant musical community!

The music in tonight’s program invites both joy and introspection. Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms pulses with rhythmic vitality and unexpected beauty, weaving infectious melodies with moments of tenderness. Duruflé’s Requiem moves between luminous serenity and striking intensity, with harmonies that will take your breath away.

We hope you enjoy these two important works. Thank you for your support!

Kathleen Allan
Artistic Director and Conductor

Tonight's Program

Calixa Lavallée, arr. Godfrey Ridout, O Canada

***

Leonard Bernstein (1918-1998), Chichester Psalms

I. Psalm 108:2; Psalm 100
II. Psalm 23; Psalm 2:1-4
III. Psalm 131; Psalm 133:1

*** INTERMISSION *** 

Maurice Duruflé (1902-1986), Requiem

I. Introït
II. Kyrie
III. Domine Jesu Christe
IV. Pie Jesu
V. Agnus Dei
VI. Lux Aeterna
VII. Libera Me
VIII. In Paradisum

This Mass is dedicated in loving memory of Jean-Paul Bondy (1955-2025) From the Bondy family

Artists and Featured Guests

Click on the images below to read the artist bios.
Kathleen Allan, Artistic Director and Conductor
Organist Jonathan Oldengarm
Jonathan Oldengarm, Organ
Jesse Blumberg, Baritone
Alex Hetherington, Mezzo Soprano
Ryan Talebi Boy Soprano
Ryan Talebi, Boy Soprano
Amahl Arulanandam, Cello
Yang Chen Cropped
Yang Chen, Percussion
Zane Mallett Cropped
Zane Mallett, Harp

Song Texts

Chichester Psalms

By Leonard Bernstein (1918-1998)

Part I

Psalm 108, verse 2
Urah, hanevel, v’chinor!
 Awake, psaltery and harp!
A-irah shahar!
 I will rouse the dawn!


Psalm 100
Hariu l’Adonai kol haarets.
 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord all ye lands.
Iv’du et Adonai b’simha.
 Serve the Lord with gladness.
Bo-u l’fanav bir’nanah.
 Come before His presence with singing.
D’u ki Adonai Hu Elohim.
 Know ye that the Lord, He is God.
Hu asanu, v’lo anahnu.
 It is He that hath made us, and not we ourselves.
Amo v’tson mar’ito.
 We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Bo-u sh’arav b’todah,
 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
Hatseirotav bit’hilah,
 And into His courts with praise.
Hodu lo, bar’chu sh’mo.
 Be thankful unto Him, and bless His name.
Ki tov Adonai, l’olam has’do,
 For the Lord is good, His mercy is everlasting,
V’ad dor vador emunato.
 And His truth endureth to all generations.


Part II

Psalm 23
Adonai ro-i, lo ehsar.
 The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
Bin’ot deshe yarbitseini,
 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures,
Al mei m’nuhot y’nahaleini,
 He leadeth me beside the still waters,
Naf’shi y’shovev,
 He restoreth my soul,
Yan’heini b’ma’aglei tsedek,
 He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness,
L’ma’an sh’mo.
 For His name’s sake.
Gam ki eilech
 Yea, though I walk
B’gei tsalmavet,
 Through the valley of the shadow of death,
Lo ira ra,
 I will fear no evil,
Ki Atah imadi.
 For Thou art with me.
Shiv’t’cha umishan’techa
 Thy rod and Thy staff
Hemah y’nahamuni.
 They comfort me.
Ta’aroch l’fanai shulchan
 Thou preparest a table before me
Neged tsor’rai
 In the presence of mine enemies,
Dishanta vashemen roshi
 Thou anointest my head with oil,
Cosi r’vayah.
 My cup runneth over.
Ach tov vahesed
 Surely goodness and mercy
Yird’funi kol y’mei hayai
 Shall follow me all the days of my life,
V’shav’ti b’veit Adonai
 And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
L’orech yamim.
 Forever.


Psalm 2, verses 1–4
Lamah rag’shu goyim
 Why do the nations rage,
Ul’umim yeh’gu rik?
 And the people imagine a vain thing?
Yit’yats’vu malchei erets,
 The kings of the earth set themselves,
V’roznim nos’du yahad
 And the rulers take counsel together
Al Adonai v’al m’shiho.
 Against the Lord and against His anointed.
N’natkah et mos’roteimo,
 Saying, let us break their bonds asunder,
Yoshev bashamayim
 He that sitteth in the heavens
Yis’hak, Adonai
 Shall laugh,
Yil’ag lamo!
 And the Lord shall have them in derision!


Part III

Psalm 131
Adonai, Adonai,
 Lord, Lord,
Lo gavah libi,
 My heart is not haughty,
V’lo ramu einai,
 Nor mine eyes lofty,
V’lo hilachti
 Neither do I exercise myself
Big’dolot uv’niflaot
 In great matters or in things
Mimeni.
 Too wonderful for me to understand.
Im lo shiviti
 Surely I have calmed
V’domam’ti,
 And quieted myself,
Naf’shi k’gamul alei imo,
 As a child that is weaned of his mother,
Kagamul alai naf’shi.
 My soul is even as a weaned child.
Yahel Yis’rael el Adonai
 Let Israel hope in the Lord
Me’atah v’ad olam.
 From henceforth and forever.


Psalm 133, verse 1
Hineh mah tov,
 Behold how good,
Umah nayim,
 And how pleasant it is,
Shevet ahim
 For brethren to dwell
Gam yahad.
 Together in unity.

Requiem

By Maurice Duruflé (1902 – 1986)

I. Introit

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine,
 Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
et lux perpetua luceat eis.
 and let perpetual light shine upon them.
Te decet hymnus, Deus, in Sion,
 A hymn befits you, O God, in Zion,
et tibi reddetur votum in Jerusalem.
 and to you shall a vow be fulfilled in Jerusalem.
Exaudi orationem meam,
 Hear my prayer,
ad te omnis caro veniet.
 to you shall all flesh come.
Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine,
 Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
et lux perpetua luceat eis.
 and let perpetual light shine upon them.


