Gene & Elizabeth Maurice Choral Concert Series 2025

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PROARTS @NOON CONCERTS PRESENTS

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The ProArts Society is pleased to announce a unique series of concerts featuring Calgary artists performing Choral Music repertoire.

Where words fail, music speaks

Hans Christian Andersen

Local Arts supporters Gene and Elizabeth Maurice continue to generously support the ProArts@Noon Concert Series and recently awarded the ProArts Society funding to undertake the 2025 Choral Music Concert Series, which will feature a diverse selection from Calgary’s Choral community.

This special series will be part of the ProArts@Noon weekly schedule of Wednesday concerts.

Now in its twenty-third season, the ProArts@Noon Concert Series of free, noon hour concerts is presented by the ProArts Society, who rent the historic Cathedral Church in the heart of Calgary’s Cultural District to present their weekly concerts.

The Gene & Elizabeth Maurice Choral Music Concert Series 2025 dates are:

1. March 12 Calgary Opera’s McPhee Artists Development Program
2. April 09 Calgary Philharmonic Chorus
3. April 16 Collegium Musicum – University of Caglary
4. May 21 Irish Cultural Society Choir
5. June 11 German Canadian Male Chorus
6. June 18 Via Voci
7. September 10 Calgary Concert Opera Company
8. October 29 Calgary Opera’s McPhee Artists Development Program
9. November 27 Calgary Renaissance Singers and Players
10. December 03 Alberta Vocal Arts Association – Kathleen Morrison & Barbara King

Artist Biographies

Calgary Opera’s McPhee Artists Development Program March 12 and October 29, 2025

Each season, Calgary Opera provides up to eight young singers with the opportunity to study and perform under a professional staff of teachers and performers. The McPhee Artists Development Program serves as a bridge between academic programs and the professional world of opera, offering the experience and practical skills necessary to succeed as a self-employed artist in a highly competitive international environment.

Calgary Philharmonic Chorus April 9, 2025

The Calgary Philharmonic Chorus is a group of more than 160 volunteer singers from all walks of life who deliver excellence in the performance of choral music and promote the enjoyment and development of choral singing in Calgary communities. Established in 1963, the Chorus is a professional-level performing partner to the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, and one of only two choruses in Canada that is part of a major professional symphony orchestra. The Chorus, led by Chorus Director Mark Bartel, performs a wide variety of repertoire, including oratorio, opera, classical standards, pop favourites, and commissioned new works. In a typical season, the acclaimed ensemble is featured in four to eight concerts with the orchestra.

The concert features two works by two Black Canadian composers:  R. Nathaniel Dett’s oratorio Chariot Jubilee, and Manitoba composer Larry Strachan’s St. Cecilia Anthem. Both works feature organist Chellan Hoffman and chorus principal tenor Jason Ragan in the Chariot Jubilee.The concert also includes the moving piece “I Rise” by Alberta composer Laura Hawley, which was commissioned by the Calgary Phil in 2022 and “Your Harps and Cymbals Sound” from G. F. Handel’s oratorio Solomon, scored for double chorus.  These works are accompanied by Assistant Chorus Director, Evan Mounce.  

University of Calgary – Collegeum Musicum April 16, 2025

Under the Direction of Julie Harris, Collegium Musicum is a small, primarily vocal ensemble that performs early (old) music, with a focus on the Renaissance and Baroque.

The UCalgary Collegium Musicum returns to perform our annual end-of-term concert.  It is always a pleasure to bring our early music repertoire into the beautiful acoustic of the Cathedral Church of the Redeemer. This year’s performance will include vocal music from England, Germany, and France. Come and experience the many musical textures and styles of these different times and places.

Irish Cultural Society of Calgary Choir May 21, 2025

In November 1992 a group of Irish Immigrants and their Canadian friends formed the Irish Cultural Society of Calgary choir. Over thirty years later this welcoming group of singers regularly rehearse on Wednesday night at 7.00 pm in the Irish Cultural Society Hall in Bowness.   The Choir performs and entertains at multiple venues in and around Calgary, ICS Christmas Concert, St. Patrick Day events, nursing homes, senior residences, folk clubs, ProArts Noon series at Church of the Redeemer, Music at Noon at Varsity and the annual Water Valley Celtic festival. All are amazing venues to share our Celtic Heritage.

