Articles tagged with: matthew royal

  • Weeklong event to celebrate Brock’s cultural diversity

    Thursday, January 31, 2019 | By

    Amanda Martinez and friends will perform on Friday, Feb 8 at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre in downtown St. Catharines as part of Brock’s weeklong Celebration of Nations.

    (From The Brock News, January 30, 2019 | By: Mike Morrison)

    When it comes to diversity on Brock’s campus, there’s a lot to celebrate. As a result, the annual Celebration of Nations event once condensed to a single day has been expanded to a week of activities highlighting cultures of the world.

    Brock International Services will host a series of events from Monday, Feb. 4 to Friday, Feb. 8 that will educate the Brock community and help its members experience what makes different cultures found on campus special.

    “Expanding Celebration of Nations to a full week of activities truly reflects the diversity of our growing international community at Brock,” said Sandra Gruosso, Associate Director, Brock International Services.

    The University is home to more than 2,100 international students from 100 countries, in addition to faculty and staff with connections to countries around the globe.

    The festivities begin Monday with a Campus World Tour, which invites faculty, staff and students to explore Brock’s cultural clubs, learn about various regions around the globe and hear about student experiences abroad. The tour runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at various locations throughout Brock’s main campus.

    On Tuesday, Feb. 5, sit down for dinner with Brock International Student Ambassadors. The ambassadors have searched St. Catharines to find restaurants that best reflect their cultures and are inviting the University to join them for a meal from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Participants can choose between Latin-American food at Lost & Found Taqueria, Trinidadian food at Soxy’s Trini Takeout or authentic Chinese cuisine at Noah’s Kitchen. More information about each restaurant, including menu options and approximate cost can be found on the Celebration of Nations website. Those interested must RSVP by Monday, Feb 4 using the event’s online registration form.

    Anyone interested in sharing aspects of their own culture with the Brock community will have the opportunity to do so at the International Talent Showcase on Wednesday, Feb. 6. Held from 7 to 9 p.m. in Isaac’s Bar and Grill, the event will include live music, dancing, poetry and stories reflecting the cultural heritage of performers.

    “The event will be a great way for the Brock community to educate their peers about their culture in a fun and entertaining way,” Gruosso said.

    Faculty, staff or students interested in performing are encouraged to sign-up using the online registration form on the event website by Tuesday, Feb 5.

    On Thursday, Feb. 7, the International Centre Global Commons will host a movie night for the University community, with one of four highly acclaimed international films chosen for screening by popular vote. Options include: The African Doctor, Lionheart, Roma andThe Salesman. Voting will take place on Brock International’s Instagram story on Feb. 5, with the winning movie announced the following day. This event is a free to attend with no RSVP required. Snacks and drinks will also be provided.

    “Attending events during Celebration of Nations will truly deepen your understanding of the world outside of Canada,” said Gruosso. “It’s a valuable opportunity to learn more about cultural traditions and values from more than 100 countries on campus.”

    The week culminates with a live performance by Canadian singer-songwriter Amanda Martinez at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre (PAC) on Friday, Feb. 8.

    Through her music, Martinez blends her unique Mexican and South African roots with flamenco soul.

    Held in partnership with the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine & Performing Arts (MIWSFPA), and co-sponsored by the PAC, the concert will feature songs from Libre, the latest album by Martinez, which celebrates freedom of all kinds.

    “We are privileged to be among the first audiences to hear Amanda Martinez’s new album, Libre, live,” said Matthew Royal, Brock’s Department of Music Chair. “It promises to be a lively and entertaining evening, celebrating both musical and non-musical kinds of freedom.”

    Tickets are available online through the PAC website at a cost of $29 for adults, $23 for seniors and students, $13 for children 14 and under, and $5 for high school EYEGO students, plus applicable taxes and fees.

    Brock International will be giving away 10 pairs of tickets as part of an Instagram contest during Celebration of Nations. Follow Brock International on Instagram for complete details.

    Learn more about Celebration of Nations activities by visiting brocku.ca/nations or contacting Brock International Services by email at isa@brocku.ca or by phone at 905-688-5550 x4785.

