January keyboard department event!

Hello, RCM keyboard teachers, and Happy New Year!

One of the reasons to teach here at RCM is to inspire and be inspired, learn from colleagues, and truly be a resource for each other. I invite you to come to the next faculty get-together on Tuesday, January 9th from 12 to approximately 1:30 in room 104.1(next to the cafeteria).

TOPIC:

IDEAS I COULD NOT LIVE WITHOUT/ THE BEST THINGS I HAVE EVER LEARNED!

What each of us personally considers essential and most important in our teaching.
Bring your insights and experience to share and discuss with other faculty members.

We will be holding these gatherings, some with guests, each month at lunchtime on alternating days. The names of the guests will be announced as they are confirmed.

A list of locations and dates follows:
Jan. 9th, Tues.(104.1)
CHANGE: Feb.8th, Thurs. 12 PM: General meeting of the keyboard faculty, room 103, (next to the bookstore).
Mar. 7th, Wed (104.1)
April 10th, Tues. (316)
May 9th, Wed. (104.1) Guest: composer and pianist Heather Schmidt

George Thurgood : Jazz Piano, Music Theory and History at the Royal Conservatory of Music

I am teaching classes in Jazz Piano, Keyboard Harmony, Harmony and Counterpoint, Rudiments for Adults and private lessons in Piano, Jazz Piano, theoretical subjects including Composition. I have been teaching at the RCM for over fifteen years, developing my own methods and materials.

For information on classes and private lessons, contact the RCM at (416) 408-2824. My voice mail is at ext. 734.

Further information and links will be provided as time permits.

Link to gthurgood.com

Community School Holiday Open House on December 2

The Community School will hold its second annual Holiday Open House on Saturday, December 2 in the lobby of The RCM main location at 90 Croatia Street in Toronto. The festivities will include crafts, gingerbread house building, a bake sale, as well as a sing-along. All are welcome to the festivities and admission is free.

Introducing Christopher Foley

Christopher Foley is a pianist dedicated to the fields of teaching, chamber music, art song, opera, and contemporary music. At the Eastman School of Music, he received a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in 1994, majoring in Piano Accompanying and Chamber Music as a student of Jean Barr and David Burge. He is currently on the piano and voice faculty of The Royal Conservatory of Music, having previously served on the faculties of the Vancouver Academy of Music and the University of British Columbia. The summer of 2006 marked his thirteenth summer as Resident Accompanist at the Bowdoin International Music Festival. In 1989 at the Eckhardt-Grammaté Competition for the Performance of Contemporary Music, he won first prize for the performance of the commissioned work (Walter Buczinski's Mosaics) and third prize overall. In 1991, he won first prize in piano at the Kneisel Competition for the Performance of German Lieder in Rochester, New York.

As pianist and repetiteur for Tapestry New Opera Works, he has been involved with recent productions of Opera To Go 2006, Nigredo Hotel, Opera To Go 2004, and Facing South, as well as being on the creative team for Tapestry's unique Composer/Librettist and Director/Musical Director laboratories. At the 2006 Women in Music festival at the Eastman School of Music, he will be performing works of Laura Schwendiner and Barabara Pentland. A longtime member of the Vancouver New Music Ensemble, solo performances have included The Wanderer: Chamber Music of Africa and two critically acclaimed six-hour retrospectives of 20th-century music, entitled Countdown: The Odd Decades and Countdown: The Even Decades—Distance and Enchantment.

In June of 2004, his recording of Abigail Richardson's dissolve with Ryan Scott and Sanya Eng was awarded first prize in the under-30 division of the International Rostrum of Composers and was broadcast over 100 times throughout Europe and North America in the 2004-05 season. In January and February 2006, he appeared in several episodes on the new Bravo!Canada reality show Bathroom Divas. As author of the Collaborative Piano Blog, he writes about issues of importance to the collaborative pianist, as well as current musical events in Toronto and elsewhere.

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If you are looking for piano lessons in Toronto or Oakville, or are interested in the Collaborative Piano Class at The RCM, you can contact Dr. Foley at collaborativepiano at gmail dot com or (416) 408-2824 ext. 886.

Tanya Tkachenko students' recital

Friday, February 2nd at 7.30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of The RCM
90 Croatia Street Toronto Ont.

Introducing Karen Quinton, Chair, Community School Keyboard Department

Karen Quinton completed her undergraduate study and post graduate Concert Diploma at McGill University with European Concert pianist Lubka Kolessa, and concurrently attended the Conservatoire de Musique du Quebec a Montreal, graduating with highest distinction. After winning the (Quebec government) Prix d'Europe keyboard competition, she was chosen as the first Canadian musician to study in Moscow under the new Canada/URSS exchange.

During her two years at the Moscow Conservatory with Tatiana Nikolaeiva, Ms. Quinton was one of two Canadian participants in the Tchaikovsky International Competition, and arrived home to great interest in her artistic abilities. After several successful Canadian and European tours, she decided to live and study in London, England, and remained there for four years.

Karen Quinton has played in ten countries both as soloist and chamber muscian, frequently performed concertos with Canadian symphony orchestras, and has broadcast widely for the CBC on both television and radio. She has toured the major capitals of Europe as well as several provinces of Canada, and was a participant in a set of CBC recordings dedicated to the piano works of Harry Somers. Ms. Quinton is currently head of the Keyboard Department at The Royal Conservatory of Music Community School, organist and choir director of Martingrove Baptist Church, and a founding member of the Toronto Arts Trio.

Quotations from published reviews include the following:
"Constantly awakened sensitivity....an astoundingly refined touch"(La Marseillaise); "Form with a lustrous tonal quality...music should be beautiful and always comprehensible. This is an apt description of the playing of Karen Quinton." (Daily Telegraph, London, England) .

To contact Karen Quinton. please telephone The Royal Conservatory: 416 -408-2824; extension 719.

Ed Janus--teacher at Royal Conservatory of Music

Hello :

I have been on the staff at The RCM for over thirty years teaching piano, theoretical subjects and history. I will be sharing my experiences as a teacher, RCM examiner, adjudicator, clinician and administrator with anyone interested

I am interested in helping teachers across the country in terms of pedagogy, career development, performance opportunities, concert management etc. As current president of the Ontario division of CMC, I will be able to provide a great deal of information regarding fundraising, music competitions, along with overall promotion of young Canadian talent.

Watch for my comments in the future and please feel free to contact me through our site or at edwardjanus@gmail.com

Introducing Keywerx

Welcome to Keywerx, the keyboard department blog of the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Canada. On this site you will find information posted by our faculty on many of the diverse offerings in the keyboard department, including lessons, workshops, and classes, as well as information on performances, publications, events, and ideas.