This year we have welcomed several new young members, who have added energy and vitality to the choir.  We are now 45 members strong.  

We love singing for live audiences. We delight in seeing members of the audience enjoying our music and song especially when they sing along or tap their feet to our program.

Joe Massey conducts the choir and arranges the set programs while Leslie O’Loughlin and Natalie McDermott share piano duties, and Greg Black (guitar) Doug Wagner (fiddle) Tony Hogan (bodhran) Joe Massey (whistle), provides accompaniment for this amazing, fun-loving, joyful choir.

German Canadian Male Chorus June 11, 2025

The German Canada Male Chorus of Calgary was formed in 1968 and was incorporated in 1971 with a mission statement that calls upon its members to preserve, promote and develop the unique aspects of the German male choral tradition and the German-Canadian culture. At its inception in 1968 the chorus was made up of German-speaking males only – some of whom still serve with the choir today. Over the years other interested singers have joined its ranks and now the group boasts a broad base of membership.

The basic traditions and original purposes have been maintained and the group’s repertoire remains predominantly in the German language. For example, in one year the Männerchor performed at St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, at the Austrian Club with the Heimatecho Choir, at the Prärie-Sängerfest in Medicine Hat, as guest of the Singgemeinschaft in the Euro-Centre and with the Dutch-Canadian Choir of Calgary for their Christmas Program at the St. James Catholic Church. The choir members also greatly enjoy travelling widely to make new friendships and renew old ones when we perform on tour. Often our concerts there are shared with local choirs.

Via Voci June 18, 2025

Via Voci is a small group of chamber singers who love the challenge of bringing beautiful music to life. We sing in many styles from classical to modern and perform both accompanied and a cappella pieces.

Our vision is to both entertain audiences with beautiful music and reach out to the community encouraging everyone to participate in making music through the beauty of our voices.

Calgary Concert Opera Company September 10, 2025

The Calgary Concert Opera Company began in 2011 and since then have presented 10 full live operas in concert format, including famous operas such as Carmen, Rigoletto, La Traviata, and Samson et Dalila. Over 80 professional and aspiring opera singers from across Canada have participated in these, along with collaborations with the Foothills Philharmonic Opera Chorus, Rocky Mountain Symphony Orchestra, 12 Musas Flamenco, Compass Performances Studios, Calgary Civic Symphony, and Toronto’s Opera by Request.

Our Concert Opera format and process is very uncomplicated, straightforward and takes opera to a more personal level.  The singers tell the story through the music, facial expressions and little staging and we are able to make more of a direct connection with the audience.

Calgary Renaissance Singers and Players November 27, 2025

Calgary Renaissance Singers & Players aim to inspire, entertain and educate their audience and singing members alike through the music, culture and history of the Renaissance.  The group enriches its performances with works of other periods that celebrate the spirit of the Renaissance.  CRSP has been a proud part of Calgary’s musical landscape since it was founded by Dr. Anthony Petti in 1970.  The choir has given Canadian premiere performances of seminal Renaissance works such as the Monteverdi Vespers of 1610, as well as commissioning and performing new choral works in Renaissance polyphonic style.  CRSP thrives on new creative opportunities: from singing at the planetarium to acting, dancing and playing instruments, and from collaborating with brass, harpsichord and recorder players to jamming with jazz saxophonists.

Alberta Vocal Arts Association December 3, 2025

The mission of Alberta Vocal Arts Association is to promote and celebrate the classical vocal arts in Alberta. Through captivating performances, collaborative initiatives and active community engagement, they inspire and engage audiences by showcasing the talent and artistry of vocal performers. Their goal is to create opportunities for the mid-level performing artist and to provide enriching experiences that deepen appreciation for the classical vocal arts and contribute to the cultural vitality of our community.