July Notes
Kerilie
McDowall NCM
It is summer festival season in BC! There are numerous
impressive music festivals to attend to expand your musical palette for some
entertainment and active music listening for a fun summer. A few of the most
popular local island festivals include the Vancouver Island Music Festival,
Islands Folk Festival, TD Victoria International Jazz Festival, Victoria Ska
Fest, BC Shellfish Festival, Filberg Festival, Hornby Island Festival, Sooke
River Bluegrass Music Festival and the off island and very popular (and my personal favorite) The Vancouver
International Jazz Festival. What a way to get your music listening in and work
on active ear training! Pull on your sun hat, lather on the sunscreen, dig out
the picnic basket and sun umbrella and get ready for fun filled days to soak in
and enjoy the best entertainment that BC has to offer! Be sure to join us for
all the exciting summer programs that the NCM is offering this summer in 2015!
JAZZ SUPER
STAR CONCERT AT SIMON HOLT RESTAURANT!
The
faculty super star jazz performance with Ingrid and Christine Jensen, Ken
Lister, Joel Miller and Jon Wikan is coming up soon! Concert tickets are now
available at $30 in advance and $35 at the door. This impressive, fun and
amazing jazz super star performance will take place on Wednesday July 22nd
at 7:30 PM. These musicians are some of North America’s finest musicians, so do
not miss this very special concert event!
SUMMER
JAZZ INTENSIVE WORKSHOP WITH CHRISTINE AND INGRID JENSEN, JOEL MILLER, KEN
LISTER & JON WIKAN
You won’t want to miss multi-JUNO award
winning saxophonist and composer
Christine Jensen on faculty this summer
with highly admired trumpet player and flugelhorn player JUNO winner Ingrid
Jensen! Also featured on faculty is multi-JUNO
winning bassist Ken Lister, award winning Montreal saxophonist and composer
Joel Miller and New York City drummer/composer
Jon Wikan. They will be conducting the special Summer Jazz Intensive program
July 20th-23rd, 2015 this summer with a final student and jazz super
star performance at Simon Holt Restaurant on July 22nd. The price
for the workshop is $450.00. Student bursaries are available. This is your chance
to study and learn from some of the top players/composers from
North America’s jazz world and work on
your musicianship and jazz knowledge and further extend your mastery of improvisational
skills, technique, theory and more. Join us for the fun and this once in a
lifetime opportunity. Space is limited. Call 250-754-4611 now to reserve your spot
and/or email us at ncmusic@island.net
for further details, hope to see you there!
NEW! WORLD
MUSIC PROGRAM WITH PATRICK OLMSTED
Enrollment is heating up for the Summer
2015 World Music Program with NCM guitar and ukulele instructor Patrick
Olmsted. Courses offered may include: Gypsy Jazz Guitar, Discover Spanish
Guitar, The Mighty Uke! (Ukulele), Latin Guitar, Open Tunings, African Guitar
and Finger Style Arranging. World Group Ensemble Classes may include Paris
Combo (a la Manouche), Latin Ensemble (Son Montuno), Salsa (Begine the
Merengue!) and African Ensemble. Students can choose based upon their personal
preference to study privately, or with a group class. Please join us!
NCM’s
Kerilie McDowall recently had a chat with instructor Patrick Olmsted and caught
up with Patrick’s latest news to share with prospective guitar and ukulele
students.
NCM: Speak about your
background history in music and how you got your start with guitar. PO: Our family always had music in the
house. I started playing guitar as a teenager at age 15. I was exposed to a
great amount of multicultural music and different musical styles with exposure
through my family while I was growing up.
NCM: Who
were your mentors and instructors, and were you encouraged to become a
professional musician? PO: I studied
guitar with a Spanish instructor from Seville named Manuel Galvez at the Mount
Royal Conservatory. I started performing in clubs at the age of 18.
NCM: Tell us about the styles
you like to explore as a guitarist and you’re
upcoming
World Music Guitar Classes that you are
offering as an instructor at the Nanaimo Conservatory of Music. PO: Right now I am very excited about the
new curriculum that I am creating for the
Nanaimo Conservatory of Music. We’re offering guitar and ukulele classes in
many wonderful styles of world music from gypsy jazz, guitar, Latin, Flamenco,
Latin, Spanish, jazz and gypsy jazz.
