The 3rd Canadian International Choral Festival and the first China-Canada International Choir Festival concluded successfully!
On July 28th, 2019, the third Canada International Choral Festival and the first China-Canada International Choral Festival successfully concluded in Toronto, Canada.
The festival officially opened on the evening of July 26th at the Toronto Arts Centre in Toronto, Canada. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Canada's Multiculturalism Minister Pablo Rodriguez, Chinese Consul General in Toronto Han Tao, Chairman of China Foreign Cultural Group Li Jinsheng, and Canadian Senator Hu Zixiu sent congratulatory letters, highly praising and encouraging the festival's organizers, sponsors, and supporters for their efforts and contributions to promoting multiculturalism, choral art, and cultural exchange between China and Canada. They wished the festival great success.
That evening, Chinese Consul General Han Tao, Cultural Attaché Han Ning, Canadian Member of Parliament Majid Jowhari, Deputy General Manager Liu Peng from China Foreign Cultural Group, and other 200 guests, choral professionals, and enthusiasts attended the opening reception. Mr. Rudong Gao, Chairman of the Canada International Choral Festival, and Mr. Wei Zhang, Chairman of the Canadian Performing Arts Alliance, delivered welcome speeches on behalf of the organizing committee, expressing gratitude for everyone’s attendance. Special sponsor, Nick Wang, President of Ultra Media, conveyed his heartfelt wishes for the festival’s success.
The Neema Children's Choir from Uganda delivered a speech. The members from this choir were African orphans and impoverished children aged 8 to 18, representing hundreds of thousands of children in Uganda and across Africa affected by AIDS, war, and poverty. They used music performances to raise awareness about the challenges faced by Ugandan youth and to fundraise for the Neema African Children’s Project. At the reception, Mr. Rudong Gao, representing the Canada International Choral Festival, also donated $500 CAD to support their cause.
During the opening ceremony, distinguished guests, including Dr. Lisette Canton who is the Artistic Director of the Canada International Choral Festival, Consul General Han Tao, Deputy General Manager of the China Foreign Performing Arts Group Liu Peng, and MP Majid Jowhari, delivered speeches. The subsequent artistic performances featured various choirs and local Canadian singers showcasing diverse cultures and choral arts. The opening ceremony concluded with a joint performance of the Chinese folk song "Jasmine Flower" by all the performers.
Following the splendid opening concert on the first day of the festival, the schedule on July 27th was packed with activities. At 9 a.m., six choral and vocal masterclasses were held at Timothy Eaton Memorial Church. The masterclasses, taught by Dr. Lisette Canton (Artistic Director of the Canada Choral Festival, conductor of Ottawa Bach Choir, and Director of York University Choral Program), Antonio Llaca (Choral Activities Director at Carleton University and conductor of Ottawa’s Coro Vivo), Anna Lynn Mulphy (founder/conductor/artistic director of Canada Young Singer Choir), Kathleen Allan (choral conductor/composer/artistic director), and Dylan Bell (composer, singer, and music producer), were engaging and beneficial for all attendees. Despite language barriers, the Canadian instructors' light-hearted and humorous teaching methods helped the youth choir members from China enter a new world of singing with joy.
After the masterclasses, the intense and competitive choral competition began. The five masterclass instructors immediately shifted to their roles as judges. Twelve competing teams performed in the order determined by a random draw. In addition to scoring and writing comments, each round included one judge providing feedback and answering one question from the competing teams.
Exhibition Concert
After the 4-hour competition, everyone quickly turned their attention to the evening’s exhibition concert, showcasing their best performances and continuing the excellence of the afternoon's competition.
Award Ceremony and Closing Ceremony
In the afternoon of July 28th at 2:30 p.m., the awards and closing ceremony was held as scheduled. Certificates and medals were awarded to four outstanding organizations, two outstanding conductors, and the gold, silver, and bronze winners. The top three choirs in the best choir competition—Guangzhou Grand Theatre Children’s Chorus, the Star Chorus of Guangzhou Middle School, and Beijing Tianqiao Chorus—performed again for the attending guests and audience.
