Renata Van Vliet, composer

Renata is an emerging composer, living in Kingston, Ontario. She holds a Bachelor of Music from Queen’s University (2021), where she studied organ with Michael Capon and composition with Dean Burry and John Burge, and a Master of Music in Composition from the University of Ottawa (2023) where she studied under the guidance of John Armstrong. Her awards include the George N. Maybee Memorial Scholarship, the Maurice Dubin Prize in Composition, the Graham George Memorial Scholarship in Composition, and the Beaudry Somcynsky Prize in Classical Music Composition.

Renata’s music is often inspired by the mystery and vastness of nature. She likes to explore texture and timbre in her compositions and is especially drawn to harmony and layers of melody and counterpoint. Her compositions include choral music, organ and piano music, music for string quartet, percussion, orchestra and various chamber ensembles. She also enjoys electroacoustic composition and has recently started composing for visual media.

Renata’s music has been performed in various cities in Canada, including Kingston, Ottawa, Toronto and Montreal.  Her compositions have been featured with the Toronto Strings Composition Workshop and the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra New Generation Film Composer’s Project, and her orchestral work, Cathedral of Trees, was chosen as an alternate with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra Explore the Score program.  Her organ piece, Cantilène, is in the process of being published with the Royal Canadian College of Organists.   Renata is a member of the Association of Canadian Women Composers and is also an Associate Composer with the Canadian Music Centre.

Kevin Hayward

KEVIN HAYWARD is a Canadian composer and trumpet player from Toronto, Ontario, currently studying trumpet performance and composition at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Music, where he is privileged to study with Anita McAlister and Yuhan Zhou. He has collaborated as a composer with the Weston Silver band and was the winner of the 2020 Hannaford Youth Band young composers’ competition. 

His fanfare ‘New Beginnings’ was recently performed at the 2024 University of Toronto New Music Festival by the U of T Wind Ensemble, under the direction of Dr. Gillian Mackay. 

Kevin has performed with the Weston Silver Band, the Etobicoke Philharmonic, Mississauga Symphony, and North York Concert Orchestras, and was a finalist in the 2021 Hannaford Youth Band Rising Stars solo competition. 

Survey Results

We want to thank everyone who participated and share the results and comments from our community.

Stakeholder Survey

Let us know what jumps out for you.  We were impressed and encouraged by the many warm comments but also felt that our audience was on the same page as our leadership on the areas where we still need more work. 

While we have made great strides in representing diversity in our programming, we know we need to do more here.  You’ve also told us that you want us to remove barriers to attendance with some lower cost events and free tickets for the disadvantaged. 

We were delighted to see such an interest in innovative programming with mixed media and multi-arts components.  Your support is empowering! 

Please feel free to share your follow up comments on the survey below. 

Survey Comments
First
Last

Canadian Panorama

Winds of the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra

Ronald Royer, Conductor

Works by
Howard Cable, Alex Eddington, John S. Gray, Jim McGrath, Chris Meyer, Alexander Rapoport, and Ronald Royer.

In celebration of Canada’s 150th birthday, the SPO has released its first commercial CD recording, featuring The Winds of the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Ronald Royer, with Sarah Jeffrey (oboe), Gabriel Radford (horn) and Kaye Royer (clarinet). Members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Sarah Jeffrey (1st oboe), and Gabriel Radford (3rd horn) are featured in Royer’s Rhapsody for Oboe, Horn and Wind Ensemble.

We gratefully acknowledge the support of FACTOR in the making of this recording. The CD launch of the CD is generously supported by FACTOR, the SOCAN Foundation1 the Toronto Arts Council and the Ontario Arts Council.

Digital Download on Amazon Music

Reviews


” … this recording and the music so beautifully performed on it are. and will continue to be for many years. a precious gift to us all in the year of our nation’s 150th birthday.”

Allan Pulker
The Whole Note

“I’ve been listening to one such treasure [CD sent to the author for review], a CD called Canadian Panorama. It’s a tuneful recording, a natural way to celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary.”

Leslie Barcza
barczablog.com

“Kudos to the Scarborough Phil… their latest venture certainly merits accolades.”

Jack MacQuarrie
The Whole Note

“The winds of the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra has a rich ensemble sound I don’t normally encounter with wind ensembles. If you like wind ensemble music, this disc is for you.”

