Ottawa Choral Society

About the Ottawa Choral Society

Since its inaugural concert in 1941, the Ottawa Choral Society has evolved into one of Canada’s most ambitious and prominent symphonic choruses. With more than one hundred and twenty auditioned voices, the Society presents the masterpieces of the choral literature and commissions and performs the works of contemporary modern masters.

In addition to its self-produced subscription series, the Choir regularly appears as the guest of the National Arts Centre Orchestra and has partnered with the Ottawa Symphony Orchestra and the Ottawa Chamber Music Society. The Society is proud of its exciting initiatives that provide a platform for the City's children's and youth choirs and emerging professional concert artists.

OUR VISION

Creating Community through Music

OUR MISSION

The Ottawa Choral Society’s mission is to bring the joy of great choral masterworks and contemporary repertoire to a diverse community of talented singers and broad audiences in our region.

ENGAGEMENTS with world-class conductors

The choir is honoured to have been invited to perform under the baton of many distinguished conductors, among them Alexander Shelley, Pinchas Zukerman, Helmuth Rilling, Mario Bernardi, Franz-Paul Decker, Franco Mannino, Trevor Pinnock, Jiri Belohlavek, Charles Dutoit, Nicholas McGegan, and Yannick Nézet-Séguin. Since 2001, the OCS has had the privilege of working with Duain Wolfe, the distinguished chorus master of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, in the preparation of performances with the National Arts Centre Orchestra.

PRESENTING CANADA's GREAT CONCERT ARTISTS

The Society is proud to have shared its stage with such legendary artists as Maureen Forrester, Lois Marshall, Jon Vickers, Catherine Robbin, Ben Heppner, Richard Margison, Gary Relyea, and Joseph Rouleau. We are also proud to have introduced our audiences to the thrilling artistry of such artists as Donna Brown, Monica Whicher, Measha Brueggergosman, Shannon Mercer, Krisztina Szabo, Julie Nesrallah, Wallis Giunta, Daniel Taylor, Isaiah Bell, Gerald Finley, Russell Braun, and Philippe Sly.

New Discoveries Auditions

The Ottawa Choral Society’s New Discoveries Auditions are held in alternating years to provide emerging vocal artists with a professional platform, broad audience exposure, and career development opportunities. The Choral Society is proud to have encouraged many of Canada’s most accomplished concert artists to find success with audiences across the country through this initiative. Many of our past laureates are now appearing on opera and concert stages across North America and Europe.

NOTE: The New Discoveries Auditions are on hiatus this year due to the COVID-19 situation. We look forward to bringing them back in the future.

Jean-Sébastien Vallée, OCS Music Director

Jean-Sébastien Vallée is an internationally recognized conductor, scholar, and pedagogue. Maestro Vallée is Associate Professor of Music, Director of Choral Studies, and Chair of the Ensembles &Conducting Area at the Schulich School of Music of McGill University in Montréal. Dr. Vallée is Music Director of the Ottawa Choral Society, and director of the renowned choir of the Church of St. Andrew & St. Paul in Montreal. Previously, he served as Director of Choral Studies at California State University, Los Angeles, and was on the choral faculty of the University of Redlands.

In addition to his interest in choral, operatic, and orchestral music, Jean-Sébastien is an advocate for contemporary music, making it one of his priorities to premiere and commission works by young composers and to program rarely performed repertoire. As a scholar, Dr. Vallée has been invited to present his research at national and international conferences including those of the American Choral Directors Association, Festival 500 in Newfoundland, the National Collegiate Choral Organization, Podium (the national convention of Choral Canada), the Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities, and the 11th World Symposium on Choral Music, in Barcelona.

Upcoming activities include Unisong 2019 in Ottawa, Howard Goodall’s Eternal Light at Carnegie Hall, concerts at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, a tour with the National Youth Choir of Canada, and lectures at the 12th World Symposium on Choral Music, in New Zealand. Maestro Vallée’s work has been broadcast nationally and internationally by CBC Radio and PBS and can be heard on several recordings, including his recent albums entitled Lux (ATMA, 2017) and Requiem (ATMA, 2018).

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Deirdre Kellerman, ASSISTANT Director

Deirdre Kellerman (B.Mus Vocal Performance, Acadia; M.Mus Choral Conducting, New England Conservatory) is an innovative choral conductor based in Ottawa, ON. She is the Assistant Director of the Ottawa Choral Society and the Director of Music at the First Unitarian Congregation of Ottawa, where she conducts their three choral ensembles. She is a nominee for the 2018 Leslie Bell Prize for Choral Conducting. Deirdre has studied with Canada’s leading choral pedagogues and in 2018, she was one of five international conductors accepted into the Banff Centre’s inaugural Choral Art program.

Originally from Nova Scotia, Deirdre sang with Xara Choral Theatre, the Nova Scotia Youth Choir and the National Youth Choir of Canada. She now sings with Aella, a treble vocal ensemble in Ottawa. In high demand as a vocal coach, Deirdre is passionate about music education and life-long learning and maintains a busy teaching studio.

