THE SCHEDULE

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June 22, 2011

Brian Buchanan

Brian Buchanan continues to earn respect as a Canadian jazz artist. The 1994 debut of his recording Avenues, on the Jazz Focus record label, opened many doors and brought him recognition. He followed with the 1998 release of Solstice on his own label Isotope Records. Both recordings feature him in the company of world class musicians, and favorable reviews have appeared in publications including Jazz Times, Jazz Now, and Jazz Journal International. He has shared the stage with numerous legends including Clark Terry, Herb Ellis, Chet Baker and Mark Murphy.

For several years he was President of the Jazz Calgary Society, and in 1994, directed Calgary’s first annual Jazz Awareness Week. In 1995, Brian formed Isotope Records Inc. to help produce recordings and document his own career, as well as others. Additional career highlights include a 1997 feature video of his own music for the series Project Discovery on Shaw cable, hosting shows for the Bet on Jazz Cable Jazz Channel, and producing a solo recording for pianist Jessica Williams which earned a five star review in DownBeat magazine.

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June 29th, 2011

Allen Reiser

Allen Reiser has performed with various orchestras in England and Canada, and recital engagements have taken him to nearly every major center in Western Canada. He is a pianist of diverse musical interests, with a particular interest in Canadian piano music and the music of Franz Liszt. Allen Reiser’s first released CD, “A Canadian Piano Album”, was nominated for a 2001 Prairie Music Award in the category of Outstanding Classical Recording.

A second CD, “Sonatinas and Little Sonatas”, was released in June of 2009.

Allen Reiser is active throughout Western Canada as a performer, adjudicator and master class clinician. He has presented workshops and recitals for local, provincial and national Registered Music Teachers’ Associations.

Allen Reiser is a Gold Medalist of the Toronto Conservatory of Music and has been honored by Calgary’s Mount Royal College with a Distinguished Faculty/Teaching Award. His two major teaching positions have been at the Victoria Conservatory of Music, and at Calgary’s Mount Royal College, He has been guest piano instructor at summer schools in Cranbrook, Camrose and Victoria.

Allen Reiser’s former instructors include Peter Katin (England) and Dr. Robin Wood (Canada). Allen Reiser currently operates a private piano studio in Calgary as a branch instructor of The Conservatory, Mount Royal College.

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July 6th, 2011

Wesley Chu, piano

Born in Calgary, Wesley Chu has been playing piano since the age of three.  At age four, he completed grades 1 through 9 with the Royal Conservatory of Toronto, in one calendar year.  At age ten, he completed the Associate level, making him the youngest pianist to have ever achieved this.  Wesley composes and has performed in many venues around the world.  A few of his favorite experiences include: playing his own composition at age 5 for Queen Elizabeth II and the Prime Minster of Canada, in Ottawa; and in 1999, performing his own choral concerto composition “Christmas in Bethlehem”,  with orchestra and choir, inside the Vatican City in Rome, for Pope John Paul II.

Wesley has performed as a soloist with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Calgary Civic Symphony, National Youth Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela, and the Hong Kong Sinfonietta at the Celebration of the Hand-Over to China. He is now studying at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston with Mr. Hung-Kuan Chen.

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July 13th, 2011

Phoebe Powell, harp plus Christine Tuturia, voice

Born in Winchester, England, in 1993 Phoebe Powell  first heard the harp at age six, while living in Holland.  She began taking Celtic harp lessons at the age of ten after emigrating to Canada, continuing on to Classical harp with Maureen O’Sullivan and Gianetta Baril in Calgary.

Phoebe has studied repertoire from mediaeval through to contemporary, including jazz and broadway. She is inspired by the expressive versatility of her instrument to master challenging and inventive pieces that exploit the harp’s magnificent sonorous and percussive powers. Phoebe has won two Royal Conservatory Silver Medals (for voice – which she studies with Winston Noren at Mount Royal Conservatory – and harp), achieving 97% for her Grade 8 harp exam. Phoebe enjoys the camaraderie of chamber music, arranging harp parts for her family trio of harp, horn and violin – including Bartok’s Roumanian Folk Dances (adaptations of Stravinsky’s Pulcinella and Petrushka ballet suites are in the pipeline).