NCM: What is your general
advice to young students who are in the process of mastering the guitar and
learning the art of performance as to how they can best advance their skills? PO: Learn some new styles of music. Get
exposed to some of the world styles of music at the Nanaimo Conservatory of
Music and most importantly listen to as much music as you can.
NCM: It’s been a pleasure
meeting with you and learning about the NCM World Music Program, I thank you so
much for the chat today. To close what
is your website address and when is the best time to reach you at the NCM? PO: You can get in touch with me
anytime at the NCM and also at www.gabriola guitars.ca.
The
Nanaimo Conservatory of Music World Music Classes will run for 6-8 weeks at
$10.00 per class and will run in the evening on weekdays. This exciting program
offers the full flavours of guitar and ukulele music styles from around the
globe. Learn a new world music style or enhance your current skills. Call Oriana at the Nanaimo Conservatory of
Music now at 250-754-4611 to learn more or to register!
SUMMER
REGISTRATION AND SUMMER HOURS If you are
registering for summer music lessons you will need to pay for them in advance
at the NCM office, just contact Oriana Tierney to register. Please take note that our upcoming summer
Nanaimo Conservatory of Music office hours will be from 10-5 pm Tuesday to
Thursdays.
NANAIMO
YOUTH CHOIR PLACES FIRST IN BC PROVINCIALS FOR SIXTH TIME AND AN INVITE TO
CARNEGIE HALL!
Congratulations
to the Nanaimo Youth Choir who placed first in the BC Provincial Music Festival again
for the sixth time! In addition, Artistic
Director Marian Smith and the Conservatory are very excited to announce that Nanaimo
Youth Choir has been invited by Distinguished Concerts International New York
as conducted by Cristian Grases to perform at prestigious Carnegie Hall in New
York City for a June 12th,
2016 performance!
GIFTED
NANAIMO CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC STUDENT UEI-YOUNG JUNG PLACES SECOND AT THE
PERFORMING ARTS BC PROVINCIALS
Ten
year old talented, exceptional young flautist Uei-Young Jung placed second at
this year’s province wide BC Provincial Arts Festival. Uei-Young is studying
the flute at the Nanaimo Conservatory of Music. Jung performed JS Bach’s Suite
in B Minor and Suite Modale by Bloch at the Provincials. Jung’s Nanaimo
Conservatory of Music flute instructor Cindy Speelman was also very happy to
learn that Uei-Young Jung had placed first in the 2015 Concerto Competition for
Young Musicians held by the Nanaimo Chamber Orchestra. In addition, this year
Uei-Young also won a Jean Apland Scholarship Award from the Nanaimo
Conservatory of Music. On the recent
Provincials win, instructor Cindy Speelman said that the BC Provincials
indicated that Uei-Young has “good stylistic interpretation, beautiful
expression and musicality”.
Uei-Young said that she was “happy and surprised” at the wins and was very
much looking forward to her
performance
with the Nanaimo Chamber Orchestra this past June on the 6th and the
continuation of her music studies at the Nanaimo Conservatory of Music. The
talented young flautist performed with the Nanaimo Chamber Orchestra led by
Karl Rainer at Brechin United Church
in Nanaimo. Flautist Jung performed compositions by Bach, Handel, Joaquin
Rodrigo, Haydn Wood and Hubert Parry as the featured guest artist. This
outstanding and inspiring young music student is an example of the impressive
fine talent that Vancouver Island has to offer the larger cultural community of
BC and Canada. The Nanaimo Conservatory of Music, the community of Nanaimo and NCM
teacher Cindy Speelman are all very proud of Uei-Young’s recent
accomplishments.
FESTIVAL
OF RECITALS AWARD CEREMONY AND SILENT AUCTION FUNDRAISING SUCCESS!
The Festival of Recitals took place on Saturday May 30th, 2015
and featured scholarship presentations and our very talented student performers.
