VERONICA WAGNER IN
MEMORIAM
This March 2015 our beloved violin and viola instructor Veronica Wagner passed away suddenly. Veronica Wagner’s friends have said how fortunate they feel to have known Veronica and speak of Veronica’s sincere passion and dedication to her Nanaimo Conservatory of Music violin and viola students. We all knew Veronica’s loving, friendly, humble, sincere, clever, warm and friendly personality and we will greatly miss her.
We
always referred to Veronica with her nickname ‘Roni’ and will never forget how
wonderful a teacher she was. Roni was a very active member of our Nanaimo
Conservatory of Music’s board for over 10 years. Her dedication and passion
also was demonstrated when she established a NCM Faculty Association in former
years. Roni started and chaired the Program Committee which was an earlier
version of the committee now known as the Artistic Advisory Committee. Roni was
also always at our Open House events, would fill in for an office staff when
needed, was there for our recitals and all of our other special events and was
always helping to set up and tear down.
Roni
taught two group ensembles for the Nanaimo Conservatory of Music, the Prelude
Orchestra for children beginners and the Foundation Orchestra for all adult
levels. Last May in 2014, Roni joined the two orchestra groups to play the
theme from The Pirates of the Caribbean, which was a ton of fun and a huge
success!!
Roni
was admired by her Nanaimo Conservatory of Music colleagues and staff and
students and was a wonderful friend to all that knew her. Veronica was also a caring and doting mother
and grandmother, as well as being a fabulously dedicated teacher and showed
deep commitment towards our music community and was greatly respected. Roni is deeply missed by her students and all
of us. Her music, delightful melodies and beautiful spirit will never be
forgotten. Donations in memory of Veronica Wagner can be made to the Nanaimo
Conservatory of Music Veronica Wagner Scholarship fund.
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS AND NEWS
Connect
with the arrival of spring by picking up your musical instrument and playing a
celebratory tune! It is so much fun to practice especially when playing the
music that you adore and love! Catch up on the news here at the Nanaimo Conservatory
of Music with the latest from our faculty about our students’ performances and
success!
Students
had a wonderful time during the Musical Theatre Spring Break Workshop at the
Nanaimo Conservatory of Music with pianist Nico Rhodes and vocalist Lindsay
Suddaby March 23rd-27th. Designed for children aged 6-14,
participants experienced and learned about the art of musical theatre and built
confidence and participated in team work and in co-operation with others. This
workshop allowed students to express themselves creatively through singing,
drama, and stage movement. The students also learned crucial performance skills
like vocal technique, speaking from the stage, choreography, and performance
etiquette.
A
fun time was had by all in the class and the office will miss all the lovely
singing and laughing voices that were filling up the hallways and office with
their happy sounds, enthusiasm and joyful tunes! Congratulations to all the
students who participated, you did a great job and the music sounded lovely!
OVATION
CORNER
An
encore and standing ovation to all of the students who participated in the
Upper Island Music Festival this year. Big applause to our students who have been
recommended to the provincials to perform and also at the Honors Concert. Nice
job to all of our successful bursary winners too! Great going!
Provincials
recommendations:
Intermediate
Strings: Max Sander-Segriff, observer
Junior
A Strings: Joo-Young Jung,
performer
From
the North Island: Maddy Erickson
Invited to perform at
the Honours Concert:
Kipling Szasz, violin
Jonah Manson, guitar
(others
were also recommended, but there was limited time, and organizers chose not to
invite those who performed last year)
Bursary
winners: Maddy Erickson, Joo-Young
Jung, Chloe Hardbattle, Max Sander-Segriff, Kipling
Szasz, Jonah Manson.