After the closing ceremony in the evening, the participating teams finally had the chance to relax. The festival continued with a high-level celebration concert featuring guests. The Neema Children’s Choir presented an exuberant African-style performance, full of song and dance. Canadian ensembles such as the Cadence male vocal quartet, the Glisten Quartet - a cappella female vocal quartet, renowned Canadian tenor Romulo Delgado and his Mexican musicians, and renowned Canadian soprano Karoline Podolak were invited to perform, bringing the festival to a perfect conclusion.
Building on last year's festival concerts, this year's event collaborated for the first time with the China International Choral Festival and China Foreign Performing Arts Group. With careful preparation, the festival invited choral experts and attracted various distinctive choirs and ensembles, offering four high-level concerts and six choral masterclasses to local audiences and music lovers in Toronto. It established a high-quality choral event platform and received widespread acclaim.
Let us look forward to next year, when we will gather again through singing and music in Canada, making the Canada International Choral Festival a unique musical opportunity for the country.
The festival officially opened on the evening of July 26th at the Toronto Arts Centre in Toronto, Canada. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Canada's Multiculturalism Minister Pablo Rodriguez, Chinese Consul General in Toronto Han Tao, Chairman of China Foreign Cultural Group Li Jinsheng, and Canadian Senator Hu Zixiu sent congratulatory letters, highly praising and encouraging the festival's organizers, sponsors, and supporters for their efforts and contributions to promoting multiculturalism, choral art, and cultural exchange between China and Canada. They wished the festival great success.
That evening, Chinese Consul General Han Tao, Cultural Attaché Han Ning, Canadian Member of Parliament Majid Jowhari, Deputy General Manager Liu Peng from China Foreign Cultural Group, and other 200 guests, choral professionals, and enthusiasts attended the opening reception. Mr. Rudong Gao, Chairman of the Canada International Choral Festival, and Mr. Wei Zhang, Chairman of the Canadian Performing Arts Alliance, delivered welcome speeches on behalf of the organizing committee, expressing gratitude for everyone’s attendance. Special sponsor, Nick Wang, President of Ultra Media, conveyed his heartfelt wishes for the festival’s success.
The Neema Children's Choir from Uganda delivered a speech. The members from this choir were African orphans and impoverished children aged 8 to 18, representing hundreds of thousands of children in Uganda and across Africa affected by AIDS, war, and poverty. They used music performances to raise awareness about the challenges faced by Ugandan youth and to fundraise for the Neema African Children’s Project. At the reception, Mr. Rudong Gao, representing the Canada International Choral Festival, also donated $500 CAD to support their cause.
During the opening ceremony, distinguished guests, including Dr. Lisette Canton who is the Artistic Director of the Canada International Choral Festival, Consul General Han Tao, Deputy General Manager of the China Foreign Performing Arts Group Liu Peng, and MP Majid Jowhari, delivered speeches. The subsequent artistic performances featured various choirs and local Canadian singers showcasing diverse cultures and choral arts. The opening ceremony concluded with a joint performance of the Chinese folk song "Jasmine Flower" by all the performers.
Following the splendid opening concert on the first day of the festival, the schedule on July 27th was packed with activities. At 9 a.m., six choral and vocal masterclasses were held at Timothy Eaton Memorial Church. The masterclasses, taught by Dr. Lisette Canton (Artistic Director of the Canada Choral Festival, conductor of Ottawa Bach Choir, and Director of York University Choral Program), Antonio Llaca (Choral Activities Director at Carleton University and conductor of Ottawa’s Coro Vivo), Anna Lynn Mulphy (founder/conductor/artistic director of Canada Young Singer Choir), Kathleen Allan (choral conductor/composer/artistic director), and Dylan Bell (composer, singer, and music producer), were engaging and beneficial for all attendees. Despite language barriers, the Canadian instructors' light-hearted and humorous teaching methods helped the youth choir members from China enter a new world of singing with joy.