II. Kyrie

Kyrie eleison.
 Lord, have mercy.
Christe eleison.
 Christ, have mercy.
Kyrie eleison.
 Lord, have mercy.


III. Domine Jesu Christe

Domine Jesu Christe, Rex gloriae,
 Lord Jesus Christ, King of glory,
libera animas omnium fidelium defunctorum
 deliver the souls of all the faithful departed
de poenis inferni et de profundo lacu.
 from the pains of hell and from the deep pit.
Libera eas de ore leonis,
 Deliver them from the lion’s mouth,
ne absorbeat eas tartarus,
 lest hell swallow them up,
ne cadant in obscurum.
 lest they fall into darkness.
Sed signifer sanctus Michael
 But may the holy standard-bearer Michael
repraesentet eas in lucem sanctam,
 lead them into the holy light,
quam olim Abrahae promisisti et semini eius.
 which you once promised to Abraham and his seed.
Hostias et preces tibi, Domine, laudis offerimus.
 Sacrifices and prayers of praise we offer to you, O Lord.
Tu suscipe pro animabus illis,
 Receive them, Lord, for those souls
quarum hodie memoriam facimus.
 whom we commemorate today.
Fac eas, Domine, de morte transire ad vitam,
 Grant them, O Lord, to pass from death to life,
quam olim Abrahae promisisti et semini eius.
 which you once promised to Abraham and his seed.


IV. Sanctus

Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus Dominus Deus Sabaoth.
 Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of Hosts.
Pleni sunt caeli et terra gloria tua.
 Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in excelsis.
 Hosanna in the highest.
Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini.
 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in excelsis.
 Hosanna in the highest.


V. Pie Jesu

Pie Jesu Domine, dona eis requiem sempiternam.
 Merciful Lord Jesus, grant them eternal rest.


VI. Agnus Dei

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem.
 Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant them rest.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem.
 Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant them rest.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem sempiternam.
 Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant them eternal rest.


VII. Lux aeterna

Lux aeterna luceat eis, Domine,
 May eternal light shine upon them, O Lord,
cum sanctis tuis in aeternum,
 with your saints forever,
quia pius es.
 for you are merciful.
Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine,
 Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
et lux perpetua luceat eis.
 and let perpetual light shine upon them.


VIII. Libera me

Libera me, Domine, de morte aeterna, in die illa tremenda:
 Deliver me, O Lord, from eternal death on that dreadful day:
Quando caeli movendi sunt et terra:
 When the heavens and the earth shall be moved:
Dum veneris judicare saeculum per ignem.
 When you shall come to judge the world by fire.
Tremens factus sum ego, et timeo, dum discussio venerit,
 I am seized with trembling, and I fear, until the judgment shall come,
atque ventura ira.
 and the wrath to come.
Dies illa, dies irae, calamitatis et miseriae,
 That day, the day of wrath, of calamity and misery,
dies magna et amara valde.
 the great and exceedingly bitter day.
Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine,
 Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
et lux perpetua luceat eis.
 and let perpetual light shine upon them.
Libera me, Domine, de morte aeterna, in die illa tremenda:
 Deliver me, O Lord, from eternal death on that dreadful day:
Quando caeli movendi sunt et terra:
 When the heavens and the earth shall be moved:
Dum veneris judicare saeculum per ignem.
 When you shall come to judge the world by fire.


IX. In Paradisum

In Paradisum deducant te Angeli:
 May the angels lead you into Paradise:
in tuo adventu suscipiant te martyres,
 may the martyrs receive you at your arrival,
et perducant te in civitatem sanctam Jerusalem.
 and lead you into the holy city Jerusalem.
Chorus Angelorum te suscipiat,
 May the choir of angels receive you,
et cum Lazaro quondam paupere aeternam habeas requiem.
 and with Lazarus, once a poor man, may you have eternal rest.

A Special Tribute - Verity Hobbs

Amadeus Choir Lifetime Member Verity Hobbs passed away peacefully in April. She and husband, Peter both sang and volunteered in the Amadeus Choirs for many years with Lydia Adams. They were avid concertgoers, and Verity designed concert programmes, advertisements, and season brochures for numerous choirs.

Thank you to our season sponsors!

TD Ready Commitment logo
Canada Council for the Arts logo
Azrieli logo
Ontario logo
Rama Gaming House
CWB Wealth logo
Betty and Joe Gray
Family Foundation

Thank you to our donors!

Major Donors (1,000+)
Estate of Thomas & June Abel
Lydia Adams, C.M.
Kim Alexander
Gerry & Margie Allan
Kathleen Allan & Benton Roark
Joan Andrews
Jean Ashworth-Bartle, C.M.
Stuart & Tiina Beaudoin
Linda Beaupré
Aline Bondy
Louis Bondy
Mitch Bondy
Jennifer Boyd
Anne-Marie Caron-Réaume & Mary Lou Soutar-Hynes
Fidelia Chen
Lily Cheung
Marilyn Cook
Cherie & Peter Crosby
Eleanor Daley, C.M.
Alan Davis
Phyllis Doherty
Karen Freedman
Brett Fripp
Virginia Gies
Sari & Ron Goldenberg
Jane & Tom Gorman
Betty & Joe Gray
Mary Gray
Rob Gray
Vern & Elfrieda Heinrichs
Peter & Verity Hobbs
Glenn Hodgins & Ann Monoyios
Kathy & Harry Howie
Kathy & John Irvin
Daniell Lambert
Michael & Vivian Lee
Peter Levitt
Ilana Lucas
Ted and Shirley Madden
Paul Marshall
Maureen McRae
Don Melady
Avalon Neale

Carole & Edward Nelles
Edward Oikawa
Anne Parks
Marny Pearsall
Janet Reid
Frank Samuels
Debbie Scoffield
Chris & Barbara Smelt
Carol & John Stairs
Kate Tapp Mock & Edward Mock
Bonnie Tepperman
Heather Walton
Laurie Weishuhn
Eleanor White
Barbara Whitney
Julie & Colin Winn
Kathryn Winning
Blake Woodside
Kevin Yung
Helen Ziegler