FACULTY STUDIO NOTES
From
Cindy Speelman’s studio-a reprint of the newspaper article from The Star: “The
Nanaimo Chamber Orchestra
held its annual Young
Musicians Concerto Competition in February and are pleased to announce the
winner as flautist, Uei-Young Jung. From a field of six applicants from the
Mid-Island region, the first runner up is violinist Max Sander-Segriff, and the
second runner-up is violinist Joanna Lee. Prizes for the competition are $400
for the winner $200 for first runner-up and $100 for second runner-up. The
winner is featured as guest soloist to play a concerto with the orchestra in
its June concerts. Jung started playing
the flute at the age of six in the Suzuki Flute program at the Nanaimo
Conservatory of Music with flute instructor Cindy Speelman. Now ten years old,
for the past four years she has been involved with numerous performances,
festivals, competitions and RCM exams. She attends Hammond Bay Elementary
School. Her hard work and dedication to making music as such a proficient level
is inspirational said NCO music director Bruce Farquharson.” From all of us a
big congratulations to Uei-Young Jung on this wonderful accomplishment!
Patrick
Olmsted would like to congratulate Lillian Morpak and Ian Perry for being
selected to represent the region at the provincials. Congratulations also to
Jonah Manson for his invitation to perform at the Honours concert in April. Well
done!
Congratulations
to Teresa Borek’s piano students: Laura Mace, Jack Mace and Arun Rohin who
played beautifully in the Music Festival in March and won gold certificates in
all their performances. All three of them will be receiving bursaries on April
19 at the Honour's Performance and Jack Mace has been asked to perform
"The Pink Panther" in the concert. Beautiful work and bravo!
UPCOMING
FACULTY JAZZ PERFORMANCES
Faculty member and bassist Ken Lister has the following wonderful
jazz performances coming up in our island region:
·
Sunday
April 19: The Old School House Arts Centre in Qualicum Beach with drummer and
vibraphonist Craig Scott
·
Sunday
April 26: Pacific Shores Resort with Hugh Fraser & Friends
·
Sunday
May 24: Pacific Shores with Jennifer Scott call 1-855-733-4876 to reserve a
table.
SPECIAL BENEFIT CONCERT-From Marilyn Rummel’s
studio: Join
us for a special benefit concert benefit to raise funds for medical treatment
for one of our talented students from the Vancouver Island Youth Harp Ensemble.
The fundraiser will take place at St. John’s Anglican Church on Jubilee Street
in Duncan, BC on Sunday April 19th at 3:00 PM. Tickets are $10.00
for adults and $20.00 for families. Please attend and show your support for
this upcoming important event. Raising funds for Sofia’s eyes.
REMINDER
OF A SPECIAL UPCOMING NANAIMO CONSERVATORY FESTIVAL OF RECITALS
Mark your calendar! The Festival of Recitals takes place on
Saturday May 30th, 2015 starting at 10:00 am and will be going all
day. It’s a lot of fun with tons of people and student performances, silent
auction, refreshments and is simply too amazing! Be sure to join us for some
great entertainment and performances and it will help to support and sustain
the Nanaimo Conservatory of Music into future months. It’s free!
PIANO
MASTER CLASS WITH CONCERT PIANIST IAN PARKER
Accomplished
multi award winning Canadian concert pianist and ATMA Classique recording
artist Ian Parker will be conducting a Piano Master Class on Monday May 4, 2015
at the Nanaimo Conservatory of Music at 375 Selby Street at 10:00 AM for
observers and students. Canada’s Ian Parker is from Vancouver, BC and resides
in New York City during the concert season. Parker has earned the grand prize
at the 2001 CBC National Radio Competition and top prize at the Canadian
International Music Festival, Montreal Symphony Orchestra Competition and the
Corpus Christie International Competition. He performs regularly on CBC Radio
and is an active recording artist. Reserve your spot now and get the details
for this exclusive Master Class with multi award winning acclaimed Canadian
concert pianist Ian Parker by calling the Nanaimo Conservatory of Music at
250-754-4611. Observers admission is $10.00 The Nanaimo Conservatory of Music
student observer price is $5.00.
