Zimfira Poloz Workshop Reflections

This past winter the internationally renowned, local Toronto conductor Zimfira Poloz came as our guest conductor.

Secretly, it’s a way for me to hear my choir in a new way and to be inspired with new choral and musical ideas. The choir seems to enjoy working with someone new for a change as well, so it’s a win-win for us all.  

It was a delight to work with Zimfira Poloz. What an honour it was to have her come with such enthusiasm to work with our group. I loved her ideas about using an “ng” sound to give the most gorgeous diminuendo sound to the end of a choral piece. What a trick! And it was intriguing to hear how switching two singers around can change the blend of a small group so much. So simple, yet something I had never known.

Zimfira came with a bag of fun tools, which were really toddler toys such as a slinky, an expanding ball, and a puppet, to help us imagine how we can change the sound of our voices to become more vibrant and unified by using simple images. The voice is an amazing instrument and she took us to the edges of what it could do.  

I loved her energy and enthusiasm she showed our group. It was an inspiring evening for me personally as well as the choir members. The sound of the choir improved dramatically and everyone was inspired. Now let’s warm up with that octatonic scale and sing Poulenc like the pro’s!