Volume 8 Issue 8 - May 2003

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ehearses there on Wednesday evenings 7:15 to 9:30 pm. Concerts next season will be sung at Grace Church on-the-Hill in November, December, March, and May. Auditions are held annually in May and again in September. E-mail Melva Treffinger Graham at grace music2@rogers.com or phone 416-488-7884 ext. 1 7 for information or an audition time. ~ THE TORONTO CHORAL SOCIETY COMMUNITY CHOIR is an inclusive, non-auditioned · choral group dedicated to enhancing· the Toronto community by provi(iing an opportunity for enthusiastic choristers to serve Torohtonians with performances of local history and tradition. Proud of our diversity, our eighty-plus members represent a range of ethnicities, ages and musical experience. Individually, members wish to accomplish their peak musical abilities, and, as a team to produce an enjoyable experience for patrons. Led by the dynamic Geoffrey Butler, Artistic Director, and William O'Meara, Accompanist, this June we proudly present, "Songs of Toronto", a portrayal Toronto's history from the eyes of its newcomers of First Nations, French, British Isles, and Black ancestry, through narrative, dance, musical and choral performances. New members and patrons are always welcome. 416- 410-3509. ~ THE TORONTO CHORISTERS · is an SATB choir made up chiefly of retired employees of the former Toronto Board of Education. In existence for 11 years, we perform mainly in retirement and nursing homes, at school functions during the year. Rehearsals are on Thursdays at 1:00 pm at Wilkinson Public School; they begin in October and culminate with an annual concert in May. Repertoire is light and varied. There are no voice tests for singers; membership is held to around 100. Women wishing to join add their names to a waiting list; there is no restriction for men at the moment. The choir is conducted by Jim Maben and accompanied by Marg Deeth. Further information is available from Daphiny Stewart at 416-284-2647. ~ TORONTO CLASSICAL SINGERS www.tmchoir.org One of Toronto's most vibrant The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir choirs, the Toronto dassical Sing- family has three outstanding ers combines dedicated choristers, choirs: The Toronto Mendelssohn. great repertoire, and dynamic Choir, The Mendelssohn Singers leadership to bring season after and the Toronto Mendelssohn season of choral classics to Toron- Youth Choir. The TMC is Canada's to audiences. Under the baton of wor.ld-renowned large vocal en­ CBC's Jurgen Petrenko, this lively ' semble, maintaining a tradition, 100-voice choir performs with the since 1894, of performing and Talisker Players and Toronto's commissioning the finest choral most accomplished soloists. 'High- repertoire. The Choir is comprised lights of TCS's eleven seasons: of over 160 volunteer singers and Mozart's Requiem, Handel's M~ssi- the Elora Festival Singers, who ah, Haydn's Creation, masses by form its professional core. Under Beethoven and Schubert". Elgar's the direction of Noel Edison, the Coronation Ode, and opera and TMC presents its own series and Christmas classics. Each season appears frequently with the TSO. features three concerts at Christ Its repertoire stretches from early Church Deer Park, 1570 Yonge St Baroque to premieres of commisnear St. Clair. In 2003, the choir sioned works. Rehearsals are Monalso performs at Roy Thomson day evenings from. 7:00-9:30 pm Hall. Prospective members who and auditions are held in June and love music, can sight-read and September. ~ have fun should call TCS Hotline 416-443-1490; rehearsals are Mon- TORONTO MENDELSSOHN days 7:30 pm at CCDP, Sept-May. YOUTH CHOIR Ticket/member info: www.toronto classicalsingers.org ~ TORONTO JEWISH FC>I.K (HOIR Conductor: Alexander Veprinsky Accompanist: Lina Zemelman Phone: 416-489-7681 E-mail: .b.shek@utoronto.ca. Web: www.winchevskycenire.org/ choir.html Started 75 years ago by immigrant needle-trade workers, the 40- member SATB choir keeps its founding spirit alive, performing beloved Yiddish folk songs, exc~rpts from the classics ori Jewish themes, contemporary music by Jewish composers in Yiddish, Hebrew, Judeo-Spanish· (Ladino) an(i English, and music of other lands and cultures. Its annual spring concert features excellent guest artists (including .a klezmer band this year, at Lawrence Park Collegiate May 25). The choir also