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    Categories: Events, News

  • Local musician’s legacy lives on through new Brock University jazz ensemble

    Tuesday, January 29, 2019 | By

    A new community jazz ensemble and concert series is being established at Brock University in honour of the late musician Hugh Logan and his wife, Marie. Photo courtesy of the St. Catharines Standard.

    (From The Brock News, January 28, 2019 | By: Sarah Ackles)

    If you’re a jazz lover in Niagara, you’ve likely crossed paths with Hugh Logan.

    Affectionately known as ‘Hughie,’ the Toronto-born musician was a prominent part of the local music community for decades — known as much for his upbeat demeanour and quirky antics as he was for being a valued and dedicated member of a number of bands.

    Logan died in 2016, but his legacy will live on for years thanks to a generous gift to Brock University’s Department of Music.

    Brock students and members of the community are invited to audition for the Department of Music’s new jazz ensemble, which is funded by a generous gift from the Bassett family in honour of late musicians Hugh and Marie Logan. Pictured is Brock Music student Aaron Cardona.

    Logan’s sister, Norma Bassett, has created a fund that will support a new student and community jazz ensemble, an accompanying instrumental jazz techniques course and the Hugh and Marie Logan Jazz Series. The gift is Bassett’s way of honouring her late brother and sister-in-law, who were loved for their musical accomplishments and larger-than-life personalities.

    The ensemble and three-concert series will launch in the fall out of Brock University’s Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts (MIWSFPA).

    Brock Department of Music Chair Matthew Royal said he is “extremely grateful” for the generous contribution.

    “This is a fitting way to memorialize Hugh and his wife Marie and we are delighted to be able to offer this programming for our students and musicians in the broader community,” he said.

    Logan’s love of music was evident to those in the Niagara community who knew him — as was his wife Marie’s never-wavering support of that passion.

    “Music was integral to Hugh’s being,” Bassett said simply. “It really was his life, and Marie was very supportive.”

    Encouraged by his father’s musical talents, Logan began playing the flute and clarinet in his early teens in the Toronto neighbourhood where we grew up.

    Among his early musical accomplishments was earning a place in the Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada, which he played in at the age of 15.

    A few years later, his father passed away from cancer, leaving Logan on his own to support his mother and sisters.

    The love of music instilled in him by his father stayed near to Logan’s heart, however.

    Bassett laughs when she recalls a time that Logan was reprimanded at work because he couldn’t stop dancing and singing along to a jazz number while working on a factory line.

    Logan later moved to Niagara, where he played with a number of bands across the region until his death at 90 years old. He played alto sax in the Niagara Falls Concert Band, flute in the Thorold Reed Band, flute and lead tenor sax with the Ambassadors Swing Band and baritone sax in the American-based Dick Griffo’s Jazz Workshop.

    He would occasionally sub in with the Jimmy Marando Swing Band, too, and Bassett said her brother was known to always carry his instruments with him, so he would be prepared if an opportunity to play presented itself. It wasn’t unusual for someone to need a fill-in and phone Logan up to come jam.

    “We wanted to do something to honour that passion for music,” added Bassett, “and giving back to students at Brock and other musicians in Niagara was the right choice.”

    Pamela Shanks, Executive Director, Development and Alumni Relations at Brock, said the gift serves to strengthen ties between the University and the community.

    “We thank Norma for her generous gift to the University,” said Shanks. “It will create new programming for our students and the Niagara music community, and for that we are grateful.”

    Royal added that although the Department has traditionally focused on classical music, the jazz ensemble provides an opportunity to bring students and the community together to learn a popular musical style.

    “Having students play alongside experienced musicians is a great way for them to learn jazz because they benefit from that cross-generational interaction,” he said. “The jazz series will also afford an opportunity for jazz lovers in the region to perform together and develop new creative collaborations.”

    The jazz ensemble will add to Brock’s existing roster of string and wind ensembles and will be open to Music and non-music majors, as well as members of the broader community. Anyone interested in auditioning should contact Royal at mroyal@brocku.ca for more details.

