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Congratulations to the School of Music alumni who are nominated for 2024 JUNO Awards!

Congratulations to the School of Music Alumni who are nominated for 2024 JUNO Awards

Congratulations to the School of Music alumni who are nominated for 2024 JUNO Awards! 

Bekah Simms (BMus ’12, BMus Ed ’13) is nominated for Classical Album of the Year (Large Ensemble) for Bestiaries, Cryptid Ensemble. 

Duane Andrews (MMus ’17) is nominated for Children’s Album of the Year for The Swinging Belles’ Welcome to the Flea Circus.

Sarah Comerford (BMus, BMus Ed ’02, MMus ’14) is nominated for MusiCounts Teacher of the Year.

Congratulations on your well-deserved nominations!

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Florian Hoefner's Juno statuette arrives at School of Music!

Our jazz professor Florian Hoefner won a 2023 Juno Award for 'Jazz Album of the Year: Group' for his album Desert Bloom with the Florian Hoefner Trio. The statuette recently arrived and we celebrated the occasion by asking him some questions about the experience, what the Juno means for the School of Music, and his upcoming projects.
"My hope is that the Juno Award helps to draw greater attention to what we are doing in the jazz area at the School of Music, such as our new minor in jazz, the jazz combo program, the jazz orchestra and a new jam lab where students can get together for jam sessions and rehearsals on their own time."

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Dr. Christine Carter elected to the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists

A headshot of Christine Carter

One of our faculty members has been given one of Canada’s highest scholarly honours! Congratulations to Dr. Christine Carter on being elected to the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists (RSC)!

In addition to being an acclaimed clarinetist and recording artist, Dr. Carter is an expert in performance psychology and one of the few active concert artists worldwide conducting research in the area.

Read all about Dr. Carter and three other researchers from Memorial University to have recently received this honour in the Gazette.

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School of Music Student Anna Mercer one of ten students in Canada recognized as a 3M National Student Fellow

Anna Mercer - 3M Student Fellowship winner

A Memorial University School of Music student has been recognized as a 3M National Student Fellow by The Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education.

Anna Mercer, from Coley’s Point, N.L., is the second student from Memorial University to receive the fellowship, and the first one since 2014.

The 3M National Student Fellowship honours up to 10 full-time diploma and undergraduate students at Canadian post-secondary institutions who demonstrate outstanding leadership in their programs and in their lives beyond their academic experience.

“I am honoured to have received the 3M national student fellowship award as an undergraduate student of Memorial University,” said Ms. Mercer. “This achievement would not have been possible without the knowledge and skills I have gained through the education and experiences provided by this institution. I am incredibly proud to represent Memorial University and look forward to using the skills I have learned here to pursue a successful career.”

Read more about it in the MUN Gazette.

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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! Congratulations, Bekah! 

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Congratulations and best wishes to the Music at Memorial nominees at the JUNO Awards!

Congratulations are in order for several members of the Music at Memorial community who have been nominated for JUNO Awards, which will be presented in ceremonies on March 11 & 13, 2023 in Edmonton, AB!
The Florian Hoefner Trio, led by faculty member Florian Hoefner, is nominated for the second time for Jazz Album of the Year: Group for their album Desert Bloom. In addition, composer and Music at Memorial alumna Bekah Simms is nominated for Classical Composition of the Year for her composition “Bestiary I & II,” marking her third nomination in this category. Music at Memorial alumna Susan Evoy has also been nominated for the MusiCounts Teacher of the Year Award, which will be presented at the 2023 JUNO Awards Ceremony.
We have our fingers crossed, and we will be rooting for you all! 

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School of Music faculty, staff, and alumni amongst 2023 ECMA nominees

Congrats to all the 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!

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Retired faculty member Dr. Douglas Dunsmore appointed to the Order of Canada

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.

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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.

 

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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.

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Music at Memorial alum Stephen Eckert named one of CBC Music's Top 30 Canadian Classical Musicians under 30!

Stephen Eckert playing piano

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.

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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!

Sail Away to the Sea - A Signal Hill Soundwalk

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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!

Kendra Sutton Headshot

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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!

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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!

Hannah Sparkes Headshot

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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! 

Matthew Roome playing the saxophone

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