Friends of Amadeus ($50+)
Barbara Adams
Margaret Allan
Gerald Andrews
Jan Andrews
Anna Athanasiadis
Leslie Atkinson
David Barlow
Barbara Bees
John Bell
Susannah Belton
Heather Lynn Benson
Ben Bondy
Jay Bondy
Marc Bondy
Rosaire Bondy
Isabel Brown
Gwyneth Buck
Allison Cairns
Barbara Cantlie
Brian Care
Diane Carty
Sonia Chater
Victor Chen
Vincenta L Cheng

Diana Choi
Jan Crowley
Ruhuni de Alwis
Maria del Junco
Patricia Davies
Anne & Mike Delaney
Elizabeth Doble
Karen Earls
Richard Earls
Shane Ellis
Steven Elphick
Denise Fam
Linda Fetter
Mary Freedman
Mary Pat Frey
Candy Fung
Sandra Gordon
Jeanne Graham
Susan Gunton
Joseph Guss
Enid Hardacre
Jane Haskins
Margaret Heyland
Laura Hope
Fredrick Howe
Jayne Howell
Richard Humphrey
Jessie Iseler
Cyndie Jacobs
John Jacobs
Carla Joyce
Carolyn Kernohan
Annemarie Klein
Siobhan Knowles
Ulla Knowles
Marg Lee
Mary M Lee
Robin Lisi
Margareth Lobo Gault
Eda Loo
Kelly Lyons
Linda McIlwaine
Janet MacKeracher
Barbara McLeod
Peter & Jennifer McGillivray

Maggie McGoey
Denise Meloche
Ulrich Menzefricke
Jeffrey Milgram
Mahira Mohtashami
Talia Motsenyat
LJ Nagel
Anne Orunuk
Paula Owolabi
Catherine Patterson
Mark Peacock
Crystal Peters
Jon F. Phillips
Catherine Ross
Angus Ross
Jean Francois Roy
Suzanne Schwenger
Mary-Deanne Shears
John Sims
Sharon Smith-Miller
Muriel Smyth
Michael Stainton
Lincoln Stein
Hedy Steinberg
Eileen Sturgeoff
Alex Szucs
Mary Thomas Nagel
Allan Titus
Caitlin Tom
Tina Torlone
Sheila Towgood
Joel Troster
Adria Trowhill
Sina Truong
Helen M Vander Hoeven
April Voth
Katherine Wan
Tom & Esther Welsh
Robert Wells
Nathalie Winfield-Hicks
Joanne Wolfson
Kathleen Wooder
Sue Woodland
Michael Young

Kathleen Allan

Artistic Director

Kathleen Allan is the Artistic and Executive Director of the Amadeus Choir of Greater Toronto and a member of the music faculty at the University of Toronto. In high demand as a guest conductor, commissioned composer, and clinician, she is equally comfortable working in early, contemporary, and symphonic repertoire.

Since the beginning of her tenure with the Amadeus Choir in 2019, the Choir has commissioned over a dozen new works, founded the Choral Creation Lab for emerging composers and poets, and formed new partnerships with diverse artists and ensembles throughout the GTA and beyond.

From 2016-2023, she served as the Artistic Director of Canzona, Winnipeg’s professional Baroque choir, with whom she conducted many of the masterworks of the Baroque era. A devoted interpreter of early music and steeped in the practice of historically-informed performance, she is passionate about finding relevant contemporary context for the works of the past and sharing their universal power with broad audiences. Recent guest conducting engagements include the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Victoria Symphony, Regina Symphony Orchestra, Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra, Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, and Early Music Vancouver. In 2015, Ms. Allan made her Asian debut conducting Handel’s Messiah and Bach’s Christmas Oratorio in Japan, and in 2016, she was the recipient of the Sir Ernest MacMillan Prize in Choral Conducting.

Her compositions have been commissioned, performed and recorded by ensembles throughout the Americas and Europe and have been featured at two World Symposiums on Choral Music. Her music is published by Boosey and Hawkes, Oxford University Press, and Cypress Choral Music, and she is a MusicSpoke composer. Inspired by her Celtic roots and musical upbringing in Newfoundland and Labrador, her compositions often fuse contemporary rhythms and harmonies with undertones of ancient folk music. Also an accomplished soprano, she has appeared as a soloist with the National Broadcast Orchestra, Berkshire Choral Festival, and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. In addition to freelancing regularly in Canada and the US, she has performed as a member of the Vancouver Chamber Choir, the Arnold Schoenberg Chor (Vienna), Skylark Vocal Ensemble (Atlanta), Clarion Choir (New York), and the Yale Schola Cantorum (New Haven).

As a passionate educator, she has served as Visiting Professor of Conducting at Western University (2019-2021) and now teaches conducting to undergraduate and graduate students and leads the Soprano Alto Chorus at the University of Toronto. She holds a degree in composition from the University of British Columbia and a master’s degree in conducting from Yale University.

Jonathan Oldengarm, Organ

Hailed for his “unalloyed musicality”, organist, harpsichordist, conductor, chamber musician and arranger Jonathan Oldengarm loves to colour outside the lines. Passionate about repertoire from the 16th to 21st centuries, he is equally at home as a soloist and ensemble player. 

His recording credits include discs on the ATMA Classique, Klanglogo and Analekta labels with Les Petits Chanteurs du Mont-Royal; saxophonist Claudia Tesorino; the Ottawa Bach Choir (Lisette Canton, director); the A&P Choir (Jean-Sébastien Vallée, conductor); the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, and Buzz Brass. Recent performance collaborations include the Leipzig Bach Festival, the Bachkirche Arnstadt, the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, Ottawa’s Pro Organo series, Hammer Baroque, the 2023 RCCO National Conventions, KW Symphony Brass Quintet, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Trinity Bach Project, the Elora Festival, the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, Gallery Players, North Winds Concerts and Cappella Intima. 

An enthusiastic teacher, Jonathan has made a specialty teaching keyboard harmony, improvisation, continuo, score reading, accompanying at the organ, hymn playing–in short, the professional keyboard artist’s essential skills that are traditionally given short shrift in most players’ training. In addition to private studio teaching, Jonathan is an adjunct music faculty member at the University of Toronto. 

