KIWANIS MUSIC FESTIVAL
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Kiwanis Music Festival presents: Gala Concert - Feb. 9
The Kiwanis Music Festival of Guelph will be hosting its annual Festival Gala Concert on Saturday, Feb. 9 at 7 p.m. at the Guelph Youth Music Centre.
A variety of local professionals and stellar students will be donating their time and talents for your listening pleasure. This elegant evening will feature a delightfully eclectic concert as well as a silent auction, live auction, draw prizes, and a host of tantalizing hors d'oeuvres, desserts and drinks.
“We have a marvellous line-up of musical talent again this year,” said Festival Coordinator, Heather Fleming. “Our performers include a broad range of instrumental and vocal soloists, small ensembles, and even a choir!”
Featured at the gala will be the John F. Ross Concert Choir, directed by Dale Hobbs; pianist - Vikas Chari; Dramatic Duo - Laura and Bennett Fleming; Trio Musketeers - violin, cello and piano; Bent Brass - trumpet, trombone and French horn; Sandy Keifer and David Vanbiesbrouck - cello and oboe; Operatic Soprano - Alexandra Delle Donne; pianist - Andrew Dong; and Mosaic Music Theatre and Performance Lab, directed by Marion Samuel-Stevens.
Only 180 tickets available - advance ticket purchase is recommended: $25 - adults, $5 - students. Wine and beer will also be available for $5 a glass.
Contact Festival Coordinator, Heather Fleming, to reserve tickets at 519-821-4365 / online.
Guelph Kiwanis Music Festival
In its 38th year, the Guelph Kiwanis Festival began its current format in 1981, but its roots date back to 1948. The Festival offers performance and adjudication opportunities to about 3,000 young people each year. Over 160 students received awards and scholarships in 2018, valued at over $13,400.
The Festival is a non-profit organization, and all monies raised are used to cover Festival expenses and scholarships. Student registration fees have been held at a relatively low level to encourage participation - only occasional modest increases in registration fees have been made over the years to keep up with any increased Festival costs.
Registration fees only cover about 1/3 of total Festival costs, and the Festival relies on sponsorships, programme ads, and most importantly, the festival gala in February each year toraise the funds required to operate the festival.
Vikas Chari
At only 11 years of age, Vikas Chari is already an accomplished pianist, having played as long as he can remember. Last year, he represented the Guelph Kiwanis Music Festival at the Ontario Music Festival Association Provincials, where he placed first for Grade 9 piano and third in the junior concerto section. He's also an accomplished swimmer and trains six times a week with the Oakville Aquatic Club, where he holds 14 club records. Additionally, he's a potter and has made a fine collection of bowls and vases.
Andrew Dong
Andrew Dong is currently in Grade 10 at Centennial CVI and will be turning 16 later in February. He began studying piano with Gail Lange when he was four, and now studies with Marnie Van Weelden in Kitchener. This past summer, he finished the last of his ARCT theory requirements, studying with Valerie Candelaria.
Bent Brass Trio
Mitchell Kehn completed his Honours Bachelor of Music degree in Trombone/Orchestral Performance at Wilfrid Laurier University. He currently holds the position of principal trombone in the Cambridge Symphony Orchestra and has held the positions of both principal and assistant principal trombone in the Wilfrid Laurier Symphony Orchestra. Mitchell has played in orchestras, brass bands, wind orchestras, big bands, studio recording sessions, and chamber music groups. He has an affinity for the music of the classical and romantic eras as well as the music of the 1960s and 1970s.
Erik McIntyre, originally from Thornhill, Ont., has an Advanced Diploma in Trumpet Performance from Cambrian College; and an Honours Degree in Music Education and Trumpet Performance from Wilfrid Laurier University. Currently, Erik holds the second trumpet position in the Richmond Hill Philharmonic Orchestra, and has played in many groups ranging from symphonies, to wind, jazz, and brass bands across Ontario. Along with playing in the Richmond Hill Philharmonic, Erik is the assistant conductor to the Laurier Wind Orchestra, and the current artistic director and conductor of the Laurier Brass Ensemble.
