From the Podium at season’s end
June 30, 2023
Dear Friends and Supporters of Pro Coro Canada,
Our 2022–2023 season has come to an end! And so, as we move into the lovely summer months, I want to take a moment to review and reflect on our concerts and events. The pandemic environment did not adhere to performance seasons, and also this past year was still a transition back to normal. But the normal from before is not quite the way we do things now; there are adaptations in our productions, in our presentations and in the way the audience engages with Pro Coro Canada.
A highlight for me personally was of course the opening concert of the season The Nightingale. It was 10 years, almost to the day, that I performed with Pro Coro Canada for the first time in September 2012. And we all were very excited to revive some of the same works, in particular the eponymous work by Ugis Praulins, with our long-time friend, recorder virtuoso Matthias Maute. Also on the program was Holten’s Regn, Rusk Og Rosenbusk, a work that has accompanied me for almost three decades.
At the reception afterwards I was gifted a book that summarized the last 10 years of concerts with Pro Coro Canada, and several dear friends recounted musical, and other, memories from the past. I invite you to peruse the archive where each concert is listed with the full repertoire, a great treasure and also witness of Pro Coro’s innovative and ground-breaking programming.
As the season was a bit of an anniversary for me, I programmed several of my personal favourites, including the Petite Messe Solennelle by Gioachino Rossini. His work is somewhat of a chamber opera with a sacred text, and he himself refers to it as ‘the last of my sins of old age’. I sang this work many years ago as a young tenor and the spirited fugues, the dramatic solo duos and trios, the tenor aria and the final Agnus Dei have always kept me engaged. Pro Coro was fortunate to collaborate with the voice studio of Prof. John Tessier (UofA). He himself took on the tenor role, while three of his students joined as emerging artists.
The work is scored for piano and harmonium accompaniment, but I’ve come to prefer to replace the harmonium with accordion. It is a seldom heard instrument in the classical concert setting, and under-appreciated. Accordionist Matti Pulkki showcased great skill and musicality on his instrument, and Jessica Robertson - replacing the original pianist on 48 hours notice - held everything together.
The most unique and daring program was part of our Moonshot series. The Dayking featured the Growlers Choir from Montreal, a group of 16 heavy-metal vocalists who are trained in growling, screaming, and other extended vocal techniques. Their founder and composer Pierre-Luc Senécal is a master at creatively using the voice to create soundscapes that are human at their core, but also sound like rocks, wind, water, or breaking wood.
I wrote extensively in a blog about the concert and the program, please read more here.
Another favourite of mine is the All-Night Vigil by Sergei Rachmaninoff. Pro Coro Canada partnered with the Da Camera Singers (dir. Laura Hawley) to present this masterwork in Edmonton and in Camrose. Working with other community choirs is always an exciting undertaking, especially when it results in a 60-voice strong choir performing a cappella for one full hour. It was a feast of sounds, and a powerful and emotional experience. Listen to the concert for free on our TV channel throughout July and August. You can read more about the work on our blog with the contribution by Prof. Melanie Turgeon.
From March to May, I was on parental leave! I am grateful to Pro Coro Canada and the Board of Directors for providing this time off to spend with my family and Eva Rose (3/3/2023). Every day is an adventure and discovery with a new human, and it’s been a blessing to spend time with the little one.
Kari Turunnen and Jonathan Velasco joined us here in Edmonton to direct the Good Friday and the Missae IX concert respectively. I believe it was a welcome change for the choir to get new perspectives and explore new styles.
To end the 2022-2023 season, I selected The Tower and The Garden by Gregory Spears as anchor. The music and text influenced the other musical choices, in particular my choice of While We War Against Ourselves. This composition is by a dear friend from Norway, Torbjørn Dyrud, whom I met during my studies in Stockholm, Sweden, 20 years ago. Torbjørn is an accomplished conductor, composer, producer and organist, and unfortunately, a bit too far away for a regular Fika (Swedish: making time for friends and colleagues to share a cup of coffee (or tea) and a little something to eat). But we talk monthly on the phone and exchange news from here and there. His work, and particularly his imaginative setting of the text, had a great impact on me and also on the choir. I’d like to share the work again as a special feature for the summer, have a listen here.
On several occasions throughout the season I was invited to speak and present on choral music and Pro Coro Canada’s work. I’d like to invite you to listen to my conversation with Tom Metzger from Choir Success as we talk about how the pandemic has shaped our work.
Our Emerging Artist EAR program flourished and we welcomed 4 young conductors, and many more young composers for rehearsals, workshops and concerts. 24 singers joined #connect and performed their feature concert A Thought Of War. I really enjoy working with young artists and letting them explore the challenges of a professional setting, with expectations around individual preparations, working a cappella with a tuning fork, and getting ready in a short, condensed time period. This upcoming season, 12 #connect singers can audition to work in a feature concert alongside 8 Pro Coro singers to present challenging repertoire.
We Breathe In Stars
Pro Coro Canada was one of the first professional choirs to re-start working after the pandemic shut down performing arts. We commissioned 8 Edmonton composers to write short works for four voices that could be practised and performed in small, distanced gatherings. After having performed the works in our 2021-2022 season in Edmonton, Camrose and Spruce Grove, we recorded the music last November.
It’s always exciting to release a CD, but in this instance, presenting 8 Alberta composers, we’re really proud of our achievement and our commitment to local Choral Art.
While it seems like we’re back to doing our regular concerts, we’re still feeling the impact of the pandemic. Our audience numbers remain low at only about 40 to 50% of pre-2020, and we’re also experiencing a financial toll as many service providers and venues moved their prices higher in-line with the economy. It is my intention to keep our season affordable and also provide steady contracts to our vocal artists. It is a challenging balancing act.
A different, positive impact on Pro Coro Canada is of course our shift to presenting the performances ‘off the floor’ as a livestream on our own channel at tv.procoro.ca. This has been welcomed heartily by many across the globe, and we have now regularly viewers from over 30 nations, from as far as South-Africa, New Zealand, and China. The largest segment of viewers is from Canada, followed by Europe. We also often have viewers from Edmonton, and we’re told that it provides a welcome option when one is not well enough to go out, or the driving conditions are not great.
It’s been a great season with Pro Coro Canada. I am always amazed by the vocal artistry and power of our singers, be it in rehearsal or performance, and their interest in new music and new styles! We have discovered some new favourites together, and dwelled in old masters. I look forward to starting up again in September with one of our all-time favourite works, Path of Miracles.
Until then, enjoy your summer, and see you in the Fall.
Michael Zaugg
Managing and Artistic Director