Since 2022 Jonathan has been Minister of Music and Organist at Metropolitan United Church in Toronto, home to multiple ensembles and a treasury of instruments that include Canada’s largest pipe organ and Canada’s oldest tuned carillon. Under his leadership the Metropolitan Festival Choir has recently performed Bach’s Markus Passion (Koolstra reconstruction), Schütz’s Musikalische Exequien, Handel’s Brockes Passion, Brahms Ein deutsches Requiem and other masterworks. 

He holds degrees in organ and harpsichord performance from Wilfrid Laurier and McGill Universities; the Fellowship diploma of the Royal Canadian College of Organists; and studied at the Hochschule für Musik in Stuttgart. Principal organ teachers included Douglas Haas, Barrie Cabena, and Ludger Lohmann. Germany. From 2008 until 2022 he taught organ, harpsichord, keyboard skills, and liturgical improvisation at the Schulich School of Music of McGill University, while serving  as Director of Music and Organist at the Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul, Montreal.

Jesse Blumberg, Baritone

Baritone Jesse Blumberg enjoys a busy schedule of opera, concerts, and recitals, performing repertoire from the Renaissance and Baroque to the 20th and 21st centuries. He has performed featured roles at Minnesota Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, Atlanta Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Boston Early Music Festival, Opera Atelier, and at Château de Versailles Spectacles and London’s Royal Festival Hall. 

Jesse has sung major concert works with Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, American Bach Soloists, Boston Baroque, Carmel Bach Festival, Apollo’s Fire, Oratorio Society of New York, The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and on Lincoln Center’s American Songbook series.  He has been increasingly active on concert stages in Canada for the last several years, appearing with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Symphony Nova Scotia, Early Music Vancouver, Arion Baroque, Grand Philharmonic Choir, and at the Montréal Baroque Festival.

He has been featured on nearly thirty commercial recordings, including the 2015 Grammy-winning and 2019 Grammy-nominated Charpentier Chamber Operas with Boston Early Music Festival.  

Jesse received undergraduate degrees in History and Music from the University of Michigan and a Master of Music degree from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, before participating in young artist programs at Santa Fe Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, the Ravinia Festival, and Chicago Opera Theater. 

A passionate advocate for chamber music in its myriad forms, in 2007 Jesse co-founded Five Boroughs Music Festival in New York City and for twelve years served as its Artistic Director. In 2021 and 2022 he stepped into a Visiting Faculty position at The Cleveland Institute of Music, and continues to enjoy private teaching as well as the occasional masterclass and guest coaching engagement. Starting in Fall 2023, Jesse will be based in both Toronto and NYC, enthusiastically making musical connections across North America and beyond.

Alex Hetherington, Mezzo Soprano

Alex Hetherington

Mezzo Soprano

Recently named one of CBC’s “30 Hot Classical Musicians under 30”, mezzo-soprano Alex Hetherington is rapidly solidifying her position as a versatile interpreter of operatic and concert repertoire. Having recently completed her tenure in the Canadian Opera Company’s Ensemble Studio, Alex has already graced major stages across her home country of Canada. In the 2024-25 season, Alex will portray Siebel in a new production of Faust at the Canadian Opera Company and make her company debut with Vancouver Opera as the Stewardess in Flight. She will also perform as the alto soloist in Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with both Ottawa Chamberfest and the Mandle Philharmonic, and join Chorus Niagara for Handel’s Messiah.

During the 2023-24 season, Alex performed as Lapák in The Cunning Little Vixen, covered the role of Zerlina in Don Giovanni, and appeared as the Second Handmaiden in Cherubini’s Medea with the Canadian Opera Company (COC). She also returned to Tapestry Opera, where she performed as the House (mezzo-soprano) in Rocking Horse Winner and participated in the company’s Box Concert series. At the Banff Centre for Arts, Alex sang the role of Offred in a new arrangement of Poul Ruders’ The Handmaid’s Tale.

In 2022-23, Alex made her Canadian Opera Company debut as Mercédès in Carmen, and later returned to the Four Seasons stage as the Slave in the COC’s production of Salome. Additionally, she covered Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro and Suli in the world premiere of Kye Marshall and Amanda Hale’s Pomegranate with the company. Highly skilled in the realm of new music, Alex premiered the role of [Riley] in Nicole Lizée’ and Nicholas Billon’s R.U.R. A Torrent of Light at Tapestry Opera, for which she won a 2022 Dora Mavor Moore Award. Further operatic credits include Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia, Carmen in La tragédie de Carmen (UofT Opera), and Nicklausse in Les Contes d’Hoffmann (Toronto City Opera).

On the concert stage, Alex made her National Arts Center Orchestra debut in 2022 as the alto soloist in Mozart’s Requiem under the baton of Bernard Labadie. This marked the beginning of a series of collaborations with the orchestra, including notable performances of Ana Sokolović’s Golden Slumbers Kiss Your Eyes and the premiere of Cecilia Livingston’s orchestral arrangements of lieder selections by Clara Schumann, led by Maestro Alexander Shelley. Other recent concert highlights include performing Ian Cusson’s Songs from the House of Death with the Victoria Symphony under the baton of Christian Kluxen, and Peter Lieberson’s Neruda Songs with the University of Toronto Symphony Orchestra. A consummate recitalist, she has curated programs for the Toronto Summer Music Festival and the Norcop Art Song Recital at the University of Toronto.
 
Alex has garnered notable accolades in the last few years, securing the 3rd Prize in the Christina and Louis Quilico Awards, being named a finalist in the Concours Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, and receiving an encouragement award from the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition. She holds a Bachelor’s in Voice Performance and a Master’s in Opera Performance from the University of Toronto, where she was recognized with the Jim and Charlotte Norcop Award in Art Song and named the winner of the UTSO Concerto Competition. Throughout her studies, Alex conducted a research- creation project exploring art song performance practice through the lens of modern gender theory. In her spare time, Alex can be found reading, gardening, and doting on dogs (primarily, but not exclusively, her family’s sweet pup, Max).