performs Chanukah and other concerts around Toronto, and takes part in the annual Warsaw Ghetto Uprising Commemoration. Rehearsals: Wednesdays, 7:30-10 pm at the Winchevsky Centre, 585 Cranbrooke Avenue. ~ TORONTO MENDE,LSSOHN CHOIR Artistic Director: Noel Edison General Manager: Steven W. Foste.r Accompanist: Chris Dawes 60 Simcoe Street, Toronto, ON M5J 2H5 Tel: 416-598-0422 Fax: 416-598-2992 E-mail: admin@tmchoir.org Conductor: Ron Cheung Accomponist: John Stephenson Tel: 416-598-0422 Fax: 416-598-2992 E-mail: tmyc@tmchoir.org www.tmchair.org The Toronto Mendelssohn Youth Choir was founded in 1977 to provide training and performance opportunities for young singers (15-23) from diverse racial and socio-economic backgrounds. Annually, the TMYC presents a subscrip.tion series of three concerts and also appears with the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir for at least one performance. In 1997,. the TMYC performed throughout Italy to rave reviews and in July of 1998, they joined the TMC at the National Arts Centre for the opening of Festival Canada. The Choir has also released a recording of seasonal music under the direction of composer/conductor John Rutter. Rehearsals are Tuesday evenings 7:00-9:30 pm and auditions are held throughout the year. ~ TORONTO UNITARIAN CHOIR Love to sing? Join this group of mixed voices to sing at Worship services once a montll. We feature a wide variety of music to reflect our diversity and our history, as one of the oldest religious communities in Toronto. Unitarians and their choirs celebrate all the. major festivals: Bread Communion (Thank~giving), Christmas, Fire Communion, Easter, Flower Communion,' Pride Day, and other special projects. Alan Gasser director, offers a special focus on the community and village singing traditions of North America and worldwide. Newcomers welcome. Rehearsals on Thursdays, 7:30-9, with snacks. 1" Unitarian Congregation, 175 St. dair Avenue West (near Avenue Rd.), 416-924-9654, music@firstunitariantoronto.org UNIVERSITY SETTLEMENT MUSIC AND ARTS SCHOOL COMMUNITY CHOIR This is a popular, non-auditioned 45 voice SATB choir for adults. We sing a wide range of music including classical, madrigals, folk songs from around the world, show tunes and more. This choir offers wonderful socializing. We rehearse once a week on Thursday nights from 7:30 to 9:30 from September to June at the University Settlement Recreatio.n Centre, 23 Grange Rd. Once a year, we do a joint workshop and concert with the St. Christopher House Choir. We also perform at hospitals, nursing homes and are regularly featured at Music and Arts School concerts and special events. Emphasis is on choral development and musical growth in a friendly and fun environment. For more information call 416-598- 3444 ext. 243/244. ~ UPPER CANADA CHILDREN'S C.HORUS (Brian Rawlins, musical director) is comprised of 150 ~ingers ranging in age from 6-17 years. UCC is committed to providing York Region with a world class children's chorus. The choral season includes several concerts, workshops, masterclasses, retreats and tours. UCC rehearses at Thornhill Presbyterian Church·(on Centre St. between Yonge and Bathurst). Rehearsals are either on Sunday afternoon or Monday evening depending on the age of the singer. Auditions are currently being scheduled for the 2003/2004 choral season. Call 416- 733-0615 for more information or email us at michellerawlins@ rogers.com ~ VESNIVKA CHOIR Artistic Director: Halyna Kvitka Kondracki 'Accompanist: Olya Tsinkevich Administrator: Nykola Parzei Choral Scene 14 www.thewholenote.com · May 1 - June 7·2003

78 Brule Gardens, Toronto, ON M6S 4J2 · Tel: 416-763-2197 E-mail: nykolo@vesnivko.com Web: ~ww.vesnivka.com Founding director Halynil Kvitka Kondracki established Vesnivka Choir in 1965. This award-winning 40-member women's ensemble has delighted audiences around. the world with its rich repertoire of Ukrainian liturgical, classical, contemporary and traditional folk music. The · choir's repertoire is often accompanied by professional soloists and a chamber ensemble of area musicians. There are three concerts per season, one of which is a Ukrainian Christmas Concert, as well as Christmas and ' Easter Liturgies. Rehearsals are Tuesday evenings 7:00 to 9:30 pm at 4 Bellwoods Ave., Toronto. The choir's new season commences September 2003. Contact the artistic director to arrange an