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Menno mosso: 60 years of singing

This afternoon in the sleepy, golden-leafed village of St. Jacob’s Ontario, Menno Singers presents the first concert in their anniversary season. This particular event will shine a spotlight on Abner Martin (my Dad) who founded this choir 60 years ago. In the early years of the choir’s formation, they sang renaissance polyphony. In those days it was common practice to sing Latin motets in English translation. (Even at St. Mary Magdalene’s the choral library is full of anglicized versions of the renaissance classics.) My Dad says one of the principal inspiration for him was in fact not recordings of choral music, but… Read More »Menno mosso: 60 years of singing

(Another) big weekend

I’ve almost recovered from an wonderful weekend in Victoria, seeing family and old friends, and hearing the premiere of “Alpha and Omega” sung beautifully by the cathedral choir, two skilled and very brave soloists, accompanied by three organists, including Michael Gormley. I felt as if a bit of history was unfolding before my eyes and ears – witnessing the installation of the first female Dean of Christ Church Cathedral. The stained glass artist Christopher Wallis was also present, and we visited his other windows at Government house, with a tour through the grand and entirely empty mansion after hours. After… Read More »(Another) big weekend

Henry and Hildegard

Today we’re hobnobbing with about 200 people, exploring the phenomenal medieval mystic, poet, musician, scientists, biologist and nun, Hildegard of Bingen. It’s an unusual venue for liturgical chant from the middle ages – we’ll be performing at the Revue Cinema, one of the last great neighbourhood theatres in Toronto. Schola Magdalena will sing some of Hildegard’s music, we’ll watch a new documentary on her life, and then afterwards, we’ll talk with some scholars who have been seriously engaged with analyzing her manuscripts and her life. Reading through Hildegard’s poetry this morning I am reminded of her boundless creativity and the freshness… Read More »Henry and Hildegard

Stephanie Martin

The season begins

The 2015-16 music season is about to unfold, and that means there are many musical events I’d like to tell you about. I’ve been updating the UPCOMING EVENTS page on this blog to give you all the highlights and some of the details of events coming up this Autumn and Christmas. I’ve got a new CD coming out this fall of my cantata Winter Nights which features other choral music that I’ve written in the past three years. You can grab a copy or two at concerts, or order it online. Schola Magdalena is busy singing unusual events – a… Read More »The season begins

Museum of Human Rights

Why Winnipeg?

Some have asked, “Why was the Royal Canadian College of Organists’ annual convention held in Winnipeg?” Winnipeg, an ancient meeting place at the intersection of two rivers, is richly layered with history and culture, boasting many fine organs, choirs and orchestral players who provided us with a thrilling week of workshops and concerts this July. The organizers of this year’s RCCO convention brilliantly linked our small musical fellowship with the wider urban community, connecting our festival with the world-class Museum of Human Rights, recently opened right around the corner from the Via Rail train station. The Museum is a thought-provoking… Read More »Why Winnipeg?

CCCathedral Victoria window

Through a glass, darkly

I’ve had a musical commission for Victoria Cathedral on the backburner for some time. It’s the third in a triptych of pieces, each inspired by a special work of art in the building. The first was a stone bird, the second was a dove in the baptistery. The subject of the third piece is the huge east window over the Chapel of the New Jerusalem. This truly awe-inspiring, luminous, engaging, modern work of art has captivated me for some 25 years. It pictures the majestic descent of a Utopian city in an explosion of colour and light, masterfully crafted by… Read More »Through a glass, darkly

Schola Magdalena’s new single

My girlfriends in Schola Magdalena are off to lovely Prince Edward County today to sing at a medieval reënactment at the Rose Museum.In celebration of our summer tours, we have released a “single” on CDBaby, soon to be also available through iTunes.Schola Magdalena is a 6-voice women’s ensemble, singing together for 8 years now,often touring our concerts around Ontario and Quebec,and doing workshops with choirs who want to sing chant, Hildegard, and medieval polyphony.We have two recordings, but after our last series of concerts,at St. George’s Cathedral in Kingston, St. Anne’s Church in Toronto,and our own home venue, St. Mary… Read More »Schola Magdalena’s new single

Remembering Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Commemorating a low point in human history is a tough call. Seventy years ago, we dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. On August 6 and 9 1945, over 100,000 people suffered horrific deaths. Surely part of our common humanity died as well, as we witnessed our dreadful potential to destroy ourselves and our planet. So, on August 6, 2015 we’re going to gather together in various places and remember this WW II event. In Toronto there is a well-organized event you can attend. Ron Korn will play flute, Taiko Drummers will drum, Raging Grannies will… Read More »Remembering Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Meeting Murray Schafer

We are working on Murray Schafer’s spectacular musical creation ‘Apocalypsis’, and the composer himself dropped by to observe our rehearsals this weekend. Everyone wanted to meet him. There are hundreds of people involved in the show, and everyone wants that brief brush with the great Canadian composer. When my turn came, I introduced Mr. Schafer to a young trumpet player in the show. Murray talked with Jair animatedly, for a long time, pouring over the full score and describing how, when he was young, he was not sure if he wanted to be an artist or a musician, so he… Read More »Meeting Murray Schafer

Lunchtime in the garden

A tiny, green humming bird hovers over bright red blossoms, unhindered by the white linen flapping on the line; uninhibited by my hungry, human presence, gobbling up the first fruits of my little garden patch, drinking in the long absent sunshine, sipping white wine, humming old tunes, passing the time. No distractions here; no phones ringing, no urgent tasks; only the intermittent whiz of white noise as cars pass by; only the unintelligible cadenza of Italian dialect from fervent neighbours planting basil, pulling weeds, pruning fruit trees, smoking cigarettes, chastening children, singing lullabies. My modest plot of green begs just… Read More »Lunchtime in the garden