SUMMER
JAZZ INTENSIVE WORKSHOP
Exciting
news! Multi JUNO award winning saxophonist and composer Christine Jensen will be
once again conducting the Summer Jazz Intensive July 20th-24th,
2015 with faculty to be announced!! Reserve your spot now at (250)-754-4611.
FACULTY
SPOTLIGHT
KARL RAINER - Suzuki Violin, Violin, Viola -
Karl Rainer has studied violin with Karoly Sziladi
and Joseph Berljawski. He is currently the Music Director and concertmaster of
the Nanaimo Chamber Orchestra, and was a founding member of the Waterloo
Chamber Players. His orchestral experience includes the KW Chamber Orchestra,
the Guelph Chamber Orchestra and the Waterloo Chamber Players among many
others, and he has also performed in many musicals. His concert chamber music
appearances include the Leith String Quartet and the Nero String Quartet, among
others. Since moving to Nanaimo in 2005, Karl has completed a Bachelor of Education
degree from Vancouver Island University and acquired certification as a Suzuki
violin teacher.
COMMUNITY EVENTS
THEATREONE-SNOW
WHITE
TheatreOne
presents Snow White an interactive play for kids featuring Dufflebag Theatre
Nanaimo – As its final presentation in its Just Kidding series, TheatreOne is
excited to present Dufflebag Theatre’s adaption of the classic fairy tale Snow
White, at Malaspina Theatre at VIU, Saturday April 11 at 1pm. Bring the whole
family to this re-telling of the famous fairy tale and maybe you will get the
chance to share the spotlight! This Dufflebag Theatre production is
interactive, so some audience members will get up on stage to be part of the
show. This will make for hilarious turns and twists in Nanaimo's interpretation
of the celebrated tale of the girl with eyes black as night, lips red as blood,
and skin white as snow.Tickets are $10 each or 2 for $18; purchase in advance
from www.theatreone.org or at the door for one hour prior to show time.
FESTIVAL
OF BANNERS-MY FAVORITE THINGS
Each
spring for 27 years, Nanaimo Art Gallery has organized the Festival of Banners,
which has become a beloved tradition and an important community project. To
participate, create an imaginative, original design based on the 2015 theme “My
Favorite Things”, and submit your completed and coloured entry form to Guest
Services at Nanaimo North Town Centre or directly at the banner site (across
from Designer Depot). You will pay the $10 fee at the banner site when you are
scheduled to paint. The project
coordinator will contact you to schedule a time to paint in March and April at
Nanaimo North Town Centre. Banners are
installed on lamp standards in mid-May. Entry forms can be found at customer
service in Nanaimo North Town Centre, at www.nanaimoartscouncil.ca or at the
Nanaimo Arts Council Gallery in Nanaimo North Town Centre or at both Nanaimo
Art Gallery locations 150 Commercial Street and Vancouver Island
University. Banners are limited this
year to 200, so get your submission in early! For more information please call
250-729-3947 or email admin@nanaimoartscouncil.ca
FREE
SYMPHONY COMMUNITY DAY
FREE
Symphony Community Day, Saturday April 18, 11 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Port Theatre.
Musical Instrument Zoo, Meet the Composer, Symphony Rehearsal (Complimentary
Tickets: 250-754-8550). www.vancouverislandsymphony.com Schedule:11 a.m. - 12 noon - Musical
Instrument Zoo – Try the instruments of the orchestra at the Musical Instrument
Zoo (ages 6 and up!)
11:45
a.m. - 12:15 p.m. - Meet composer Dorothy Chang! 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. - Symphony
Rehearsal – Adults and children, come see what happens at a Symphony Rehearsal.
Book your complimentary Ticket through the Port Theatre FREE TICKETS must be
reserved for the Symphony Rehearsal by calling 250-754-8550.For more
information call 250-754-0177 or visit www.vancouverislandsymphony.com
