All students are encouraged to sign up for our Winter Recital on Sunday February 26th here at the Conservatory. This is a great opportunity to practice performing in front of other, share something you are working on and to hear other MCMA musicians.

There will be three recitals:

1:00pm – A recital for students performing at the Winnipeg Music Festival, RCM exam participants and all

other classical students.

2:15pm – A recital for students performing at the Winnipeg Music Festival, RCM exam participants and all other classical students.

3:30pm – Jazz, Contemporary, Folk and younger years students who are performing introductory repertoire.

Talk to your teacher about signing up or visit Student Services. We hope to see you all there!

Both former students of MCMA violin faculty member Karen Warner, Kari Nelson and Rosemary Siemens have performance careers that are taking off!

Kari Nelson opened for Collin Raye on February 9th in Iowa with Billy Arnold. Check out their website! Here!

And here’s a great video of Kari performing at Tooties Orchard Lounge in Nashville Tennessee.

Rosemary Siemens performs with the singing group Destino check out their website here! Rosemary is also currenty in the top 20 of Canada’s got Talent. Here is her really cute promo video! You can also follow Rosemary on Twitter

Amazing work!

“I believe that music is for everybody, and I see it as a way of sharing and giving back. I believe that art is strengthened through sharing. I love helping people discover their musicality, and I love breaking down movements and ideas in order to better explain and understand them.”

MCMA violin instructor Beth Hamilton’s words reflect the positive attitude that any student would be lucky to have in a teacher.  Her versatility as a musician is astounding.  Beth teaches both classical violin and fiddle; she plays guitar, sings and writes her own music.

Beth started playing at seven years old.  She studied classical violin, and has played in Celtic and French Canadian fiddle groups since childhood.  She later went to The University of Manitoba, graduating with a double major in music history and violin.  She then went to The University of Ottawa to complete a Masters in Musicology and Medieval Studies.

Beth is following her passion, “I always wanted to be a professional musician, I just didn’t always believe it was possible. Now, I am thrilled that my livelihood involves professional playing and teaching!”   And boy, does Beth teach and play a lot!  She is frequently gigging around the city, while maintaining a busy private studio and teaching in the MCMA Outreach program.

This MCMA instructor is no stranger to being nervous despite her busy performance schedule.  Beth has a very effective strategy to curb this all too common affliction, “I deal with nerves by practicing being nervous; I practice in unfamiliar locations, do practice performances, and try to throw in different variables to practice being distracted. If I am comfortable dealing with nervousness and distraction, then dealing with that in a performance situation can just feel normal.”  What good advice to pass on to students!

After developing tendonitis from a flawed movement technique early in her university study, Beth decided to study anatomy and injury prevention.  “The study of the body and movement allows me to better understand how the body works, and what it does best. From there, I can choose movements and positions that are kind to the body, and I encourage my students to do the same. “   She emphasizes to students that, “Playing an instrument within a range of movements that are kind to the body means that playing sounds better, feels better, and has more potential to be a life-long activity.”

Check out Beth on February 24 at 6 pm in the Cabane à Sucre at Festival du Voyageur with folk band Red Moon Road.  If you miss that, the band’s CD release party is at 7 pm on March 17 at the West End Cultural Centre.  Is the singer-songwriter genre more your thing?  Then head over to McNally Robinson to hear Beth play solo on Saturday April 7 or check out her myspace page to sample some of her fine recordings.

Want to know what Beth is listening to?

Check this out!

Oh and this too!

Christine Fellows will lead this twelve week intensive course that examines the creative proces of songwriting and finishes with a unique performance opportunity for students.

For more information and/or to register, call 943-6090.

Ages 16+

Tuesdays 6:00 – 7:00 pm

12 weeks starting March 6, 2012

$175

Instructor Don Anderson will look at the careers and the personalities of five of the conductors he most admires. They’re colourful and magnetic characters. Each one brings special skills and interests to the job, and all of them maintain the highest standards of performance.

Through DVD concerts and documentaries, and CD recordings, you will experience the passionate intensity of Russian maestro Valery Gergiev; the Olympian integrity of Dutch conductor Bernard Haitink; the unsurpassed versatility of Australia’s Sir Charles Mackerras; the joyful adventurousness of the Estonian conductor, Neeme Järvi; and the all-round brilliance of Germany’s Carlos Kleiber.

Featured composers include Beethoven, Mozart, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Handel, Mahler, and Johann Strauss, Jr. Among the orchestras to be seen and heard are many of the world’s greatest: Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, Czech Philharmonic, and Mariinsky Theatre (St. Petersburg).

The course is made up of five two-and-a-half hour sessions, Tuesdays from 10:30 am to 1:00 pm. They take place at the Millennium Library, 251 Donald Street, in the Buchwald room on the second floor. The fee is $75. An evening session will also be offered, provided that a minimum of 12 students commit to attending it by March 1.

To enrol or for more information, call the Manitoba Conservatory of Music & Arts at 204 943 6090 or email info@mcma.ca.

