Pax Christi Chorale

Sunday, May 6, 2012 – 3:00 pm
Koerner Hall,
TELUS Centre for Performance & Learning
273 Bloor Street West, Toronto

Pax Christi Chorale and Youth Choir
Shannon Mercer,soprano
Krisztina Szabo, mezzo-soprano
Keith Klassen, tenor
Special guest, Roderick Williams, baritone
with orchestra

To crown Pax Christi Chorale’s 25^th anniversary we will present Elgar’s The Kingdom, acknowledged by the great English conductor, Sir Adrian Boult as Elgar’s choral masterpiece, in Toronto’s spectacular Koerner Hall. Rarely heard in North America and last performed in Canada over 25 years ago, The Kingdom is a monumental work of drama, power and beauty. We are delighted to feature British baritone sensation Roderick Williams in his Canadian debut. In 2009, Mr Williams was labeled “Britain’s best baritone” by Andrew Porter in Opera magazine. Listen to a sample of ‘The Kingdom’ here.

Tickets: Premier -$60 / Level 1 – $50 / Level 2 – $45 / Level 3 – $35

To order tickets, click here.

For directions to Koerner Hall, click here.

25 Years of Singing in the City

Masterpieces Old and New

Join us to celebrate our 25th anniversary with great food, exciting live auction items, a tour of fine Canadian art, and beautiful music.

The highpoint of our celebration will be the première of Artistic Director Stephanie Martin’s string quartet “From a distant island”.

Written during a year of musical inspiration, this lovely new work integrates the diverse sights and sounds of the remote Isle of Wight with the serenity of the convent where Stephanie stayed during her sabbatical.Inspired by scenes of daily life, views of the beautiful green countryside and local folksongs, the works speaks to the meeting between the old and modern worlds.

For more information about our 25th Anniversary Celebration, click here

Friday, January 27, 2012
Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP
Bay Adelaide Centre
333 Bay Street, 24th Floor

6:30 pm – Gourmet Reception
7:30 pm – World Première of String Quartet No. 1 “From a distant island”

To order your tickets, click here.

$150 per person
Charitable income tax receipts issued for portion above costs.

Benjamin Britten Saint Nicolas

Stephanie Martin Winter Nights  world première

The Pax Christi Chorale and Youth Choir, with guests: James McLean, Bruce Ubukata and Stephen Ralls, Havergal College Chamber Choir and 
Boy Soloists from Canadian Children’s Opera Company.

At Grace Church on-the-Hill

Pax Christi Chorale and Youth Choir were joined by the Havergal College Chamber Choir and boy soloists from the Canadian Children’s Opera Company in a performance of Benjamin Britten’s vividly crafted Saint Nicolas cantata.  This highly evocative work depicts episodes in the life of the real Saint Nicholas, patron saint of children, scholars, and seamen. It is musical storytelling at its best, at once playful and serious, and even includes several audience carols.

A highlight of the programme was the world première of Artistic Director Stephanie Martin’s Winter Nights, commissioned especially for this concert. The work is a lovely setting of four winter-themed poems for choir, string orchestra, percussion and tenor soloist, dedicated to Founder and President Emily Burgetz and husband Bruce, the foremost sponsors of Pax Christi Chorale in its first 25 years.

“I follow Britten’s vision of the “holy triangle” between composer, performer and audience. A new piece can satisfy the intellectual needs of the composer, respect the performing forces and move the audience”.

Stephanie Martin – on Winter Nights

Click here to read the complete interview with Stephanie Martin, Artistic Director and composer of Winter Nights

Saturday, December 10, 2011 – 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm

Church of Saint Mary Magdalene
477 Manning Ave., Toronto

Click here for directions

Pax Christi Chorale and the Gallery Choir of the Church of Saint Mary Magdelene
Stephanie Martin, Artistic Director
Allison Cecelia Arends, soprano
Richard Whittall, counter-tenor
Graham Thomson, tenor
Michael York, baritone
with orchestra

Designed especially for the younger crowd, we encourage you to bring your children to introduce them to some of the highlights from Handel’s glorious Messiah.

Children admitted free. Adults pay what you can at the door.

This concert is not part of our annual subscription.

October 22, 2011: Hi-Way Church, Barrie ON
October 23, 2011: Grace Church-on-the-Hill, Toronto ON

The Pax Christi Chorale and Youth Choir, with guests Melanie Conly, Nina Scott-Stoddart, Graham Thomson, and Benjamin Covey performed the rarely-heard Salieri Mass in D-Major, paired with Mozart’s Regina Coeli, Ave verum corpus, and soprano Melanie Conly’s fresh interpretation of Exultate Jubilate.

Listen to an excerpt from the ‘Agnus Dei’ recorded on October 23, 2011 Concert

“As voices soared and diminished, seamlessly weaving through intricate contrapuntal passages then rising together in magnificent harmonies, this shared, great love of choral singing encompassed all who were privileged to be present.”
Marilyn Reesor, The Barrie Examiner

Click here to read the full review