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    Categories: Announcements, Current Students, Media Releases, News

  • Brock Encore! Series continues with hit show

    Tuesday, January 22, 2019 | By

    TorQ Percussion Quartet will perform as part of Brock’s Encore! Series on Friday, Jan. 25 at 7:30 p.m. in Partridge Hall of the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre. (Photo by Bo Huang)

    (From The Brock News, January 22, 2019  | By: Jaquelyn Bezaire)

    It’s going to be hard to resist the beat at Brock’s latest Encore! Series performance.

    With more than 70 instruments used in their lively show, the TorQ Percussion Quartet plans to get feet tapping and the crowd moving on Friday, Jan. 25 at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre in downtown St. Catharines.

    Held in Partridge Hall beginning at 7:30 p.m., the concert is the second performance of the Department of Music’s Encore! Professional Concert Series.

    TorQ is a four-piece Toronto-based ensemble that utilizes everything from marimbas and vibraphones to tom-toms, cowbells and even tin cans and garbage cans in their energetic performances.

    Music Department Chair Matthew Royal is looking forward to the unique performance and invites Brock faculty, staff and students, as well as members of the community, to attend.

    “The Music Department is delighted to welcome the accomplished percussion quartet, TorQ, back to Brock,” said Royal. “The concert promises to be entertaining, informative and chock-full of inspired musicianship.”

    Formed in 2004, TorQ features the talent of Richard Burrows, Adam Campbell, Jamie Drake and Dan Morphy. The ensemble has developed a dedicated following and has worked to make percussion music accessible to audiences of all ages.

    The group has performed across Canada and internationally, including shows at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention in San Antonio and Indianapolis, and the International Percussion Quartet Festival in Luxembourg.

    TorQ will perform a wide variety of pieces during Friday’s concert, including some composed by members of the Quartet themselves. Guests will also hear works by Canadian composers Dinuk Wijeratne and Ken Shorely.

    Tickets to the TorQ Percussion Quartet performance on Jan. 25 are available through theFirstOntario PAC website.

    For more information on upcoming performances, please visit the Department of Music’s website.

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    Categories: Events, Faculty & Instructors, News

  • Award-winning pianist returns to Brock for Walker Cultural Leaders Series

    Thursday, November 08, 2018 | By

    david jalbert-cara

    Award-winning Canadian concert pianist David Jalbert will give a recital Friday, Nov. 16 as part of the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts’ 2018 performance season.

    (From The Brock News, Wednesday Nov. 7, 2018 | By: Sarah Moore)

    Renowned Canadian concert pianist David Jalbert is returning to St. Catharines Friday, Nov. 16 as the next performer in the Walker Cultural Leaders Series.

    The performance will also open this year’s Encore! Professional Concert Series, hosted by the Department of Music at Brock’s Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts (MIWSFPA).

    Jalbert, who performs regularly as a soloist and recitalist across North America and Europe, last came to Brock as part of the MIWSFPA’s 2013 performance season.

    A national and international prize-winner, he has won five Opus Awards, was nominated for three Juno Awards and was the 2007 laureate of the prestigious Virginia Parker Prize of the Canada Council for the Arts.

    Music Department Chair Matthew Royal said the accomplished performer will be a highlight to the School’s 2018 event season, both for the public and music students alike.

    “We are delighted to have David Jalbert return to Brock to give a master class to our piano students, and to perform a solo piano recital,” he said. “He is a superbly expressive pianist whose musicality and intelligence are supported by a flawless technique.”

    Jalbert will perform in Partridge Hall of the FirstOntario Performing Art Centre, where attendees will be treated to a program of solo piano works by Bach, Schumann, Liszt and Fauré. The recital will conclude with a performance of Prokofiev’s monumental Sonata No. 7, Op. 83, in B flat major.

    “The highlight of this concert will, I believe, be the Prokofiev 7th Piano Sonata,” Royal noted. “This is one of those pieces that all pianists worth their salt must conquer at some point in their careers. I predict it will be a ‘tour de force.’”

    Tickets are available by contacting the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre Box Office at 905-688-0722 or firstontariopac.ca

    Tickets are $29 for adults, $23 for seniors and students and $13 for children 14 and under. Special $5 tickets are also available through the eyeGo program.

    The Walker Cultural Leaders Series brings leading artists, performers, practitioners and academics to Brock’s MIWSFPA.

