News
Jazz Studies Professor Florian Hoefner wins JUNO Award!
Congratulations to our Jazz Studies Professor, Florian Hoefner, on his Trio winning the 2023 JUNO Award for Jazz Album of the Year (Group) for the album Desert Bloom.
Well deserved! Congratulations, Florian, from all of your students & colleagues at the School of Music!
#MusicAtMemorial alumna Bekah Simms also took home the JUNO for Classical Composition of the Year! Bravo, Bekah!
Congratulations and best wishes to the Music at Memorial nominees at the JUNO Awards!
School of Music faculty, staff, and alumni amongst 2023 ECMA nominees
Congratulations to all the 2023 East Coast Music Award nominees including those in the School of Music community!
Our jazz professor Florian Hoefner is nominated for Instrumental Recording of the Year and Jazz Recording of the Year.
Our composition professor Andrew Staniland is nominated for Classical Composer of the Year and Classical Recording of the Year.
Duo Concertante, made of up faculty members Timothy Steeves and Nancy Dahn, is nominated for Classical Recording of the Year.
Alumna Jing Xia (PhD Ethnomusicology 2022) is nominated for Global Recording of the Year and Roots/Traditional Recording of the Year.
The Kubasonics, featuring alumni Maria Cherwick (MMus 2017) and Matthew Hender (BMus 2008), are nominated for Global Recording of the Year and Roots/Traditional Recording of the Year.
Alumnus Duane Andrews (MMus 2017) is nominated for Jazz Recording of the Year.
Alumna Michelle LaCour (BMus 2013) is nominated for Live Sound Engineer of the Year.
Alumna Mary Beth Waldram (BMus 2011) is nominated for Artist Management of The Year.
The School of Music's Marketing Advisor Danielle Hamel and her project It Could Be Franky is nominated for Electronic Recording of the Year.
Congratulations to all of the talented musicians, composers, and industry professionals in our community!
Retired faculty member Dr. Douglas Dunsmore appointed to the Order of Canada
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Retired Music at Memorial faculty member and former Director of Choral Activities, Dr. Douglas Dunsmore, has been appointed to the Order of Canada for his “leadership as a choral conductor and music educator, and for his significant contributions to prominent provincial and national music organizations!”
Dr. Dunsmore left an indelible mark on the School of Music before retiring in 2013, including the development of our graduate program in choral conducting. Among his many roles in the choral community, Dr. Dunsmore was the inaugural director of the Bruneau Centre for Excellence in Choral Music, a founding director of Growing the Voices: Festival 500, and the founding director of the Philharmonic Choir of the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra. He is currently serving the local choir community as the director of choirs at Gower United Church and director of the Anchormen Barbershop Chorus.
On behalf of your colleagues, students and choristers from your years here at the School of Music, congratulations Dr. Dunsmore on receiving one of our country’s highest honours!
Read the full list of 2022 appointees to the Order of Canada here.
School of Music faculty, students, and alumni take home 2022 MusicNL Awards
The 2022 MusicNL Award winners were recently announced and we would like to wish a congratulations to all the winners, including those in the School of Music community!
Congratulations to our jazz professor Florian Hoefner who took away two MusicNL awards, Global Music Artist of the Year and Instrumental Artist of the Year.
There was a strong representation of #MusicAtMemorial alumni amongst the MusicNL award winners this year:
Rosemary Lawton Music (BMus 2016, BMusEd 2019) won Celtic/Traditional Artist of the Year and Music Video of the Year. Rosemary's record was produced, engineered and mixed by current Joint BMus/BBA student Clare Follett.
Jing Xia (PhD Ethnomusicology 2022) won Rising Star of the Year.
Maria Cherwick (MMus 2017) and Matthew Hender (BMus 2008) along with their band, The Kubasonics, took home Folk/Roots Artist of the Year.
Carole Bestvater (MMus 2013) took home Country Artist of the Year for her work with Youngtree and The Blooms.
Michelle LaCour (BMus 2013) won Recording Engineer/Producer of the Year.
Mary Beth Waldram (BMus 2011) won Industry Professional of the Year.
We are proud of the many career paths that many of our alumni have taken upon graduation and join their peers in acknowledging their contribution to the music community.
Music at Memorial faculty member Gregory Oh wins a Dora Award!
Congratulations to Music at Memorial faculty member Gregory Oh on winning a Dora Award for Outstanding Musical Direction, Opera Division, for his work with Tapestry Opera’s production of R.U.R. A Torrent of Light!
Find more about the R.U.R. A Torrent of Light here.
Music at Memorial alum Stephen Eckert named one of CBC Music's Top 30 Canadian Classical Musicians under 30!
Congratulations to Music at Memorial alum Stephen Eckert on being named one of CBC Music's Top 30 Canadian Classical Musicians under 30!
Stephen graduated from Memorial University of Newfoundland in 2019 with a BMus (Hons) in Piano Performance and Composition.
Bravo, Stephen!
Read the full Top 30 list here.
Congratulations to our 2022 Graduates!