A Calgary Kiwanis Festival scholarship winner of harp and voice awards from 2008 to 2011 Phoebe not only enjoys solo and chamber performance, but also appreciates the challenge of orchestral playing with the Calgary Youth Orchestra under conductor Edmond Agopian, especially appreciating the orchestra’s annual intensive training weekend at the Banff Centre for Performing Arts.

Phoebe gave a solo harp performance at Calgary’s Jack Singer Auditorium as part of the annual Mount Royal College choral and orchestral concert Christmas in Song, and has performed at Calgary’s Rosza Centre and at the Banff Centre with the Calgary Youth Orchestra and with the University of Calgary Orchestra. Phoebe has travelled hundreds of miles to play for weddings and corporate events in Alberta and British Columbia since 2008, including the Alberta Foundation for the Arts’ annual symposium in Calgary in May 2009.  She is thrilled to have been accepted to play in the Benjamin Britten Ceremony of Carols Master Class at the World Harp Congress in July 2011 in Vancouver, with London Symphony Orchestra principal harpist Karen Vaughan.

 

Vocalist Christine Tuturea

Christine Tuturea was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta.  She began singing  at a young age and spent nearly 10 years singing with the Mount Royal Choral Program.  In her youth and teen years Christine competed regularly in the Kiwanis Festival and N.A.T.S.  (National Association of Teacher’s of Singing).  She was awarded many first place honors, including First Place Vocal Performance in 2000 at the Kiwanis Provincial Music Festival.  In 2001 Christine was awarded a full tuition scholarship for 4 years to attend the University of Colorado at Boulder and graduated in 2005 with a Bachelor of Music (Vocal Performance).  While there, Christine had the honor of performing as the Dragon and Teacup in Ravel’s L’Enfant et les Sortileges and as Sister Mathilde in Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites. As well, Christine was cast as a chorus member in Mozart’s Magic Flute and in the premier of Randall Shin’s Sara McKinnon. While attending the University of Colorado, Christine also had the honor of being awarded the Joan Conlin Chorale Scholarship two years in a row.  Since moving back to Calgary, Christine has had the opportunity to perform as a soloist with the Bach Festival Society in the Bach Birthday Concert and Easter Concert. This year Christine competed in the Calgary Kiwanis Festival and received first place honors in Opera Solo, Schuuman Class and Provincial National Class and was awarded the Eileen Higgins Memorial Scholarship. Christine recently competed in the Kiwanis Provincial Music Festival in Edmonton and was awarded first place. She will be heading to Nationals in Antigonish, Nova Scotia in August.

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July 20th, 2011

MRU Conservatory’s Morningside Music Bridge Festival

Entering its 15th year the festival brings together the world’s hottest young classical musicians of violin, viola, cello and piano from across Canada, China, Poland and the USA.  This year’s festival runs from July 3 to 29, 2010. Our program showcases musicians in the program creating and championing great music, developing their talents and expanding their horizons during this intensive training program.  Approximately 65 musicians will be provided with the opportunity to expand their range of cultural experience and broaden their ability to compete by performing for and with international teachers and students.

For more details visit our website: www.mtroyal.ca/musicbridge or contact Maimie De Silva, Program Coordinator at 403-440-6768.

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July 27th, 2011

Sterling Hunte, Steel Drum

I got my start in Liverpool, England and have now been in the music business for over fifteen years. I was honoured to perform in the 1988 Olympic cultural Festival, where I performed an original composition and also performed with the Nylons.

In 2003 I produced my first recording  “Sterling’s Own”. Another memorable performance was a three night Latin concert with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra in 1994. I was also winner of the Calgary Calypso Monarch competition in 2005.

More recently,my Christmas carol track was released in Trinidad, and distributed to our troops in Afghanistan in 2007 with the help of Our Govenor General Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaelle Jean.

I also received two nominations for Gospel Song of the Year at the 31^st Gospel Music Association Canada Covenant Awards in 2009.

I was also honoured to make the short list in the Song Writers Across Canada contest. And now my brand new gospel CD has just been released with the nominated songs & Christmas track included!