Congratulations to our students on their exceptional and fine performances! Scholarship recipients include: Kipling Szasz; Joo Young Jung; Zoe Hyman; Charmaine
Sims; Sean Hagarty; Jack Mace; Laura Mace; Ella Wyndlow; Chloë Hardbattle; Anya
Mikes; Martin Hermans; Lilu Scott; Max Sander Segriff; Leah Reinhart; Jonah Manson; Karolina Malinowska; Uei Young
Jung and Maddy Erickson.
As for fundraising for our silent auction, bidding was competitive
and helped us raise a total of $2000.00 for our scholarship and bursary fund
for our students! A grateful and appreciative thank you to businesses and individuals who
donated their time, silent auction items and services including: Tom Lee Music,
Old City Organics, artist Gerda Hofman, The Veronica Wagner family and estate,
Nanaimo Toyota, McLean's Specialty Foods, Yellowpoint Lodge, Island Naturals,
Lobelia’s Lair, BOCA, West Coast Classic Floral Design, St. Jean’s Cannery, The
Teak Tree, Wild Pebble Jewellery, Mission Hill, artist Claudia Grey, chef Peter
Bowen, baker of delicious cookies and muffins Jedha Holmes, special and lovely
beautifully music themed violin and music printed cookies by professional baker
Michelle Hardbattle, music CDs from Jane Coop and John Capon, the Nanaimo Conservatory of Music staff, faculty
and board, including Executive Director Kathleen Darby and staff Oriana Tierney
and Kerilie McDowall, The Vancouver Island Symphony and The Flying Fish. Thanks
to you the community for your continued generous support.
FOUND: A Fit Bit Flex-Please
identify it at the NCM office.
STUDIO
NEWS FROM
THE VOICE STUDIO OF CHRISTINE McMAHON
Kudos to fourteen year old Lilu Scott, who received
two Honourable Mentions for her performances at the Performing Arts Provincial
Festival in both the Junior Classical Division and the Vocal Variety section.
Congratulations to Elizabeth Herman, RCM Grade 10
student, who was recently accepted into the Advanced Singers Program at the
Victoria Conservatory of Music, a ten day intensive workshop comprising of private
lessons, masterclasses and coachings, culminating in a final concert.
Participants worked to the highest standard in repertoire, technique,
physical awareness, confidence and presence. Well done!
FROM
MARILYN RUMMEL’S STUDIO
We've
had a great season in the harp studio- many thanks to students, parents and
supportive people who understand that it takes time to learn... but it is time
that you spent developing yourself along with your skills. Congrats to all. Lots
of exciting plans for the fall. First is our student teacher pilot program.
Hayley Farenholtz, who has been my student for the past 6 years is becoming my
student teacher! She will teach new beginners and current students who want to
try lessons with a young and inspiring harpist. She will teach under my
supervision and will be studying pedagogy along with her own harp studies. The
Edinburgh harp festival is held every year in April and next spring my advanced
harp group and I will attend! This exciting plan will need help funding so
we'll be doing a series of fundraising concerts in the fall and winter. If
anyone knows of performing opportunities that would add to the travel account
please let me know. There will be a new group class for beginners starting
September 24, 2015. Registration will be through the city and it will be suitable
for absolute beginners or current students who want to add some group time to
their studies. Lessons will be in person and by videos which can be streamed at
home in your practice room! A new adventure that I'm really looking forward to.
Tell your friends! There will limited summer lessons in Duncan from July
15 to Aug 5, and then I'm off to Harp school in Wells in the Cariboo. Several
students are attending, including Cassidy Stagg who is the recipient of the Ann
Gillespie scholarship for 2015. Harp lessons begin Sept 15.
STUDIO
NEWS FROM KEN LISTER
NCM Bass instructor Ken Lister would like to congratulate his
student Riley Poystila for her success in winning a full scholarship to Douglas
College Summer Jazz Intensive in Toronto! In addition, at the West Coast Jazz
Festival, Riley won a partial scholarship to Berkley Summer Jazz Intensive.
Hooray for Riley and congratulations!
SYMPHONY
BY THE SEA-Saturday, August 8, 2015 | 6:00pm Maffeo Sutton
Park
Enjoy the sounds of The Vancouver Island Symphony
by the Sea! Under the direction of Calvin Dyck, with special guest tenor Ken
Lavigne and other surprise musical guests. Bring your blanket or lawn chair and
your picnic basket! Donations collected to support this
event.