    The sessions celebrate professional achievement, artistic endeavour and the indelible role of culture in society. The education program is generously funded by Marilyn I. Walker.

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    Categories: Announcements, Events, News, Walker Cultural Leader Series

  • RBC Foundation Music@Noon recital series returns for another season

    Friday, September 28, 2018 | By

    Flutist Patricia Dydnansky

    Flutist Patricia Dydnansky is the first performer in the 2018-19 RBC Foundation Music@Noon Series, opening on Oct. 2 at noon at the Cairns Recital Hall of the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre in downtown St. Catharines.

    (From The Brock News, Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2018 | by )

    The popular RBC Foundation Music@Noon series is returning this fall with another stellar lineup of free recitals in downtown St. Catharines, beginning Oct 2.

    Generously sponsored by the RBC Foundation, and hosted by the Department of Music, the series features noon-hour performances by faculty, guests and music students that take place at the Cairns Recital Hall of the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre most Tuesdays throughout the year.

    The 2018-19 season will open with a performance by Brock’s own flute instructor, Patricia Dydnansky.

    Currently performing with the Niagara Symphony Orchestra as the Second Flute and Piccolo, Dydnansky has also performed with the Shaw Festival Orchestra, the Stratford Festival Orchestra and the Hamilton Philharmonic. A veteran performer in the Music@Noon series, Dydnansky said patrons can look forward to hearing repertoire from around the world in her recital.

    “This program includes music by composers inspired by the Native American flute and Japanese shakuhachi, a set of Celtic tunes on my new Windward Irish flute, and a delightful set of short dances for piccolo inspired by British folk songs,” Dydnansky said. “Ibert’s gorgeous Pièce pour Flûte Seule is on the bill, as well as pieces by the Baroque composers Telemann and Marais, both displaying the ability of a solo instrument to play polyphonically.”

    The series will continue with performances by Music faculty members Gordon Cleland, Zoltan Kalman, Tim Phelan, Karin Di Bella and Devon Fornelli, and conclude with student performances at the end of each semester.

    Music Chair Matthew Royal said this allows students studying at the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts (MIWSFPA) to watch their instructors perform on stage before having the opportunity to perform in a professional environment themselves later on in the year.

    “We are so grateful for our generous sponsors, the RBC Foundation, that allow us to host these concerts every year,” he said. “They provide a great opportunity for students to learn all that’s involved in performing in a professional-level recital, and for our talented faculty and students to showcase the hard work they have put into their performances with the local community.”

    A line-up of talented guest performances will also round out the programming this year, including Maltese-Canadian flutist Rebecca Hall, who will perform with Brock pianist Karin Di Bella on Jan. 8.  The performers first connected over their shared interest in the work of Jack Behrens, a Canadian composer, and will be continuing to work together after their early 2019 show.

    On Jan. 29, percussionist Devon Fornelli will perform with pianist John Sherwood. Fornelli, a percussion instructor at Brock, has a wide range of experience performing as a soloist, an orchestral percussionist and as a chamber instrumentalist, and Sherwood, the piano tuner at Brock, is listed as being among the top jazz pianists in Ontario.

    Royal encourages both students and those from around the community to come and experience the talented musicians that Brock University has to offer.

    The Music@Noon Recital series is generously sponsored by the RBC Foundation and will run most Tuesdays at noon throughout the academic year. The concerts are performed in the Cairns Recital Hall at FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre. This is a free event that is open to the public.

    For more details about future performances, please visit brocku.ca/miwsfpa/music/concerts

    2018-19 RBC Foundation Music@Noon Series:

    Oct. 2: Patricia Dydnansky (flute)
    Oct. 16: Gordon Cleland (cello)
    Oct. 23: Zoltan Kalman (clarinet) and Gary Forbes (piano)
    Oct. 30: Piano, vocal and instrument students
    Nov. 6: Tim Phelan (guitar)
    Nov. 20: Voice, guitar and piano students
    Nov. 27: Instrumental students
    Dec. 4: Piano students
    Jan. 8: Rebecca Hall (flute) and Karin Di Bella (piano)
    Jan. 29: Devon Fornelli (percussion) and John Sherwood (piano)
    Feb. 5: Voice, guitar and piano students
    Feb. 12: Instrumental students
    Feb. 26: Karin Di Bella (piano)
    March 5: Walker String Quartet: Vera Alekseeva and Anna Hughes (violins), Faith Lau (viola) and Gordon Cleland (cello)
    March 12: Piano students
    March 19: Instrumental students
    March 26: Voice, guitar and piano students
    April 2: Piano students