Ryan Talebi, Boy Soprano

Ryan began his musical journey at the age of 3, joining the Royal Conservatory of Music. He started with the violin and later added viola to his musical path. He joined choir at the age of 4. From the very beginning, music has been a big part of his life. He especially loves playing his instruments, singing in ensembles, and exploring conducting. In 2022, he joined the Toronto Children’s Chorus, a place that quickly became another musical home for him and a space where he continues to grow as a young artist. Outside of music, Ryan enjoys playing tennis, being active, and spending time with his friends. Whether he’s performing on stage or having fun on the playground, Ryan brings joy, energy, and creativity to everything he does.

Amahl Arulanandam, Cello

With tastes ranging from baroque music to death metal, Toronto-based cellist Amahl Arulanandam is known for his musical versatility and ability to adapt to many different genres. Feeling at home in studios, small clubs and large concert-halls, Amahl hopes to convey that musical expression is beyond genres and labels.

In the “classical” realm of Toronto, Amahl is quickly becoming known as a strong advocate for the music of our time, performing with ensembles such as Soundstreams, New Music Concerts, Tapestry Opera, FAWN Chamber Creative, Thin Edge New Music Collective, Art of Time Ensemble, Freesound Collective and Music in the Barns, as well as regular appearances at the 21C Music Festival. In his time with these ensembles, he has had the opportunity to work closely with leading composers such as Salvatore Sciarrino, Ana Sokolovic, Luna Pearl Woolf, Bekah Simms and Brian Current and has been involved in the Toronto, Canadian and World premieres of dozens of new works.

As a soloist and chamber musician, Amahl has presented several recitals and performed alongside artists such as David Geringas, Robert Aitken, Steven Dann, Angela Cheng, and Jeffrey Beecher. He toured the US with Matt Haimovitz’ all-cello ensemble, Uccello and was a featured artist at the Salzburg Chamber Music Festival and Ottawa Chamberfest. Amahl is a co-founder of VC2 Cello Duo alongside friend and colleague, Bryan Holt, who released their second album, I and Thou, featuring newly commissioned and never-recorded Canadian cello music, in February 2023.

Outside of classical music, Amahl has performed and recorded with many incredible artists including Allison Au, Laila Biali, Jherek Bischoff, Aline Homzy, Adi Braun, Sarah Slean, Naomi McCaroll-Butler, Half Moon Run and Jann Arden. Recently Amahl recorded cello for Laila Biali’s Wintersongs, Allison Au’s Migrations Suite album and Bekah Simms’ Foreverdark.

Upcoming engagements include VC2 Cello Duo performances in Barrie, Toronto (with Collectif9 for TO Live) and St. John’s, the Toronto premiere of Du Yun’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Opera Angel’s Bone and the world premiere of a new double-sextet by Nicole Lizée. 

Amahl Arulanandam is a member of The Oscar Peterson School of Music faculty, at The Royal Conservatory of Music, teaching private cello lessons. He also teaches cello in the Oscar Peterson Program, founded in 2022.

Yang Chen, Percussion

Yang (they/them) is a versatile percussionist with many side-hustles who prioritizes collaboration, personal growth, and joy. Yang is a grateful nexus of playful curiosity, cross disciplinary yearning, classical training, and loving relationships. All of which influence process & product within their work. Recent highlights include the release of two albums: longing for _ their debut percussion+friends album and Tiger Balme their band’s self titled debut album.

Zane Mallett, Harp

Zane Mallett is a freelance harpist currently based in Toronto. He was appointed principal harpist of the Baton Rouge Symphony in the fall of 2022 and performed Handel’s Harp Concerto as a soloist during their 2023 season. In 2025, he was named a winner of the Corcoran Concerto Competition and will perform Ginastera’s Harp Concerto with the Royal Conservatory Orchestra in November.

As an orchestral harpist, Zane has appeared as a guest with the Rochester, Buffalo, Charlotte, Winnipeg, Thunder Bay, and Niagara symphonies, as well as the Canadian Opera Company. He has spent summers at the Aspen, Spoleto (USA), Atlantic, Texas, Pierre Monteux, Round Top, and Eastern music festivals.

At the age of sixteen, Zane began his harp studies in Dallas, Texas. He holds degrees in Harp Performance from Southern Methodist University, Rice University, and the Royal Conservatory of Music. He is deeply grateful to his mentors Naoko Nakamura, Paula Page, and Judy Loman.

Simmie Patoka

Composer

Simmie non-binary soprano who is looking to change the narrative by creating art that questions life and power. Simmie encourages audiences to not be afraid of being uncomfortable, because that is when the best learning happens. Their “why” is because they have something to say. Simmie sees how the world can be improved for all people to live equitably, and they stand strong in these beliefs. Equity amongst people, kindness and compassion, learning from those we don’t understand and fighting for those who cannot fight for themselves. The best way they know how to evoke change is with music. They know this is possible because music has changed them. It has changed their opinions, views, the way they see the world. It is the best way they know to change the world around me. A “why” is subject to change and already has many times, but Simmie has found the importance of their “why” right now.

Kai Leung

Composer

Kai Leung holds a Bachelor of Music from the University of Toronto, where he studied voice and composition. He is the Artistic Director of MSC Choirs, where he conducts Concreamus, Sehnsucht, and Frisson. He also serves as the Associate Conductor with the Orpheus Choir of Toronto, the Assistant Conductor with the Toronto Youth Choir and TCC’s Coro, and as the Assistant Conductor and Composer in Residence at St. Clements Church. Kai sings baritone with the TMSingers and the Schola Cantorum of St. Basil’s Catholic Church. Kai is also the conductor and choir manager of the Toronto Festival Singers, the professional synagogue choir at the Song Shul.

Kai is the 2020 recipient of the prestigious William and Phyllis Waters Graduating Award from the University of Toronto Faculty of Music. This award is presented each year to one graduating student from any stream who is deemed to have the greatest potential to make an important contribution to the field of Music. Kai has also been awarded the 2019 Arthur Plettner Scholarship, the 2019 Richard I Thorman Award, and the 2018 Lloyd Bradshaw Prize.