After the masterclasses, the intense and competitive choral competition began. The five masterclass instructors immediately shifted to their roles as judges. Twelve competing teams performed in the order determined by a random draw. In addition to scoring and writing comments, each round included one judge providing feedback and answering one question from the competing teams.
Exhibition Concert
After the 4-hour competition, everyone quickly turned their attention to the evening’s exhibition concert, showcasing their best performances and continuing the excellence of the afternoon's competition.
Award Ceremony and Closing Ceremony
In the afternoon of July 28th at 2:30 p.m., the awards and closing ceremony was held as scheduled. Certificates and medals were awarded to four outstanding organizations, two outstanding conductors, and the gold, silver, and bronze winners. The top three choirs in the best choir competition—Guangzhou Grand Theatre Children’s Chorus, the Star Chorus of Guangzhou Middle School, and Beijing Tianqiao Chorus—performed again for the attending guests and audience.
After the closing ceremony in the evening, the participating teams finally had the chance to relax. The festival continued with a high-level celebration concert featuring guests. The Neema Children’s Choir presented an exuberant African-style performance, full of song and dance. Canadian ensembles such as the Cadence male vocal quartet, the Glisten Quartet - a cappella female vocal quartet, renowned Canadian tenor Romulo Delgado and his Mexican musicians, and renowned Canadian soprano Karoline Podolak were invited to perform, bringing the festival to a perfect conclusion.
Building on last year's festival concerts, this year's event collaborated for the first time with the China International Choral Festival and China Foreign Performing Arts Group. With careful preparation, the festival invited choral experts and attracted various distinctive choirs and ensembles, offering four high-level concerts and six choral masterclasses to local audiences and music lovers in Toronto. It established a high-quality choral event platform and received widespread acclaim.
Let us look forward to next year, when we will gather again through singing and music in Canada, making the Canada International Choral Festival a unique musical opportunity for the country.
For Immediately Release
July 18, 2019
CANADA INTERNATIONAL CHORAL FESTIVAL RETURNS TO TORONTO
THE 1ST SINO-CANADA INTERNATIONAL CHORAL FESTIVAL LAUNCHED
Time flies! The big date of the 3rd Canada International Choral Festival (CICF 2019) and the 1st Sino-Canada International Choral Festival is approaching on July 26-28, 2019!
Preparations are well underway and the festival team is pleased to share the following details.
The 2019 lineup features a diverse range of choirs and vocal groups, spanning genres like music of Canada, Mexico, Africa, China and more. The returning artists include crowd favorites, such as Cadence, the Glisten Quartet, and the Mexican Mariachi Band with tenor Romulo Delgado. Together, they will demonstrate their vocal and choral skills on the last evening Exchange Concert at the Markham P.C.C Auditorium, 22 Esna Park Drive, Markham, ON L3R 1E1. Also, the first-time participant, the Neema Children’s Choir, will perform for this concert besides their showcase in the opening and the competition.
Back for a second year are the Canadian-Chinese choirs from Montreal, Ottawa, Waterloo, and Toronto, whose fusion of Chinese culture and Canadian music kept the audience exhilarated all day long at last year’s fest. They are the Breeze of Harmony Choir, the Montreal Hua Xia Philharmonic Choir, the Yangtze River Performing Arts, the Kaleidoscope Chinese Performing Arts, the Tsinghua Alumni Performing Arts Group, the Red Maple Sunset Glow Cultural Association, and the Waterloo Chinese Philharmonic Choir.
There are several Chinese newcomers included in the 2019 lineup as well. The Children’s Choir of Beijing Tianqiao, the Star Choir of Guangzhou Middle School, the Guangzhou Opera House Children’s Chorus and the Shenzhen Ruby Art Troupe are all many times world choral competition winners. They will open this year’s festival with several Canadian musicians on July 26, 7:30PM, at George Weston Recital Hall, Toronto Centre for the Arts, 5040 Yonge St, North York, ON M2N 6R8.
On the second day, July 27, the tradition continues at the 2019 fest with a “Showcase Concert” night, in which all the choirs will join the performance and a massed choir will sing the Chinese folk song Mo Li Hua.