Scott Richardson, OCS Choir Accompanist

Scott Richardson is active in the Ottawa area as an accompanist and choir director. Scott grew up in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, and studied music at Mount Allison University. He later completed a Ph.D. in English literature at the University of Ottawa.

Scott currently conducts Atlantic Voices and Musica Viva Singers, and is the rehearsal pianist for the Ottawa Choral Society. He has also accompanied the Carleton University Choir, the Canadian Centennial Choir and the Ottawa Children's Choir. As an organist and choir director, Scott has held various positions in the Atlantic Provinces and in Ottawa, and is now Music Director at Orleans United Church.

OUR HISTORY

The Genesis 1860-1914

Over more than a century and a half there have been several Ottawa choirs known as the Ottawa Choral Society or Choral Union. The first Ottawa Choral Society was formed in November 1860 by music teacher Louis Fecht. A second choir of the same name, established in 1865 by Herbert G. R. Fripp, was active for at least two seasons. An Ottawa Choral Union existed in 1874-5 with Frederick W. Mills as its conductor. A third Ottawa Choral Society was conducted by Edward Fisher from 1875 to 1879; he later moved to Toronto where he founded the Toronto (now Royal) Conservatory of Music. A fourth Ottawa Choral society, conducted by J. Edgar Birch, was active from 1897 to 1914.

1940 - 1967

The present organization was formed in November 1940 as the Ottawa Choral Union; the name was changed to Ottawa Choral Society in 1957. Its founding director (1940-1953) was W. Allister Crandall, a federal government biologist, and organist of First United Church. The inaugural concert, to benefit war charities, was given in January 1941. During his tenure Mr. Crandall directed the choir in repertoire that included major choral works by Bach, Haydn, and Mendelssohn, and annual Messiah performances.

Following Mr. Crandall were conductors Myron McTavish (1953-1954), Joseph B. Herdman (1954-1955) and Dr. Frederick Karam (1955-1966). Dr. Karam also served as organist-choirmaster at St. Elijah Syrian Orthodox Church, conducted the Ottawa CBC Orchestra, and taught composition and voice at the University of Ottawa. In 1955 the choir gave the world premiere of Dr. Karam's Lazarus - a narrative cantata. Music Director for the 1966-1967 season was Robert van Dine.

1967-1991

The longest-serving Music Director to date was Brian Law (1967-1991), organist and choirmaster at St. Matthew's Church and music director of the Cantata Singers; he later became music director of the Ottawa Symphony Orchestra (OSO) and founding conductor of the chamber group Thirteen Strings. Under his leadership the OCS season expanded to four concerts, usually large symphonic works co-produced with the National Arts Centre Orchestra or the OSO. Memorable concerts during his tenure were Britten's War Requiem (1977 and 1985) and the Berlioz Requiem, presented at the fiftieth anniversary concert in 1991. The choir toured Italy (1982) and Spain (1989) with Mr. Law. He resigned in November 1991 to take up conducting duties in New Zealand.

1992-2005

Mr. Law's successor was Iwan Edwards (1992-1997; 2001-2005), McGill professor and Montreal Symphony Orchestra Chorus Master. In recognition of his choral conducting skills, Mr. Edwards was made a Member of the Order of Canada in 1995. Major undertakings during this period were Bach's Mass in B Minor and The Christmas Oratorio, and a tour of Germany and the Czech Republic (1996), with performances in Karlovy Vary, Prague and Munich. His interpretation of Handel's Saul at the NAC in March 2004 will be remembered as a milestone in the choir's history.

Taking the OCS into the new millennium was Dr. Daniel Gordon (1998-2001) of the Crane College of Music in Potsdam, New York. Dr. Gordon led the choir on a tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland in October 2000. BBC Northern Ireland produced a documentary which was televised across Britain, featuring the choir's collaboration with the Belfast Philharmonic Choir and the Ulster Orchestra in Michael Tippett's masterpiece A Child of our Time.

2005-2015

After Iwan Edwards' second term with the OCS, he was succeeded by Matthew Larkin, the accomplished organist and choirmaster of Christ Church Cathedral, Ottawa. Highlights of Mr. Larkin's tenure (2005-2012) were the choir's 2008 tour of Italy, where the OCS performed for enthusiastic audiences in major churches in Venice, Florence and Rome, and the 2010 performance of Bach's St. Matthew Passion.

The 100-voice Ottawa Choral Society continued to flourish under the inspiring leadership of Jordan de Souza, who was Artistic Director from 2012 to 2015. His other musical activities included the post of Conductor at Montréal's Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul, assistant conducting at the Canadian Opera Company, and frequent appearances as a keyboard performer.

Kevin Reeves, founding conductor of the Seventeen Voyces chamber choir, served as OCS Associate Music Director from 2010 to 2015.

2015 and Beyond

The choir celebrated its 75th Anniversary season, 2015-2016, with the return of Iwan Edwards, Matthew Larkin and Kevin Reeves as guest conductors, and a gala performance of Mendelssohn's Elijah, conducted by Duain Wolfe. With the appointment of McGill professor Dr. Jean-Sébastien Vallée as Artistic Director in September 2016, the choir began an exciting new chapter of choral music performances in the National Capital Region.