During his undergraduate years, Kai studied composition with Roger Bergs. His works have been performed by the Vancouver Chamber Choir, Resonance Youth Choir, Jokolo, Mississauga Tranzzit, Concreamus Chamber Choir, the Vancouver Youth Choir, the Mississauga Summer Chorale, the Oakville choir for Children and Youth, and the Orpheus Choir of Toronto.

Kai also works as an audio engineer and video editor. He enjoys using his multi-disciplinary skills to find creative intersections between musical creation, the choral arts, teaching, and technology. Over the past three years, he assisted 20 choral organizations in creating 180+ projects for digital dissemination.

Steven Lambke

Poet

Steven Lambke is a writer of songs and poems. He has been described by Leanne Betasamosake Simpson as “a working musician – that is, someone who is embedded in, responsible to, and who holds space for a community of artists that create against the odds of the music industry, without contracts, awards, and acolytes.” His most recent album Volcano Volcano was saluted by Pitchfork as “a battle cry for romantic radicals.”

Steven Lambke is also a member of the Constantines: young hearts be free tonight. He sings in the punk band Spider Bite and will see you in the (mosh) pit. In 2009, Steven Lambke and Daniel Romano co-founded the independent record label You’ve Changed Records. From 2017-2021 was the Creative Director of Sappyfest in Sackville, NB.

Steven Lambke lives in Toronto, ON or Sackville, NB depending on the season.

Emily Hiemstra

Composer

Emily Hiemstra (b.1991) is a real life viola mom. She is a violist, composer and mom to three boys under 5.

A JUNO nominated composer with music that has been deemed “superb” and “extremely resonant” (George Elliott Clarke, Canadian Poet Laureate), she has had her music performed at festivals throughout the UK, USA and Canada. Such festivals include the Impulse New Music Festival (Los Angeles, USA) and the Kirby Laing Centre for Public Theology (Cambridge, UK). Her orchestral and operatic background as a performer has deepened her understanding of colour and texture which she readily applies in her compositions to create clear and innovative works. Her desire is to create relevant and engaging music for the next generation and future generations to come.

A dedicated community member, Emily creates opportunities for new music such as the New Works for Solo Viola Project. She also strives to bring new music to a wider community through the In The Shadow of Your Wings concert series and performing family-friendly chamber concerts around the GTA. She also on the board of the Association of Canadian Women Composers as the Outreach & Publicity Officer.

As a violist she has been heard on CBC Radio’s About Time with Tom Allen (2022), performed at festivals around the world including Banff Centre for the Arts (Banff, CAN) and the German-Scandinavian Youth Orchestra (Berlin, GER). She performed the Stamitz Viola Concerto with the Charis Collective in 2017, and has played with ensembles such as the Canadian Opera Company and the Magisterra Soloists.

You can find her playing concerts around London, ON or writing music when her boys are napping.

Adebe DeRango-Adem

Poet

Adebe DeRango-Adem is a writer and former attendee of the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics (Naropa University), where she mentored with poets Anne Waldman and Amiri Baraka. She is the author of three previous full-length poetry books to date: Ex Nihilo, a finalist for the Dylan Thomas Prize; Terra Incognita, nominated for the Pat Lowther Memorial Award; and The Unmooring. A poem from The Unmooring was featured in the 2019 Poem-In-Your-Pocket anthology, co-created by the League of Canadian Poets and the Academy of American Poets. Adebe served as the 2019-20 Barbara Smith Writer-in-Residence with Twelve Literary Arts (Cleveland, Ohio) and was selected by Sonia Sanchez as the winner of the 2021 Boston Review Annual Poetry Contest. She lives in Toronto.

Gavin Barrett

Poet

Poet Gavin Barrett is the author of Understan (Mawenzi House, 2020), a CBC Books recommendation. He has been published in Joao Roque Literary Journal, The Beacon, Fresh Voices, Ranjit Hoskoté’s anthology of 14 contemporary Indian poets, Reasons for Belonging (Viking Penguin, India); The Pen India Journal; The Folio; The Independent; The Toronto Review of Contemporary Writing Abroad; and Bombay Poetry Circle’s Poeisis and I to I. He curates the Tartan Turban Secret Readings, which promote IBPOC writers, serves on the Canadian Authors Association (Toronto) Advisory Board and is Board Chair for the immigrant journalism non-profit New Canadian Media. He is also a creative entrepreneur. He is the founder of Barrett and Welsh, a Toronto agency that uses branding and advertising to create inclusion and access for racialized Canadians and persons with disabilities.

Kathleen Allan

Artistic Director and Workshop Coordinator

The Amadeus Choir’s Artistic Director, Kathleen Allan, is equally recognized for her work as a conductor and a composer. Her compositions have been commissioned, performed and recorded by ensembles throughout the Americas and Europe and have been performed at two World Symposiums on Choral Music. From Carnegie Hall, Massey Hall, and Canada’s National Arts Centre, to concert halls in Helsinki, Vienna, Buenos Aires, New York, St. John’s, and Los Angeles, Ms. Allan’s compositions receive dozens of performances annually. Her work is published by Boosey & Hawkes (New York), Cypress Choral Music (Vancouver), and she is a member composer of MusicSpoke.com (Kansas City).

As a conductor and soprano, Ms. Allan is a strong proponent of new music. She has commissioned over 15 works for choir and has premiered over two dozen works for solo voice. As co-artistic director of Arkora, a 16-piece electric vocal chamber consort dedicated to blurring lines between the music of our time and masterworks from the ancient repertoire, she works regularly with composers and multi-disciplinary artists.

In addition to her roles with the Amadeus Choir and Arkora, Ms. Allan is the Artistic Director of Canzona, Winnipeg’s professional Baroque choir, and a Visiting Professor of Choral Music at Western University. She holds a bachelor’s degree in composition from the University of British Columbia and a master’s degree in conducting from Yale University.

Luke Hathaway Poet

Luke Hathaway

Poet Mentor

Luke Hathaway is a poet, librettist/lyricist, and performer, who makes his home in Kjipuktuk/Halifax. He collaborates with artists and ensembles near and far in the work of collective storytelling, bringing mythopoeic word-worlds to page, screen, and stage. He is particularly passionate about telling the trans and queer stories that are close to his heart. His book The Affirmations: poems was recognized in The Times, London, as a best book of 2022.

