Choral Companion is week of day camps and workshops for choristers of all ages led by local choral and vocal specialists. Come rehearse, sing, and perform in a fun, casual environment. This pilot project will consist of three streams that run concurrently at St. Andrew’s United Church: a stream for junior youth aged 9 – 13, another for senior youth aged 13 – 18, and a final stream for adults aged 18+. All registrants will participate in ensemble rehearsals, receive one-on-one vocal instruction with a local voice teacher, and attend workshops that are tailored to the needs of each stream (more details below!). Choral Companion will be an opportunity to get your voice back into shape and ready for the 2021/22 choral season.


Guest Clinicians

Choral Conductor - Dr. Frances FarrellVoice Teacher - Jason DavisVoice Teacher - Lucy Hayes Davis

A native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Frances Farrell pursued her music studies in Winnipeg, graduating with both Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Education degrees from the University of Manitoba. She subsequently earned a Master’s Degree and Artist’s Diploma in Vocal Performance from McGill University. Frances recently earned her Doctorate of Musical Arts in Choral Conducting from the University of Toronto. Currently, Fran is based in Halifax where she directs a community choir called the Dartmouth Choral Society as well as senior high choirs as part of the Halifax Regional Arts program. In addition to her role as a high school music educator, Fran has worked as a choral clinician in Nova Scotia, Ontario, Manitoba, and Alberta.

Along with his busy performing schedule Tenor Jason Davis is the founder and Artistic Director of the Broadway Company Players Music Theatre Ensemble and Halifax’s Breaking Waves Vocal Theatre Company and he is also a founding member of the Conservatory Nova Scotia Association where he currently sits on their Board of Directors as treasurer. He also maintains a very active private teaching studio through Davis Vocal Studios and the Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts where he offers voice lessons and coachings, RCM vocal exam preparations, RCM speech arts and drama lessons and also theory and ear training lessons. Many of his students have consistently placed or won numerous regional, provincial and national festivals and many have also gone on to pursue studies in vocal and theatre performance degrees at top undergraduate and graduate programs throughout North America.

Mezzo-soprano Lucy Hayes Davis is pleased to call Halifax home. Lucy returned to Nova Scotia in 2007 after pursuing intensive voice pedagogy studies with Dr. Scott McCoy and Marvin Keenze at Westminster Choir College, where she completed a Masters degree. Lucy went on to further operatic studies at the Hartt School joining the voice faculty there in 2001. In addition to maintaining a large voice studio, she taught all of the diction courses and a voice class for students majoring in Music Education. In Nova Scotia Lucy has taught voice at Dalhousie and Acadia Universities as well as Lyric Diction, Voice Pedagogy and Voice Clinics for students in the Dalhousie acting program. She acts as music director for the Elementary and Junior Broadway Company Players, Lucy will return for her seventh year as a vocal coach for the Halifax Summer Opera Festival in 2021. Lucy is also an active adjudicator and clinician.

As a teacher, Lucy has voice students that have been accepted in both undergraduate and graduate programs across Canada and the United States. Her students consistently place high in music festivals and have won many talent-based scholarships.


Program Fees & Overview

Choral Companion will take place at St. Andrew’s United Church from August 9th-13th.

Junior Youth (ages 9 – 13)

Registration Fee: $225

Join us for a fun week of choral singing, vocal exploration, and other art-based activities! The Junior Youth stream of Choral Companion will be offered as a day camp. Registrants will participate in daily ensemble rehearsals and group vocal instruction. Registration fee includes music rental, refreshments, and participation in Choral Companion. Lunch is not provided. 

Drop-off Time: 8:30 – 9:00 am
Pick-up Time: 4:00 – 4:30 pm

Senior Youth (ages 13 – 18)

Registration Fee: $115

The senior youth stream is offered as a series of afternoon rehearsals and workshops. Registrants will participate in ensemble rehearsals, exploring both contemporary choral and musical theatre repertoire, and receive one-on-one instruction from voice staff. Workshop topics will include performance anxiety, navigating voice change, and other chorister skills.

Drop-off Time: 12:30 – 1:00 pm
Pick-up Time: 4:30 – 5:00 pm

Adult (ages 18+)

Registration Fee: $150

The adult stream is offered as a series of evening rehearsals and workshops. Registrants will participate in ensemble rehearsals,  various workshops and receive one-on-one instruction from voice staff. Workshop topics will include performance anxiety, diction and IPA, and other chorister skills. 

Arrival Time: 5:30 – 6:00 pm
Departure Time: 9:30 pm


Registration

Due to the uncertainty of the current pandemic, we ask participants and their families to please wait to remit payment until closer to the program date. In the meantime, please complete the following registration forms to reserve your place in the program. As soon as we can ensure that the program will continue, registrants will be contacted with information regarding payment. 

Deadline to register: Sunday, July 18th, 2021

Junior Youth (ages 9 – 13)

Senior Youth (ages 13 – 18)

Adult (ages 18+)

Note: We include an overlap between the Junior Youth & Senior Youth camp to accommodate the changing voice and chorister preference. If you have any questions about which camp to register, please contact the Program Coordinator at programs@nscf.ca.


COVID-19 Protocols

For Choral Companion, the NSCF will follow all guidelines as set out by Public Health and the NSCF’s own Guidelines for Singing. At this point in time, this means that choristers will be socially distanced and masked during singing-based activities. In addition, time has been built in to the schedule to allow for ventilation of the rehearsal spaces. As we move through the reopening phases, the NSCF will continue to adapt to the given restrictions to ensure community safety.

To read the NSCF’s Guidelines for Singing, click here.



Acknowledgements

The Nova Scotia Choral Federation recognizes the support of the Province of Nova Scotia for this project. We are pleased to work in partnership with the Department of Communities, Culture and Heritage to develop and promote our cultural resources for all Nova Scotians.