Please note that course contents, dates, times, locations, and fees are subject to change.

Faculty member Dr. Ian Hodges is no stranger to hard work, perseverance and versatility.  As a child Ian said he wanted to “be a professional athlete or a rock star.  Once I realized there was no professional soccer league in Canada, I focused my efforts more on music.”  His determination was exemplified at the age of 14; Ian worked two paper routes to be able to afford his first guitar.  He then spent the next ten years focusing on rock, blues, country and jazz, and began performing professionally at the age of 17. Within a few years Ian achieved “the rock star dream”, touring Canada with rock, jazz, fusion and country bands.

Ian left the “touring musician” world to study classical guitar at the University of Manitoba.  He spent the next twenty years studying and working professionally in the classical music community.  “I had the opportunity to study with 3 great teachers – privately with Norbert Kraft in Toronto, with Bruce Holzman at Florida State University, and with Jeff Van at the University of Minnesota.  I am grateful for what I learned.  More than one great musician had suggested that it was important to have a broad perspective, that studying with different teachers was of tremendous value, and I experienced that first hand.”

Ian has an extended classical guitar tour of Manitoba and Saskatchewan coming up this April.  When I asked if he got nervous before a performance, he had this to say, “Only if there has not been enough time to prepare properly.  If I have done my work, then it is excitement as much as anything.  I love to play music for an audience.  I do prefer playing with a group or ensemble – I like the larger sound and the social interaction. “Ian’s advice on dodging nerves is very practical: “prepare thoroughly- if you know you can play the music, the nerves are not that bad.”  He advises musicians of all levels to have “practice performances” in order to prepare for competitions, exams and auditions.

Ian’s scheduled performances motivate him to keep practicing.  If he is preparing for a classical guitar gig, he tries to get three hours of practice in a day for months before the performance.  What a great example of dedication for our MCMA students!

The example that Ian sets for our students is nothing new.  As a high school student, Ian’s friends discovered his natural understanding of the guitar and frequently asked for help.  Ian discovered his ability for teaching through this experience and began his long teaching career at the tender age of 17!  Ian’s perspective of the influence of a teacher is a good one: “I fully understand the larger role that a good teacher can play in a student’s life – we can function as a mentor, a role model, and we can introduce a student to great music that they may not encounter otherwise.  I have been inspired by the many great teachers that I have encountered over the years, and hope to offer my own hard-won knowledge and experience to my community.”

We are so lucky to have Dr. Ian Hodges as a part of the MCMA faculty.  If you would like to see Ian play, keep your ear to the ground this spring and summer.  Ian plays frequently at the Current, McNally Robinson and Mardi Jazz.

Check out what Ian is listening to:

MCMA Faculty members Michael Daher, Skender Sefa and Ryszard Tyborowski will be performing in this spectacular evening of music.

Other performers include Alan Nagelberg, Andrew Erickson, Bobby Knott, Darryl Stoyko, Emily Sabados, Evan Giroux, James Kollar, Jordan Laidlaw,the Manitoba Classical Guitar Duo,  and the U of M Classical Guitar Trio.

When: Saturday, February 11, 2012 @ 8:00pm

Where: Manitoba Museum Planetaium Auditorium 190 Rupert Aveune

Admission: Tickets $20/$15/$10 Please call 667-5250 for more info

This is an outstanding accomplishment, way to go Adam!

Shannon Davis, Norine Harty and Ray Hope

Thank you Shannon for contributing so very much to our team!

Biography

Heitha Forsyth is a gifted vocalist who is a favourite of Winnipeg audiences. She performs many styles of music including jazz, world, r&b, soul, funk, rock and country. She has numerous notable performances with Winnipeg groups including Steve Kirby’s Oceanic Jazz Orchestra, the Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra, the University of Manitoba Jazz Orchestra, the Ron Paley Big Band, Rocki Rolletti, The Retro Rhythm Review, The Solutions and her alias: up-and-coming country sensation “Sol James”. She has been a late-night headliner for the past five International Jazz Winnipeg Festivals as well as opening for Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Centre Jazz Orchestra in 2008. A natural communicator in all styles, Heitha brings warmth and wit to the stage, enticing audiences with repertoire that’s both familiar and fresh.

“I can hear you reaching for the special raw place that makes music come from the soul…“  – Houston Person 2007

Education/Training

Bachelor of Music – Performance, University of Manitoba (2008)

Career Highights

Heitha has numerous performance highlights, her most recent:

Headliner – New Year’s Eve Celebrations at the Forks, Winnipeg MB

Headliner – Manitoba Country Music Association Showcase as “Sol James”, Winnipeg, MB

Headliner – Barge Festival at The Forks as “Sol James”, Winnipeg, MB

Headliner – Canada Day Celebrations at the Forks as “Sol James”, Winnipeg, MB

Headliner – TD International Winnipeg Jazz Festival late night series as “Sol James”, Winnipeg, MB

Featured Vocalist – NHL Jets announcement at the Forks, Winnipeg, MB

Website

www.heidjazz.com