Carnegie Hall here we come!
We are over the moon about our upcoming tour to NYC to perform our debut recital at Carnegie Hall. It will take place in Weill Recital hall, an intimate hall that is perfect for small ensembles like Cantala. Mark your calendar-the recital is on Friday April 11, 2025. Tickets are available online through the Carnegie Hall website.
Cantala is now well into its 2024 Spring project. This year we are recording James Rolfe’s Lullaby with Michelle Colton on Marimba in Walter Hall at the end of June 2024. This will be released on our next album, titled Songbird, this coming Fall 2024.
Now in its 17th season, Cantala is an award winning treble choir in the Toronto choral community. We are raving mad about choral music, singing together and making an experience that is both inspiring, moving and uplifting for both singer and audience member.
We are truly lucky to have such a diverse cultural landscape in Canada. From the Indigenous peoples, to the settlers and now immigrants from every part of the globe, Canada is a place where there is such variety in our food, entertainment and social circles that one cannot but rejoice and celebrate Canada.
This spring we will be learning Canadian Folk songs. I was inspired recently by the work titled Woodsmoke and Oranges (Tamblyn). (Psst…. For those that know me, don’t be surprised to also anticipate other pieces that are not Canadian folk as well).
Cantala’s seasonal concert is one month away! We are excited to share with you works by Quartel, Geilo and Schubert. A magical experiences awaits….
Cantala is rethinking its commitment to provide an equitable, inclusive and diverse musical experience for any and all that want to sing. To see our initiative through, we have started a mentorship program.
A fall choral retreat sounds exciting, right? Singing. Laughing. Making memories with new friends… old friends. We are going to Jackson Point, October 13-14th. Join us! Audition today.
Now in its 16th season, Cantala is an award winning treble choir in the Toronto choral community. We are raving mad about choral music, singing together and making an experience that is both inspiring, moving and uplifting for both singer and audience member.
Cantala Choir and I had our first in person rehearsal in two years in February 2022 and for so many reasons, it feels like a new beginning. For one, as I re enter the world of choral music and choral programming I feel I have many new ideas and perspectives. So consider this: what about changing “hundred of years-old sacred text” to a sacred text that is relevant to our human society today? Radical idea? Read on.
Start thinking about JOY again! We can see the light….hear the echo…..
After hearing the Cantala Women’s Choir sing their hearts out last saturday night to a crowd of very appreciative concert goers, we are looking forward to sharing with you our highlights.
Cantala is super excited that we are finally launching our first Fall retreat. We will be going to Pioneer Village Camp in Haliburton, Ontario the weekend of September 27-29th.
Every year I receive many scores from composers near and far asking Cantala to consider learning and performing their music. So I decided to add on a spring project every year into Cantala’s season where we will workshop and record this music for these composers. It is exciting work and we are thrilled to do it.
Every year I tell Cantala that they are the closest I’ll ever get to driving a Mercedes Benz but this year I have upgraded them to a Tesla….
This past January I took out my score of Francis Poulenc’s Petite Voix,: 5 Choeurs faciles pour 3 voix d’enfants to prep for rehearsal. I quickly started feeling regret for picking such a dissonant, difficult piece. Would we survive? Surprise! This is the story of how the piece entered our hearts and dug a bore for life.
I have written many blogs about why we sing in choirs and why we just…well, love it. How about coming to choir for your cardiovascular health? Singing and hearts are deeply connected, more than we ever thought.
We have all come to choir rehearsal feeling drained and walking out feeling energised. This is not just an observation anymore but proven science. And it is due to a chemical called endocannabinoids….. Hubba what??
Me too. No idea.
I've recently discovered a lesser-known work by Britten, A Boy is Born; a very demanding unaccompanied choral work for mixed choir. But lucky for us, the 5th movement In The Bleak Midwinter, is only for treble voices and Cantala is set to perform it in concert on December 8, 2018.
The Cantala Women’s Choir is excited to perform next month their favourite seasonal work, the gorgeous, masterful choral piece, A Ceremony of Carols by Benjamin Britten.
The Cantala Women’s choir has officially launched its debut album, lovingly titled Cantala Women’s Choir. Come, listen and enjoy!
Years ago I had a very experienced choral singer come up to me in Cantala and tell me that I spend a lot of time on warming up and inquired "isn't there an urgency to get to rehearsing the repertoire?".