Ralph Graves
WTJU 91.1FM – The University of Virginia

BEHIND THE SCENES

amuna baraka-clarke

Amuna Baraka-Clarke
Amuna Baraka-Clarke

Poet, Storyteller, Community Organizer

amuna baraka-clarke is striving to leave the world more beautiful than she inherited it.  She is a published poet and award winner who has been featured in various anthologies, textbooks, documentaries and magazines.  She is a strong supporter of cultural arts production and inclusive communities where different perspectives can take flight.  amuna dances every single day and is never not thinking about travel. 

Canadian Expeditions

Playlist on YouTube

World Premiere Recordings (Tracks 2-15)

Track 1 was previously released on Night Star, Chamber Music by Ronald Royer – Akashic Classics, AE23001.

Odin Quartet – Alex Toskov and Tanya Charles Iveniuk, Violins, Veronica Lee (1) and Laurence Schaufele (14), Violas, and Samuel Bisson, Cello.

Tracks

  1.  Ronald Royer – Danzón Overture Remix, for String Quartet and Percussion (6:08) Odin Quartet, Alejandro Céspedes, Percussion
  2. Bruno Degazio – Variations on The Wayfaring Stranger, for Clarinet, Cello and Piano (10:04) Kaye Royer, Clarinet, Ronald Royer, Cello, Talisa Blackman, Piano 
  3. Brandon Walker – Pastoral, for Oboe, Violin, Viola and Cello (4:41)  Gillian Howard, Oboe, Corey Gemmell, Violin, Brenna McLane, Viola, Ronald Royer, Cello 
  4. Elizabeth Raum – Conversations for Flute and Piano (Excerpts) Lesley Duff, Flute, Talisa Blackman, Piano 
    • Greeting, No. 1 (2:00)
    • Gossip, No. 3 (2:43)
    • Quarrel, No. 4 (2:04)
  1. Iranian Canadian Composers of Toronto (ICOT) – Images, for Clarinet, Trumpet, Bassoon, and Cello
    Kaye Royer, Clarinet, Declan Scott, Trumpet, Larkin Hinder, Bassoon, Ronald Royer, Cello
    • Maziar Heidari – Dunes, for Trumpet and Bassoon (2:32)
    • Keyan Emami – Canebrake, for Clarinet and Cello (2:03)
    • Saman Shahi – Carnival, for Clarinet, Trumpet, Bassoon and Cello (2:42)
  2. Elizabeth Raum – Elegy from Phanton Drum, for Oboe, Violin, Viola and Cello (4:58) Gillian Howard, Oboe, Corey Gemmell, Violin, Brenna McLane, Viola, Ronald Royer, Cello
  3. Ronald Royer – Toccata, for Violin and Piano (4:00) Corey Gemmell, Violin, Lisa Tahara, Piano 
  4.  Rebekah Cummings – Embryo, for Flute and Electronics (8:37) Laurel Swindon, Flute
  5.  Daniel Mehdizadeh – Koozeh (Two Thousand Silent Pots of Clay), for Wind Ensemble (4:43) Winds of the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra, Ronald Royer, Conductor
  6. Samuel Bisson – EPITAPH foratonality, Concertpiece for String Quartet and Orchestra (11:09) Odin Quartet, Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra, Ronald Royer, Conductor
  7. 11, Encore: Ronald Royer – Variations on Green Bushes, for Solo Violin (6:51)  Corey Gemmell, Violin 

The Canadian Expedition album invites listeners to buckle up for a variety of musical journeys. Written by 10 Canadian composers, these excursions are inspired by musical and cultural elements from Canada, the United States, Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East. These expeditions range from the exciting cinematic orchestral showpiece, Epitaph, to the intimacy and humour of the solo violin Variations on Green Bushes. The composers use a variety of styles, instruments and themes, engaging listeners in thoughtful, and fun adventures. 

This album also is a sequel to the SPO’s first commercial album, Canadian Panorama (2017). Both albums showcase a group of Canadian composers and professional performers who are part of SPO’s extended family. The SPO is thankful for all their efforts on this album, and we are pleased to present their talents to a national and international audience through this recording. 

Meet our new Board Chair, Dr. Paul Tichauer

Paul Tichauer, Board Chair

SPO is pleased to announce the election of a new Board Chair, Paul Tichauer. Paul brings a wealth of knowledge and skills that will be invaluable as SPO continues to thrive and respond to the challenges of the times. Paul A. Tichauer MA (Oxon), PhD (MIT), MBA, is a Rhodes Scholar and a highly experienced, successful CEO and COO with early roots in materials technology and marketing. He has held senior leadership positions with a broad array of companies – large, small, public, private – in Canada, the United States and Europe. Most recently, he was President of the Langen Packaging Group, a global manufacturer of highly automated packaging machinery systems based in Toronto and the Netherlands.