As an avid performer, Danielle Grundy immerses herself in a number of musical genres and seeks diverse performance opportunities. She continues to push the limits of French horn music and strives for challenges that broaden the scope of music everywhere. This includes but is not limited to work in styles such as jazz, classical, and modern music.
Danielle has played with several groups within the St. John's, Nfld. area. Notably, she has worked with the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra playing everything from Haydn Symphonies to Earth Wind and Fire charts. She can also be heard on tracks for one of Newfoundland’s favourite bands, The Monday Nights.
Over the course of her career, she has enjoyed working with symphonies within the GTA, Kitchener/Waterloo area, such as the Cambridge Symphony, the Kitchener Waterloo Chamber Orchestra, and wind band ensembles with the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry. She is well known for her performances in pit ensembles that include but are not limited to The Wizard of Oz, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Once upon a Mattress, Oliver, Sound of Music, Into the Woods, and many more.
Together, Mitch, Eric and Danielle make Bent Brass! These three have pushed the boundaries of music across genres from classical to contemporary works. They have performed for many shows across the Kitchener/Waterloo region bringing fun, creativity and projective sound for every engagement.
Sandy Kiefer
Sandy Kiefer received her Suzuki Cello certificates from the Chicago Institute, Hart College and Pittsburgh Institute. She completed her training through Book Ten. She holds a Masters of Music from New England Conservatory in Boston, USA. Previously she taught at the University of Rhode Island and Longy School of Music in Massachusetts. She was awarded Outstanding Teacher from the Belmont, Massachusetts Public Schools. She has given Suzuki workshops for the New England, Kansas, and New Mexico Institutes.
As a cellist, she has performed with the Boston Ballet, Rhode Island Philharmonic, Santa Fe Symphony, Boston Lyric Opera, Hartford Symphony, and as principal cellist with the Viterbo Opera Festival in Itlay. She has been a member of Young Audiences of Massachusetts where she has presented over 500 concerts for youth. She founded and manages Copley Chamber Players. She has given concerts at Harvard University, Wang Center, and on National Public Radio.
Ms. Kiefer has participated in many summer music festivals, including two fellowships to the Tanglewood Institute. She played principal cello under Leonard Bernstein and played with the Boston Symphony under Seiji Ozawa. She was awarded a full scholarship to the Yale University Norfolk Festival, where she studied with the Tokyo String Quartet.
David Vanbiesbrouck
Guelph-based oboist David Vanbiesbrouck earned a BMus in oboe performance at Wilfrid Laurier University and has since played with National Academy Orchestra, Toronto Concert Orchestra and Kitchener Waterloo Symphony, and currently plays principal oboe with Guelph Symphony Orchestra. In addition to performing with orchestras and for private events, David maintains a studio teaching young musicians oboe playing and reed-making. He owns and operates Oboerific Reeds (www.oboerific.com), making and selling upwards of 500 oboe-family reeds a year across North America.
Alexandra Della Donne
Soprano Alexandra Delle Donne has been singing classically for 12 years, and studies with Krisztina Szabo. This season, Alexandra has completed her Bachelor's degree in classical Voice Performance at the University of Toronto. She has performed with the COC in La Bohème and Carmen due to her participation with the Canadian Children’s Opera Company (CCOC) in Toronto. Alexandra was with the CCOC for six years performing in numerous operas and concerts such as The Magical Land of Og, Laura’s Cow, and Dickens of a Christmas.
Alexandra has joined Vera Causa Opera, and recently performed in Puccini's Le Villi. Alexandra will be premiering in Dylan Langan's Dracula, and soon after will be understudying the role of Adina for Donizetti's The Elixir of Love.
She performed in Handel's Solomon as Woman One with the Victoria Conservatory of Music. Alexandra was also sponsored by the Faculty of Music Undergraduate Association from the University of Toronto to perform a summer recital at Heliconian Hall.
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