This concert at the Knox Presbyterian Church was a great opportunity see and hear what the young performers of the area have to offer. This is possibly the finest small performance venue in the area and one likely to show off their talents to best advantage.  All of these performers have been through the local education system and have come out the graduate end with an unbridled passion for making serious vocal music. Most, if not all, have gone onto post secondary education in music and a number have already obtain their degrees in music. So here they are:

and this is what they did on this special night in this special place.

Caitlin McCaughey – Caitlin is currently studying opera at the University of Toronto with Dr. Darryl Edwards and during this past summer she attended the Centre for Opera Studies in Italy.  For this concert she performed Quando men vo from Giacomo Puccini’s opera La Boheme. For her second piece she chose Ah! Je Veaux vivre from Charles Gounod’s Romeo and Juliet. Caitlin plans to pursue a professional career in Opera.

Danielle Nicholson is a lyrical Mezzo-soprano who is currently completing her A.R.C.T. Performance Diploma with the Royal Conservatory of Music  and is planning to begin her BMus in Vocal Performance at either UBC, University of Toronto or McGill.  She chose Must the Winter Come So Soon from Samuel Barber’s Vanessa and Faites-lui-mes aveux  from Charles Gounod’s Faust.

Courtney Green is currently the head teacher and choreographer at Stages School of Dancing in Golden. Her selections were Breathe from In the Heights by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Leonard Bertein’s Glitter and be Gay from Candide.

Heather Byford. After graduating from Mount Baker High School Heather attended the University of Lethbridge and obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Classical Music with a major in Vocal Performance. She has returned to the East Kootenays with the intention of starting her own teaching studio. Heather selected La Mer est plus belle from the music by Claude Debussy and the poem by Paul Verlaine. Her second selection was Cruda Sorte! Gia so per practica from Giachino Rossini’s L’Italiana in Algeri.

Darren Adams is in his third and final year of the Acting for Stage and Screen Program at Capilano University in Vancouver. Darren performed Try Me from Jerry Bock’s She Loves Me and Jason Robert Brown’s The Old Red Hills of Home from Parade. He was joined by Courtney Green for a duet performance of Jason Robert Brown’s I’d Give it all to You.

Justin Swanson is a third year undergraduate at the McGill University Schulich School of Music. He has been studying for five years with aspirations of becoming an opera singer. He performed Francesco Paolo Tosti’s Ideale (lyrics by Carmelo Errico). He followed that up with a refreshing performance of the old war horse Mother Machree. He was joined on stage by Danielle Nicholson for a duet performance of Come What May from the Baz Luhrmann’s movie Moulin Rouge.

The mezzo-soprano Amanda Weatherall is no stranger to performances in the Knox Presbyterian Church. She is a fourth year vocal performance major at Western University studying under Todd Wieczorek. She has participated in professional development programs offered by the Canadian Operatic Arts Academy and the Accademia Europea Dell’Opera and is looking forward to her first full operatic role, Trisbe, in La Cenerentola. For performance on this evening she chose Charles Gounod’s Que fais-tu, blanche tourterelle? and Alma Mahler’s Laue Sommernacht (lyrics by Gustav Falke).

Former Kimberley resident Clara MacLeod is happy to back in the area and for her performance this evening she chose A Change in me from Alan Menken’s Beauty and the Beast and How Lovely to be a Woman from Charles Strauss’ Bye Bye Birdie.

Jocelyn Molnar received her Diploma of Music from Capilano University in 2014 and has also received  a significant number of awards and scholarships. For the evening’s performance she chose Frere! Voyez! du gai Soleil from Jules Massenet’s Werther and Ah, Love, but a Day written by Amy Marcy Beach. Amanda Weather and Caitlin McCaughey returned to the stage for a duet performance of Leo Delibes Sous le Dome epais from Lakme. Amanda sang the mezzo-soprano part and Caitlin the soprano part. As always, this was an extremely popular selection. And not be forgotten the accompanists for the evening were Arne Sahlen and Erica Ortlieb (Ross). Arne’s solo performances of We Three Kings and Beethoven’s second movement of the Pathetique were enjoyable instrumental interludes in a night of vocal music.

Here are some more images from the evening’s performances

This was a wonderful night of music and the organizers should be very happy with the turn out. The venue was full to overflowing.

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