Notable musical collaborations include The Temple (with Daniel Cabena/ANIMA, Spiritus Ensemble, and composer Zachary Wadsworth); Years, Months, and Days (with Inter Arts Matrix / Menno Singers and composer Colin Labadie); and The Sign of Jonas (with Arkora and composer Benton Roark).

Luke Hathaway also works in opera and music-theatre creation: current projects include the collaborative work Eurydice Fragments (with re:naissance opera) and a new work of music-theatre, Caeneus (with ANIMA and composer James Rolfe).

Luke Hathaway has worked with the Choral Creation Lab as an artist-mentor since the lab’s founding season in 2020. He loves experiencing the magic that happens — new every time — when a poet, a composer, and a choir come together to create.

Andrew Balfour

Composer Mentor

Of Cree descent, Winnipeg composer Andrew Balfour is an innovative composer, conductor, singer, and sound designer with a large body of choral, instrumental, electro-acoustic and orchestral works including Take the Indian (a vocal reflection on missing children), Empire Étrange: The Death of Louis Riel, Bawajigaywin (Vision Quest) and Manitou Sky, an orchestral tone poem. His new Indigenous opera, Mishaboozʼs Realm, was commissioned by LʼAtelier Lyrique de l’Opéra de Montréal and Highlands Opera Workshop.

Andrew is also the founder and Artistic Director of the vocal group Camerata Nova, now in its 22nd year of offering a concert series in Winnipeg. Andrew has become increasingly passionate about music education and outreach, particularly on northern reserves and in inner-city Winnipeg schools where he has worked on behalf of the National Arts Centre, Camerata Nova, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and various Winnipeg school divisions.

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Jennifer Petrilli

Jennifer Petrilli

Director of Marketing and Communications

Jennifer Petrilli is grateful to have a career that spans more than 20 years working in a sector that she loves – the arts! She is passionate about helping arts organisations of all shapes and sizes thrive by attracting more audience members with solid marketing strategies, increasing budgets through grant writing and targeted fundraising, and making things run smoothly with adept project management.

After receiving her degree in Journalism, Jennifer began her career with ten years at The Royal Conservatory of Music culminating in the role of Marketing Manager for The Learning Through the Arts division. Since then, Jennifer has gone on to lead marketing and communications strategies with a variety of performing arts and arts education organisations, specialising in e-newsletter creation and a variety of other digital marketing platforms.

Jennifer loves working with the dynamic team at the Amadeus Choir and is blown away by their dedicated and skilled group of volunteers, the inspired artistic leadership, and the ambitious and fun projects she has worked on. She is also a lifelong performer and has sung in choirs, rock bands, bossa nova trios and community theatre productions.

Joy Lee

Collaborative Pianist

Dr. Joy Lee is an accomplished Canadian pianist celebrated for her vibrant and multifaceted career as a collaborative pianist, teacher, vocal coach, soloist, and adjudicator. Driven by her deep passion for music and education, she has graced prestigious stages and events, including performances at the Canadian Embassy and Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., during President Barack Obama’s inauguration celebration, the Banff Centre for the Arts, and various locations across Canada’s Northwest Territories, including Inuvik and Yellowknife.

Dr. Lee holds a Bachelor of Music and Master of Music in Solo Piano from the University of Toronto, where she studied under the celebrated pedagogue Marietta Orlov. Her love for vocal music and its rich repertoire inspired her transition to collaborative piano. This led her to pursue a second Master of Music in Collaborative Piano Studies with one of North America’s pre-eminent collaborative pianists, Martin Katz, at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and later earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Toronto.

Currently a Lecturer in Music and Worship Arts at Tyndale University, Dr. Lee is devoted to mentoring and inspiring the next generation of musicians. Her expertise makes her a sought-after adjudicator, having served at competitions such as the Arcadia Academy of Music, OMFA Provincial Finals, Sudbury Music Festival, and the Toronto Kiwanis Festival. In 2025, she will join adjudication panels for the Peel Music Festival and the ORMTA Eastern Zone competition.

Dr. Lee’s artistry has been recognized with numerous accolades, including second prize at the 2017 Eckhardt-Gramatté National Music Competition and the 2018 Gwendolyn Williams Koldofsky Prize for excellence in collaboration. In April 2023, she made her Carnegie Hall debut as part of the Canada at Carnegie concert series. Later that year, she and soprano Stéphanie McKay-Turgeon performed works by French composer Henri Dutilleux at Maison Dutilleux-Joy in Candes-Saint-Martin, France.

A passionate and dedicated collaborator, Dr. Lee has served as a faculty member for the University of Toronto Choral Conducting Symposium in 2022 and 2023. She currently works with the Amadeus Choir of Greater Toronto, the MacMillan Singers at the University of Toronto, and the Tyndale Community Choir. Additionally, she serves on the Board of Directors for the North Toronto Songbirds, demonstrating her unwavering commitment to fostering community engagement and celebrating the arts.

Nila Rajagopal

Associate Conductor

An experienced conductor and educator, Nila Rajagopal is passionate about bringing people together through music. She is delighted to join the Amadeus Choir’s artistic team as Associate Conductor! Nila’s collaborative spirit has granted her various positions within the choral world. Highly sought after for her choral expertise, she was recently appointed Conductor of Training Choir II for the Toronto Children’s Chorus and spends the summer months working with the Mississauga Summer Chorale as Associate Conductor. She has previously held positions with the St. Lawrence Choir in Montreal and the Oakville Choir for Children and Youth. Increasingly recognized for her promising musical excellence, Nila was the recipient of the 2016 Doreen Rao Choral Award, the 2019 Iwan Edwards Award, the 2019 Ken Fleet Choral Conducting Scholarship and most recently, the 2020 Helen Hall Prize.

A passionate lifelong learner, Nila holds a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from McGill University, where she studied under the tutelage of Dr. Jean-Sébastien Vallée. She previously earned a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Toronto, where she studied voice with internationally renowned soprano Nathalie Paulin, and choral conducting with Dr. Hilary Apfelstadt, Dr. Lori-Anne Dolloff and Zimfira Poloz. Committed to the future of choral music in Canada, Nila is also Office Coordinator at Choral Canada, Canada’s National Arts Service Organization for choral music.

