Gary Dahl

It is the fine warm tone and the strong musicality which audiences and critics alike take note of in the performances of baritone, Gary Dahl.  Gary has been busy in oratorio, chamber music, and recitals since his arrival to Chelsea. QC. from British Columbia in 1995.  He studied vocal technique with Vancouver maestro Luigi Wood.  He has coached lieder with Franz Rupp in New York, and with Martin Isepp at the Banff Centre for the Arts.  He is a former member and soloist with  the Vancouver Chamber Choir,during which time he was also a member of the Vancouver Opera Company.

He appears often with the excellent choral ensembles of the Outaouais region and beyond.  Recent performances include Bach's St. Matthew Passion with the Ottawa Choral Society, and Faure's Requiem with The Mississauga Choral Society.  Gary also sings with the remarkable Choir of Men and Boys, Christ Church Cathedral , Ottawa, and accompanied them on their 2009 tour to Cambridge, England, and most recently, June, 2010 to New York city.

Apart from his solo career, Gary  conducts the 50-voice Castenchel Choir of Chelsea, where he also acts as artistic director for the annual Chelsea Classical Concert. He is a private voice instructor and is evermore in demand for workshops and clinics for choirs

Jean-Philippe Fortier-Lazure

Tenor Jean-Philippe Fortier-Lazure is a Kitchener native who is currently pursuing a degree in Voice Performance at the University of Ottawa. In the past 2 years, he has had the opportunity to perform in the University’s Opera Production as Don Basilio and Don Curzio in Le nozze di Figaro as well as Mr. Gobineau in The Medium. He was chosen to play the role of Tamino in the University’s 2011 production of Die Zauberflöte presented January 2011. Mr. Fortier-Lazure is also a member of the Opera Lyra Ottawa Chorus, and has performed in productions such as La Traviata, Eugene Onegin, Le nozze di Figaro, Hamlet, and Die Zauberflöte. In May 2010, he interpreted the role of a Guardsmen in the production of Massenet’s Manon in concert at the National Arts Center, which is to be broadcasted on CBC Radio 2 at the end of June 2010. Also in May 2010, he performed the roles of Don Basilio and Don Curzio in the Jean Desmarais Production of Le Nozze di Figaro.

In the summer of 2009, Mr. Fortier-Lazure participated in Elora Festival Academy’s inaugural summer program. In the summer of 2008, he performed the role of Sasha in The Scent of a Scandal, presented by Ooh La La Opera in Ottawa. Over the years, he has performed with choirs such as The Ottawa Choral Society, The Christ Church Men and Boys Choir, the Ottawa Cantata Singers, and as a guest with the Kronenchor Friedrichstadt (Berlin, Germany) and the Sociedad Lírica Complutense, (Madrid, Spain).

April Babey

Mezzo-soprano APRIL BABEY is a first year student in the Master's of Music Program at McGill University, under the direction of Thérèse Sevadjian. A winner of both the NATS Senior Scholarship Competition and the 2009-2010 University of Ottawa Concerto competition, April has been a featured soloist with Daniel Taylor and the Theatre of Early Music, The Festival of Music and Beyond, Ottawa Pocket Opera, University of Ottawa Opera Productions, The Choir of St. John the Evangelist, CAMMAC, and The Brampton Lyric Opera Company. This past summer, she was invited to the Banff Centre's Opera as Theatre program to sing the role of Nora in John Estacio's new opera, Lillian Alling. Ms. Babey looks forward to pursuing a career in vocal performance and pedagogy.

Rosalind Pickett

Soprano Rosalind Pickett has performed with NUMUS, the Saugeen Baroque Festival, St. Jacobs Church Theatre, Waterloo Stage Theatre, Second Company, the Wilfrid Laurier Baroque Ensemble, Wilfrid Laurier Opera, Opera McGill, and has toured as a children’s performer with the Licorice Allsorts Clarinet Quartet. She has participated in workshops with Queen of Puddings Music Theatre, Le Centre d'Arts Orford, NATS, Opera.ca and Jeunesses Musicales, and has been seen in concert throughout Southern Ontario and Quebec. She has won awards with the Guelph Spring Festival Competition and Elora Festival Competition. Rosalind is a graduate of the voice and opera programs at Wilfrid Laurier University, and holds a Masters Degree in Opera from McGill University.

Erika Raum

Known for her "engaging sensitivity and a gorgeously full tone," [THE STRAD], violinist Erika Raum continues developing a following here in her native country and internationally. Playing professionally since the age of twelve, Ms. Raum quickly rose through the ranks by taking first place at the 1992 Joseph Szigeti International Violin Competition in Budapest as well as the award for best interpretation of a Mozart concerto. She has returned on many occasions to perform in Hungary, Portugal, Sweden, Austria, Germany, England, Italy and France. She has appeared as guest artist with such orchestras as the Budapest Radio Orchestra, the Szombathely Symphony Orchestra, the Austro-Hungarian Orchestra, and the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra.

A distinguished musician abroad, Erika also performs frequently throughout her homeland with orchestral appearances in cities such as Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver, Ottawa, Victoria, Halifax, Laval and Edmonton. Both a recitalist and chamber musician, some of her recent international highlights include the Festival Pablo Casals in Prades France, Beethoven Festival in Warsaw, the BargeMusic Festival in New York, Seattle Chamber Music Festival and past invitation include the Budapest Spring Festival, Szombathely Festival in Hungary, Carnegie Hall as well as the Caramoor and Prussia Cove festivals. Her performances are often heard on an array of radio networks like CBC across Canada and the NPR in the USA. In the 2010.11 season, Erika will perform in concerto with orchestras and will be featured in recital at the 2011 NAC Prairie Scenes.

Erika is a member of the ARC Ensemble (Artists of the Royal Conservatory), a chamber group specializing in the rediscovery of great 20th century composers and their music, with an emphasis on those whose lives were interrupted or even lost during the Holocaust. So far, they have released two CDs on the RCA Red Seal label, both of which were nominated for Grammy Awards. The Strad Magazine even gave Erika special mention for her performance noting that Erika had them “hanging on to her every note”. Further recordings include a partnership with internationally renowned pianist Anton Kuerti which produced a critically acclaimed world premiere recording of Carl Czerny's piano and violin works on the CBC Musica Viva label. Her most recent release for the Arktos label consists of the Brahms Horn Trio and another recording premiere: Pantheon by the esteemed composer (and mother!) Elizabeth Raum. She is also currently completing a disc of the complete violin and piano works of Krystof Penderecki with pianist Lydia Wong.

Erika is a graduate of the University of Toronto where she studied with the late Professor Lorand Fenyves and was awarded the prestigious Eaton Scholarship upon her graduation. She is also a recipient of The Canada Council for the Arts - Career Development Grant. Ms. Raum is currently on the faculties of The Glenn Gould School at The Royal Conservatory of Music, Toronto and the University of Toronto. She lives in Toronto with her husband, distinguished Canadian composer, Omar Daniel, their three-year-old daughter Roslein, and bouncing triplet babies Eero, Oskar, and Roxanne.