audition. ~ VILLAGE VOICES Music Director, Joan Andrews Accompanist, Gerald Loo · Email: .villagevoices@sympatico.co Web: www3.sympatico.co/villogevoices Village Voices was founded in 1989 for our spring concert "A Musical Melange"on Saturday May 24th 2003, (see listing and ad). Tel. for membership: 905-4 77-1531 Tel. for tickets: 905-294-8687 ~ VIVA! YOUTH SINGERS OF TORONTO is a choir for children ages 5 - 18. Rehearsals are once a week, on Monday evenings, and take place at Trinity-St.Paul's, United Church (Bloor Street & Spadina Avenue). Carol Woodward Ratzlaff, (Founder, Music Director) holds a Masters of Music in vocal performance and is a vocal music teacher for the Toronto District School Board. VIVA! Choristers participate annually in the VIVA! Performing Arts Camp, VIVA!'s Christmas and spring concerts, The National Ballet of Canada's The Nutcracker, and VIVA!'s January Sing-along fundraiser. Auditions for the 2003 - 2004 Season, which begins in September, are being he!@ now through to the end of June. For more information, or to book an audition, please call 416- 788-VIVA (8482) or email us at vivayst@rogers.com ~ as a not-for-profit, mixed voice VOCALPOINT CHAMBER CHOIR community choir to provide fel- Artistic Director: Ion Grundy lowship for members (at present Administrative Director: Hugh Tracy 45) and achieve a high standard Tel: 416-484-0185 in choral music performance. E-Mail: vocalpoint_choir@lycos.com While maintaining a community Web: http://vocolpoint_choir.tripod.com outreach program and public con- Founded in 1997 by Musical' Dicerts at Christmas and in the ·rector Ian Grundy, Voca!Point has spring, the choir continues to ex- quickly established itself as one · pand its repertoire and artistic lev- Toronto's finest chamber choirs. el, often accompanied by profes- Since its inception, the Choir has sional soloists and/oi: musicians. reached the finals of each succes­ Rehearsals are held on Wednes- sive CBC Choral Competition and day evenings, 7:30 pm at Union- during this past season, perville Presbyterian Church, 600 Vil- formed at the Glenn Gould Studio ·1age Parkway, Markham. Join us for· live broadcast on CBC's Music .·1frit Youth Singers of Toronto JUNE ··AUDITIONS CHILDREN'S CHOIR excellent opportunities for Singers ages 5-19 National Ballet's 'Nutcracker', musicals, performing arts camp . 0-0/yr tuition BloC?r & Spadina location. to book your audition or find out more www.vivayouthsingers.com 416 788-8482 or vivayst@rogers.com Around Us. This year, the Choir has perform a varied repertoire (dasbeen invited back to Roy Thom- sical to pop, sacred and secular), son Hall as part of the noon-hour with an ever-growing memberconcert series for choir and organ. ship currently at 42. We welcome The Choir is auditioned annually. singers of all ages and skill levels and comprises both amateur and without auditions. One of our professional singers. Its focus is on mandates is to give voice, to other music from the 16th, 17th and 20th local soloists or instrumentalists at centuries with a degree of diffi- ' our concerts - always a crowd culty beyond the capabilities of pleaser! Vox Huronia performs most aµiateur and church choirs. three concerts each year - Decem­ To arrange an audition during ber, March and June. The Rutter May or June please contact Carol Requiem was performed in March. Grundy at 416-461-8301. ~ Our final, light-hearted concert entitle~ "Groove and Jive" will be VOICES Saturday, June 14, 7:30 pm at St. Voices, a 20-voice chamber choir Paul's United Church in Midland. under the artistic direction of Ron Ka Ming Cheung, is in its seventh full season this year. This dynamic Practices are Monday evenings (same locale). For further information, call Roger Priddle at 705- ensemble is continuing to uphold a reputation for excellence in cho: 533-2052. ~ ral music, having garnered sever- THE WILLIAM BYRD SINGERS al awards as well as numerous This 16-voice professional choir performance inVitations. was · founded in 2000 by conduc- Voices' programs feature a di- tor Peter Mahon. The repertoire verse repertoire from the 14'h cen- of the choir runs from plainsong tury though the 21" century, pre- to contemporary music, but consenting masterpieces by the great centrates on sacred music of the composers of the past, as well as Renaissance. Next season, the premiering original works by Ca- choir will present 2 concerts, in nadi