Tristan Zaba

Bass

Tristan Zaba started as bass section lead with the Amadeus Choir in 2022 and is delighted to be returning again this coming season. He works professionally in a wide variety of musical capacities including as a singer, composer, production worker, multi-instrumentalist, and curator. Some of the most notable recent developments in Tristan’s career have included his beginning a music PhD at York University in 2022 and his co-founding of new vocal music concert series Slow Rise Music alongside McKenzie Warriner in 2021. A favourite Amadeus memory of Zaba’s is his first concert with the choir singing Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells at Metropolitan United.

Michael Sawarna

Michael Sawarna

Bass

Michael originates from Kemptville, Ontario a small town south of Ottawa. Now living in Toronto he is a Tenor Section Lead for the Amadeus Choir and St. Andrew’s United Church Choir. He is studying voice with Catherine Robbin at York University. In his spare time Michael hopes to become as good a hockey player as now-retired tenor Ed Wiens.

Allen Mahabir

Tenor

Allen has been in the Amadeus Choir for the past two years, the first as a volunteer chorister and most recently as one of the tenor leads. During his free time, Allen fully immerses himself in comedy TV, NHL statistics and studying pop music from the 1950s onwards. As a professional songwriter, he regularly releases his music for various media while contributing to local musical projects as a session instrumentalist. He recalls the Tubular Bells performance as his favourite Amadeus memory–heart-melting chords mixed with spooky costumes!

Eric Mackeracher

Eric MacKeracher

Tenor

Eric MacKeracher has been the Music Director at Kingston Road United Church (located in the Beaches area of Toronto) since September 2000. Eric is an active member in the Greater Toronto community providing private lessons and master classes to many. He sings tenor in both the Elmer Iseler Singers and the Amadeus Choir. Eric graduated from the Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto and continues his studies in both piano and voice.

Alison Roy

Alto

Alison Roy has been singing with Amadeus Choir since 2000!! Beyond singing, Alison also works as a Music Educator in Toronto. She loves hiking, being outdoors, travelling, and big dogs. Alison has many favourite moments in Amadeus Choir including both the Eastern and Western Canadian tours, singing Bach B-, and most recently the Nipiy’s Soundwalks in Edwards Gardens.

Rayna Crandlemire

Soprano

Rayna joined the Amadeus choir in 2022 as the soprano section lead and has loved being a member of the choir over the past year. As a recent graduate of the University of Toronto in Classical Voice Performance, she is currently working as a freelance artist in Toronto and has recently performed in the South African production Broken Chord presented by TO Live. Outside of choral music, she loves to enjoy music through dance, often attending salsa and bachata socials in the city. A favourite Amadeus memory of Rayna’s was performing Howard Shore’s Academy Award-winning score of Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring in collaboration with the FILMharmonic orchestra.

Nosferatu (1922)

Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror (German: Nosferatu – Eine Symphonie des Grauens) is a 1922 silent German Expressionist horror film about Count Orlok, a vampire who preys on the wife of his estate agent and brings the plague to their town.The film came to be regarded as an influential masterpiece of cinema and the horror genre.

Deantha Edmunds

Deantha Edmunds is Canada’s first Inuk professional classical singer. She was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada in December, 2023 for her activity as a performer, writer, composer, and mentor, work which seeks to empower Indigenous people and share their stories. She is currently based in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. Her work has international reverberation as well as community integrity. She brings a level of professional excellence to Canada’s Indigenous art scene that is unique and important.

Deantha has released three albums. The most recent, Connections, won the 2022 Music NL awards for Classical Album of the Year, and Indigenous Artist of the Year. Connections was also nominated for a 2023 East Coast Music Award. Her EP My Beautiful Home (2019) and full-length CD Pillorikput Inuit: Inuktitut Arias for All Seasons (2016) also garnered ECMA nominations.

Her contribution to the internationally-acclaimed Messiah/Complex with Against the Grain Theatre and Toronto Symphony Orchestra helped garner the production a 2022 JUNO nomination, and the project also won the first ever Opera America Digital Excellence Award in 2022.

Deantha performs as a soloist with professional ensembles across Canada and abroad.

Notable appearances include singing at the opening ceremony of the Frankfurt Book Fair in 2021, performing for His Holiness, Pope Francis in Iqaluit at the official apology to Inuit residential school survivors in 2022, and singing the Nunatsiavut anthem for King Charles III at the St. John’s welcome ceremony of the 2022 Canadian Royal Tour which focused on Reconciliation.

Creating original music, collaborating with other musicians, contributing to Indigenous productions, and mentoring young artists, Deantha shares her voice and vision with her whole heart, and is drawing accolades from across Canada and the world.

Andrew Downing

Andrew Downing is a double bassist, composer/arranger, bandleader and music educator living in Toronto, Canada. He composes and arranges music for his own groups as well as various chamber groups, world music groups, jazz groups and orchestras in Canada. His compositions have been played by a vast and varied array of musical groups such as The Vancouver Bach Choir, Jayme Stone (banjo), Ensemble Made in Canada (piano quartet), Ensemble Polaris (Nordic/classical folk group), Toronto Masque Theatre (‘new’ early music) and VC2 (cello duo). He has arranged music for the Art of Time Ensemble, Patricia O’Callaghan, The Queer Songbook Orchestra, The Gryphon Trio, John Southworth and world music ensemble Kuné. He was recently nominated for the Louis Applebaum Composition award through the Ontario Arts Council.

As a bandleader, he has recorded ten of his own albums, four of which been nominated for Juno Awards, two of which won.

He is currently teaching materials, ear training, improvisation, double bass, composition, and ensemble classes at the University of Toronto.

Nîpîy's Songwalks

Our season finale is a project that has been years in the making: the premiere of a new major work about Indigenous water sovereignty from Cree cellist and composer Cris Derksen, preceded by an immersive outdoor prelude performance. 

Nipiy's SongWalks