Since 2012, he has guided numerous CEOs and other senior business leaders to greater success through work as a professional mentor and business coach. The annual revenues of his clients’ businesses range from $3 million to over $1.2 billion and span a broad array of sectors and industries.

Formerly serving as Treasurer on the SPO Board, Paul has stepped up to the challenge of piloting the Board of Directors as they begin their first Strategic Planning Process, renew community connections, and work for sustainable growth responsive to the community who support, enjoy, and collaborate with, our work.

Paul is also a valued member of our cello section!

Nicholas Ma

Nicholas Ma (b. 2001) is a student pianist-composer completing a double major in Piano Performance and Composition in addition to a minor in Music Theory at McGill University’s Schulich School of Music.

At McGill, Nicholas obtained two consecutive Composer-in-Residence positions for the McGill Schulich Singers (2023/24) and Brass Quintet (2022/23), in addition to a McGill commission as a result of obtaining the Luba Zuk Piano Duo Composition Prize. He also received the Luba Zuk Scholarship in Piano Performance, the Frank Mills Scholarship, and the Paul-Marcel Gélinas et Verna-Marie Parr Gélinas Piano Award, enabling him to further his studies under the tutelage of Canadian composers Melissa Hui, Jean Lesage and Chris Paul Harman, as well as Georgian concert pianist Marina Mdivani.

Nicholas’ recent activities include a commission by the Coalition for Music Education in Canada to compose a celebratory song for 2022/23 based on Mimi O’Bonsawin’s lyrics as part of the Music Monday program, a yearly event where a song of celebration is sung by hundreds of thousands of children and youth in schools and communities across Canada. This work later received a SOCAN Young Composer Award in the Under 21 Choral Category.

Nicholas also served as the Vice-President of the McGill Association of Student Composers for the 2022-2023 year, in addition to being the Schulich Liaison for the Montréal Heart of the City Piano Program. He is currently experimenting with creating works that explore the boundaries between intertextuality, layered meaning, and humor.

Follow Nicholas on:

Instagram Youtube

Qiushi Jiang

Qiushi Jiang is a Toronto-based composer whose music strives to bring a bit of magic to the mundane everyday life. He has composed music for a diverse array of settings, including film, opera, choir, orchestra, and video games. Some of his recent works have been performed by Cantabile Choirs of Kingston, UofT Opera, and Babεl Chorus. Qiushi holds a BMus in composition from the University of Toronto, where he studied with Abigail Richardson-Schulte, Alexander Rapoport, and Christos Hatzis. During his time of study, he was the recipient of the Arthur Plettner Scholarship and the Robert & Jean Elliott Mcbroom Scholarship. Qiushi is also the co-founder of AutumnRock.dev, a music technology startup where he works on building creative audio plugins and tools used by millions of music makers around the world.

 

Qiushi Jiang is a Toronto-based composer whose music strives to bring a bit of magic to the mundane everyday life. He has composed music for a diverse array of settings, including film, opera, choir, orchestra, and video games. Some of his recent works have been performed by Cantabile Choirs of Kingston, UofT Opera, and Babεl Chorus. Qiushi holds a BMus in composition from the University of Toronto, where he studied with Abigail Richardson-Schulte, Alexander Rapoport, and Christos Hatzis. During his time of study, he was the recipient of the Arthur Plettner Scholarship and the Robert & Jean Elliott Mcbroom Scholarship. Qiushi is also the co-founder of AutumnRock.dev, a music technology startup where he works on building creative audio plugins and tools used by millions of music makers around the world.

 
 

Benjamin Fraser

I was twelve when my parents told me I couldn’t be a Jedi when I grew up. So, I decided, I wanted to be a film composer.

Since then, I had the honor of scoring short 4 films in 2023: Cash Cow, by Shubham Chhabra, screened at VAFF (Vancouver Asian Film Festival); The Gift Of Life by Aviel Kurulkar, screened at the GRFF (Grand River Film Festival); and films with the Vancouver Film School and Nova Scotia College of Arts and Design.

Outside of film, my pieces premiered in the Nocturne Halifax Arts Festival (2023) and the Open Waters Festival (2024).  Additionally, I wrote for the Alkali Collective (2023) and The Rostova Quartet (2024).

Currently, I study Composition with Amy Brandon at Dalhousie University, where I have participated in workshops with The Bozzini Quartet and Conductor Karl Hizer.