Congrats to all the 2022 Music at Memorial Graduates! We are so proud of all your hard work and wish you all the best on your future endeavours!
We profiled some of our 2022 Graduates and asked them about their favourite memories, their advice for new students, why they chose to study at Memorial, and what's next in their journey.
Read our 2022 Graduate profiles here!
Music and Ecology Student Projects
This past term, students of the brand-new course MUS 4005/6905 Music and Ecology explored the complex relationships between sound, music, humans/nonhumans, and the environment. Taught by Dr. Meghan Forsyth, students examined how humans create, express, and sustain their relationships their surrounding environments through music through a series of global case studies and creative projects. Throughout the course, St. John’s-based composer and sound artist Benton Roark provided additional feedback on student projects.
The creative projects that culminated from this course combined ideas about music, ecology, and place to produce new works, including some mixed media works, recordings, podcasts, sound maps, sound walks, and creative writing.
Explore some examples of the Winter 2022 Music and Ecology student projects!
Meet the Majors - Comprehensive - Kendra Sutton
Kendra Sutton grew up in Goulds, NL but is currently living in beautiful downtown St. John’s. She studied voice at Memorial University with the lovely Meghan Herder and graduated in April 2021. Kendra is now thoroughly enjoying the Music Ed. as a Second Degree program at Memorial. She is eager to complete her internship this coming September, and excited to graduate in December and dive into the wonderful world of teaching!
Read our interview with Kendra Sutton, B.Mus. '21, B.Mus.Ed. '22!
Meet the Majors - Composition - Jack Etchegary
Jack Etchegary graduated from Memorial University's School of Music in 2018 with a BMus (Hons) in Composition. He is currently finishing a MMus in Instrumental Conducting, graduating in April 2022! Jack is from St. John's, NL and upon graduation, he would like to teach post-secondary and create/lead some contemporary music ensembles!
Read our interview with Jack Etchegary!
Meet the Majors - Joint Major in Music Performance and Musicologies - Hannah Sparkes
Hannah Sparkes is from Corner Brook, Newfoundland, and is a fourth-year student at Memorial University of Newfoundland’s School of Music, majoring in Euphonium Performance and Musicologies, and minoring in Psychology. This semester, she is researching the potential effects of music-based interventions on the mental health of prison inmates for her graduating essay. In the future, Hannah would like to work in the healthcare system, advocating for community-based programming that supports mental health and wellbeing. She will be graduating in the Spring of 2022 and plans to pursue graduate studies.
Read our interview with Hannah Sparkes!
Meet the Majors - Performance with Jazz Minor - Matthew Roome
Matthew Roome is a third-year BMus saxophone student at Memorial University, majoring in performance and minoring in jazz studies. Originally from St. John's, Matthew is an active jazz performer and arranger in town, performing in smaller combos in the downtown scene as well as larger ensembles like the Jazz East Big Band.
Read our interview with Matthew Roome!
Dr. Caroline Schiller honoured with Memorial University’s President’s Award for Distinguished Teaching
School of Music Voice and Opera professor Dr. Caroline Schiller was presented with Memorial University’s 2021 President’s Award for Distinguished Teaching in a ceremony on March 10, 2022 on Signal Hill Campus in St. John’s.
Congratulations, Dr. Schiller! Thank you for all that you do for the Voice and Opera studio here at the School of Music!
Meet the Majors - Comprehensive - Vanessa Legge
Vanessa Legge is from St. John’s, NL and currently teaching Music, Art and French at Bay d’Espoir Academy in St. Albans, NL. A Memorial University graduate, she has a Bachelor of Music (B.Mus. 2020) and a Bachelor of Music Education (B.Mus.Ed 2021). Vanessa hopes to create a safe, welcoming and inclusive classroom for all of her students; teaching the importance of musical and artistic expression for the overall development and wellness of students.
Meet the Majors - Performance - Grace Nolan
In our Meet the Majors series, we are profiling current students and alumni of programs offered at Memorial University’s School of Music! Whether you are a current student or thinking of applying, we hope these interviews help you gain insight into the range of programs that the School of Music has to offer.
Meet Grace Nolan, a Bachelor of Music student majoring in performance!
Meet the Majors - Composition - Andrew Gosse
Andrew Gosse is a current B.Mus. Composition student at Memorial University of Newfoundland's School of Music studying with Dr. Andrew Staniland and Dr. Clark Ross. Gosse was born and grew up in St. John’s, Newfoundland. His work explores and often connects the realms of contemporary classical, electronic, and improvisatory music.
Meet Andrew Gosse, a current Bachelor of Music student majoring in composition!
Meet the Majors - Comprehensive Major - Jamie Moran
To help students decide which major or minor is right for them, we are profiling faculty, current students, and alumni of programs offered at Memorial University’s School of Music! Whether you are a current student or thinking of applying, we hope these interviews help you gain insight into the range of programs that the School of Music has to offer.
Meet Jamie Moran, who recently graduated with a B.Mus. Degree and is currently working towards a Bachelor of Music Education degree with the Faculty of Education.