Another big tradition includes more Master Classes to be arranged this year on the same day. Competition juries consist of Dr. Lisette Canton, Artistic Director of CICF, Founder and Artistic Director of the Ottawa Bach Choir and Head of Choral Music at York University; Mr. Antonio Llaca, Conductor at the Conservatoire de musique de Gatineau, Carleton University, C5 (Chinese Canadian Children’s Choir of Canada) and Coro Vivo Ottawa; Kathleen Allan, Soprano, Composer and Conductor of the Amadeus Choir of Toronto, as well as Director of Choral Studies at the Vancouver Academy of Music; Vocalist, Composer and Educator Dylan Bell; and Anna Lynn Murphy , Conductor and Choral Educator, who will each give a lecture to the participants. Spaces are limited.
The Competition portion of the festival will take place from 1:00-5:00 PM at Timothy Eaton Memorial Church, 230 St Clair Ave W, Toronto, ON M4V 1R5. Each choir will sing two pieces to compete for Gold, Silver and Bronze certificates. The top three winners will be invited to perform at the Closing and Award Ceremony on July 28, 2:30PM, at the Markham P.C.C Auditorium, 22 Esna Park Drive, Markham, ON L3R 1E1.
All access passes are now available online and can be purchased for $30 at Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/2019-canada-international-choral-festival-cicf-tickets-64137313431
Look forward to seeing you this July!
__________________________________
Appendix：CICF2019 Schedule
Choral Leaders Reception (Two seats for each choir)
Evening 7:30PM
Opening Ceremony and Concert of CICF2019
Venue: George Weston Recital Hall, Toronto Centre for the Arts
Address: 5040 Yonge St, North York, ON M2N 6R8
Master Classes (Seven classes)
Afternoon 1:00-5:00PM
Competition of CICF2019
Evening 7:30PM
CICF Showcase Concert
Venue: Timothy Eaton Memorial Church
Address: 230 St Clair Ave W, Toronto, ON M4V 1R5
Awards and Closing Ceremony of CICF2019
Evening 7:30PM
Exchange Concert of CICF2019
Venue: Markham P.C.C Auditorium
Address: 22 Esna Park Drive, Markham, ON L3R 1E1
General Information: The 2019 3rd Canada International Choral Festival, and The 1st Sino-Canada International Choral Festival, runs from July 26-28, 2019 in Toronto. Events will be presented at the Toronto Centre for the Arts, Timothy Eaton Memorial Church, and the Markham P.C.C Auditorium.
Hosts:
Canada International Choral Festival Committee
China International Choral Festival
China Arts and Entertainment Group
Organizers:
Canada-China Cultural Development Association
Canada Performing Artists Networks
Co-organizers
Choirs Ontario
Ottawa Police Chorus
Special Sponsor:
Ultron Media
Main contact:
Website: www.cicf-ficc.ca
Contact email: [email protected], [email protected]
Wechat: CICF
July 18, 2019
CANADA INTERNATIONAL CHORAL FESTIVAL RETURNS TO TORONTO
THE 1ST SINO-CANADA INTERNATIONAL CHORAL FESTIVAL LAUNCHED
Time flies! The big date of the 3rd Canada International Choral Festival (CICF 2019) and the 1st Sino-Canada International Choral Festival is approaching on July 26-28, 2019!
Preparations are well underway and the festival team is pleased to share the following details.
The 2019 lineup features a diverse range of choirs and vocal groups, spanning genres like music of Canada, Mexico, Africa, China and more. The returning artists include crowd favorites, such as Cadence, the Glisten Quartet, and the Mexican Mariachi Band with tenor Romulo Delgado. Together, they will demonstrate their vocal and choral skills on the last evening Exchange Concert at the Markham P.C.C Auditorium, 22 Esna Park Drive, Markham, ON L3R 1E1. Also, the first-time participant, the Neema Children’s Choir, will perform for this concert besides their showcase in the opening and the competition.