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    Categories: Announcements, Current Students, Events, Faculty & Instructors, News

  • Music majors to make an impact in Niagara with new Practicum course

    Tuesday, September 18, 2018 | By

    group of music students standing in the marilyn i walker school of fine and performing arts

    A group of Music majors are taking their learning into the real world this fall as they complete the new Music Practicum course. Led by Music Chair Matthew Royal (back left) and Course Co-ordinator Tim Stacey (back right), this year’s students include (front, from left) Jesse Day, Shaniqua Goodridge, Brielle Kaminsky, Sarah Hollick, Ryan Baxter and Gavino Oresta.

    (From The Brock News, Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2018 | by Sarah Moore)

    A group of Brock Music majors will put their classroom learning into practice this fall as the first students enrolled in the new Music Practicum course.

    The multi-year conjunction course allows students to complete for-credit volunteer placements in either music education, music health/therapy, music administration or music in the community.

    Music Chair Matthew Royal said the course is unique because it provides real-world learning experiences while also giving students course credit and volunteer hours that are often required for those applying to Faculties of Education down the road.

    “The idea is to introduce students to real-world settings that might line up with their future career goals and to have them apply the skills and knowledge they’ve learned from their courses in those settings,” he explained.

    It also helps students discover what they are interested in career-wise and how they can achieve their long-term goals, added Koreen McCullough, Experiential Education Co-ordinator, Faculty of Humanities.

    “Learning what you don’t like is just as valuable as learning what you do like,” she said. “Students are not only getting the valuable placement experience through this course but are also being taught up front to set their own goals. At the end of term, they will have a chance to reflect on challenges and achievements, access resume coaching and really apply what they’ve learned to help achieve their future career goals.”

    Six Music majors signed up to work in schools and community organizations around the Niagara region this year.

    Course Co-ordinator Tim Stacey (BA ’15) said the students have already shown themselves to be extremely dedicated and enthusiastic.

    “They’ve worked on these placements over the summer, made connections and did their own research to find them,” said Stacey, who has worked for community choirs as well as the Niagara Symphony and Youth Orchestras since graduating from Brock’s Music program. “They didn’t get to just pick a selection from a list. They had to find the placement themselves, so it’s evident how engaged they are.”

    Gavino Oresta, a fourth-year Music student, will be completing his placement working with music classes at Saint Michael Catholic High School in Niagara Falls, alongside his former high school music teacher, coincidentally.
    With plans to become a music teacher himself, Oresta is looking forward to the challenge of leading his own lessons with the high school students this year.
    “For anyone interested in teaching, it’s a great environment,” he said. “It’s also good to get different perspectives on how teachers go about their lesson structure because every school goes about their music program a bit differently.”

    Learning about different teaching styles was what piqued the interest of second-year student Brielle Kaminsky, who will be working with extracurricular music ensembles, such as the choir, jazz band and string ensemble, at Ridley College in St. Catharines.

    “I’m going to be working with students from all over the world in my placement and it’s really cool seeing how different cultures practice music,” she said. “Not only am I learning in the classroom myself, but I also get to go out and teach what I’m learning in the class to students, too.”

    Adds Oresta: “Plus, you’re hanging around in a music class, which is just fun and exciting to me on its own.”For the first few weeks of the course, students will engage in workshops that will identify their learning outcomes for the term and outline the benefits of experiential learning. They will begin their work placements in late September, with the aim of completing 50 volunteer hours by April.

    The course is open to all Music majors in second year and above and can be taken consecutively year after year. Applications for next year’s practicum course will open in the spring and anyone interested in applying is encouraged to  contact Matthew Royal or Tim Stacey.

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    Categories: Current Students, Department/Centre News, News