Masterclasses and Workshops
The Fountain School is proud to be part of a vibrant arts community, with organizations that bring first-class artists to our region. Special thanks to Debut Atlantic, Cecilia Series, Neptune Theatre, The Music Room, Lunenburg Academy of Performing Arts (LAMP), and Symphony Nova Scotia for helping us provide guest artist oppportunities to our students this season.
We invite community and student auditors to attend workshops and masterclasses for FREE.
| FEBRUARY | |
| 27-28 | MALCOLM BALK - Alexander Workshops for Singers, Musicians and Actors Workshop for Strings: February 27, 4:30- 6:30 pm, Room 406 For over two decades, through his teaching of Alexander Technique, Malcolm has been helping musicians and runners around the world feel better and move in a comfortable and tension-free way. www.alexandertechmontreal.com |
| MARCH | |
| 6 | GLEN NOWELL - An Introduction to Vocal Pedagogy Glen Nowell is a singer, singing teacher, and voice therapist. He has studied voice both as a performer and a pedagogue. He has a BMus in voice (applied vocal performance) as well as a MSc in Communication Disorders and has worked as a voice therapist for 15 years, both in voice clinics (McMaster University Medical Centre in Hamilton, QEII in Halifax) and private practice (Voice Laboratory and Treatment Centre of Ontario Associates, Nowell Voice Centre). In addition to teaching voice privately for many years, Glen has lectured on voice from many angles (A&P, pedagogy, pathology, therapy, acoustics) at universities, conferences, and at the RCM in Toronto. He loves this stuff enough to make it fun! |
| 12 | KERSON LEONG - Violin Masterclass Acclaimed for his commanding stage presence, magnificent tone, and musical integrity, award-winning violinist Kerson Leong has been a soloist with the Oslo-Philharmonien, Wiener Kammer Orchester, Stavanger Symfoniorkester, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, l’Orchestre symphonique de Quebec, and the National Arts Centre Orchestra. He has also collaborated with many of the world’s top conductors. See him in concert with Symphony NS on March 12, 7:30 pm. kerson.leong.com |
| 13 | JOCELYN MORLOCK - Composition Masterclass Join us for a composition masterclass with artist Jocelyn Morlock, the winner of the 2018 JUNO for Classical Composition of the Year. Jocelyn completed a Bachelor of Music in piano performance at Brandon University and both a Master’s degree and a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the University of British Columbia. Much of her music is inspired by birds, insomnia, nature, fear, nocturnal wandering thoughts, lucid dreaming, or a peculiar combination thereof. Jocelyn’s JUNO-winning composition, My Name is Amanda Todd will be performed by Symphony Nova Scotia on Thursday, March 12 in the Rebecca Cohn Auditorium. |
| 16 | PAUL MERKELO - Brass Masterclass 11:30 am, Arts Centre 406 |
| 17 & 19 |
NORMAN LUDWIN - Orchestration Workshop Dr. Norman Ludwin is a leading scholar in the study of orchestration and film composition. He is an instructor in the UCLA Film Scoring Program and the Cornel School of Contemporary Music, among other places. He has been a member of the Florida Orchestra in St. Petersburg and the Natal Philharmonic in Durban, South Africa. Dr. Ludwin has worked as a double bass player on over 200 motion pictures and his compositions and arrangements have been performed by a variety of groups worldwide. He has written several books on orchestration. musicnewapproach.com |
| 27 | SHAWN WRIGHT - Negotiating a 35-year Career in Theatre Shawn has worked with some of the world's greatest writers in world premieres of their work: Robertson Davies’ World of Wonders (Stratford Shakespeare Festival); Timothy Findley’s Not Wanted on The Voyage (Canadian Stage); Terrence McNally’s Ragtime (original Broadway workshop cast with Joel Grey); and Academy Award winning A.R. Rahman’s Lord of the Rings (Mirvish Productions). Other highlights include: Jersey Boys (original Canadian cast), Mamma Mia (original American cast), Les Miserables, Stratford Shakespeare Festival (six seasons/ Guthrie Award), Shaw Festival (two seasons including the lead in Good News), and a slew of wonderful roles both tragic and comic, musical and non-musical. His play Ghost Light, a one-actor show which he wrote and performs in, is at Neptune Threate from March 17 to April 5. |
| 27 | BRETT POLEGATO - Masterclass for Singers Brett Polegato's artistic sensibility has earned him the highest praise from audiences and critics: “his is a serious and seductive voice” says The Globe and Mail, and The New York Times has praised him for his “burnished, well-focused voice” which he uses with “considerable intelligence and nuance.” One of today’s most sought-after lyric baritones on the operatic stage, Brett has made a name for himself in a number of dramatic roles, most notably the title roles in Don Giovanni and Eugene Onegin, which his has sung at the Canadian Opera Company, the New Israeli Opera, Grange Park Opera and Vancouver Opera. He appears regularly on the world's most distinguished stages including those of Lincoln Center, the Metropolitan Opera, the Opéra National de Paris, Roy Thomson Hall, the Kennedy Center, and Carnegie Hall. See his performance with Symphony NS on March 26, 7:30 pm. brettpolegato.com |
| 27 | RACHEL DESOER - Cello Masterclass Rachel Desoer is Principal Cellist with Symphony NS. She was the cellist of the Cecilia String Quartet from 2010 to 2018 and toured extensively around the world, recorded four albums on the Analekta label, and taught chamber music at the University of Toronto. Touring has brought Rachel to inspiring venues such as Wigmore Hall, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Konzerthaus Berlin, and many more. The Cecilia Quartet also made educational programming a priority, and performed hundreds of presentations for schools. In 2014, the quartet created a concert series called Xenia, concerts specifically designed for children on the autism spectrum and their families. Exemplifying their commitment to the equal representation of women in music, Rachel spearheaded the commissioning of four string quartets by Canadian women composers in 2016. |
| 31 |
MIKE STERN - Guitar and Improv Workshop To contemporary jazz guitar aficionados, Mike Stern is regarded as one of the true guitar greats of his generation. He made his mark with Miles Davis in the early '80s before launching his solo career in 1985. He has released 17 recordings as a leader, six of which were nominated for Grammy awards. He will play in concert with the Dal Jazz Ensemble on April 1. mikestern.org |
| APRIL | |
| 1 | READING SESSIONS OF COMPOSITION STUDENT WORKS with SYMPHONY NS Conducted by Daniel Bartholomew-Poyser 10:00 am, Arts Centre 121 |
| 3 | ARA GREGORIAN - Violin Masterclass 4:30 pm, Arts Centre 406 |