Back for a second year are the Canadian-Chinese choirs from Montreal, Ottawa, Waterloo, and Toronto, whose fusion of Chinese culture and Canadian music kept the audience exhilarated all day long at last year’s fest. They are the Breeze of Harmony Choir, the Montreal Hua Xia Philharmonic Choir, the Yangtze River Performing Arts, the Kaleidoscope Chinese Performing Arts, the Tsinghua Alumni Performing Arts Group, the Red Maple Sunset Glow Cultural Association, and the Waterloo Chinese Philharmonic Choir.
There are several Chinese newcomers included in the 2019 lineup as well. The Children’s Choir of Beijing Tianqiao, the Star Choir of Guangzhou Middle School, the Guangzhou Opera House Children’s Chorus and the Shenzhen Ruby Art Troupe are all many times world choral competition winners. They will open this year’s festival with several Canadian musicians on July 26, 7:30PM, at George Weston Recital Hall, Toronto Centre for the Arts, 5040 Yonge St, North York, ON M2N 6R8.
On the second day, July 27, the tradition continues at the 2019 fest with a “Showcase Concert” night, in which all the choirs will join the performance and a massed choir will sing the Chinese folk song Mo Li Hua.
Another big tradition includes more Master Classes to be arranged this year on the same day. Competition juries consist of Dr. Lisette Canton, Artistic Director of CICF, Founder and Artistic Director of the Ottawa Bach Choir and Head of Choral Music at York University; Mr. Antonio Llaca, Conductor at the Conservatoire de musique de Gatineau, Carleton University, C5 (Chinese Canadian Children’s Choir of Canada) and Coro Vivo Ottawa; Kathleen Allan, Soprano, Composer and Conductor of the Amadeus Choir of Toronto, as well as Director of Choral Studies at the Vancouver Academy of Music; Vocalist, Composer and Educator Dylan Bell; and Anna Lynn Murphy , Conductor and Choral Educator, who will each give a lecture to the participants. Spaces are limited.
The Competition portion of the festival will take place from 1:00-5:00 PM at Timothy Eaton Memorial Church, 230 St Clair Ave W, Toronto, ON M4V 1R5. Each choir will sing two pieces to compete for Gold, Silver and Bronze certificates. The top three winners will be invited to perform at the Closing and Award Ceremony on July 28, 2:30PM, at the Markham P.C.C Auditorium, 22 Esna Park Drive, Markham, ON L3R 1E1.
All access passes are now available online and can be purchased for $30 at Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/2019-canada-international-choral-festival-cicf-tickets-64137313431
Look forward to seeing you this July!
__________________________________
Appendix：CICF2019 Schedule
- July 26
Choral Leaders Reception (Two seats for each choir)
Evening 7:30PM
Opening Ceremony and Concert of CICF2019
Venue: George Weston Recital Hall, Toronto Centre for the Arts
Address: 5040 Yonge St, North York, ON M2N 6R8
- July 27
Master Classes (Seven classes)
Afternoon 1:00-5:00PM
Competition of CICF2019
Evening 7:30PM
CICF Showcase Concert
Venue: Timothy Eaton Memorial Church
Address: 230 St Clair Ave W, Toronto, ON M4V 1R5
- July 28
Awards and Closing Ceremony of CICF2019
Evening 7:30PM
Exchange Concert of CICF2019
Venue: Markham P.C.C Auditorium
Address: 22 Esna Park Drive, Markham, ON L3R 1E1
General Information: The 2019 3rd Canada International Choral Festival, and The 1st Sino-Canada International Choral Festival, runs from July 26-28, 2019 in Toronto. Events will be presented at the Toronto Centre for the Arts, Timothy Eaton Memorial Church, and the Markham P.C.C Auditorium.
Hosts:
Canada International Choral Festival Committee
China International Choral Festival
China Arts and Entertainment Group
Organizers:
Canada-China Cultural Development Association
Canada Performing Artists Networks
Co-organizers
Choirs Ontario
Ottawa Police Chorus
Special Sponsor:
Ultron Media
Main contact:
Website: www.cicf-ficc.ca
Contact email: [email protected], [email protected]
Wechat: CICF