C5
Chinese Canadian Children's Choir of Canada
Chinese Canadian Childrens Choir of Canada
Founders
What makes us so different? Apparently C5 with 5Cs...what else?
The Chinese Canadian Children's Choir of Canada (C5) is a not-for-profit organization focused on developing a fundamental understanding of music, life, emotional expression, and intercultural communication for children between the ages of 5 and 16. It provides an East-meets-West experience and helps to raise the cultural awareness and confidence of young Canadians. It promotes the learning of languages and cultures through singing Chinese, English and French songs, and enables children to learn to appreciate and to embrace the spirit of multiculturalism in Canada.
Mission:
To develop a deep understanding and love of humanity, world cultures, and languages. Also to promote the development of a fundamental understanding of music, life, expression of feeling, and intercultural communication.
Distinction:
C5 is recognized for the quality of its programming and for its focus on Canadian and Chinese cultures. It works to foster an environment of sincerity, dedication, and responsibility through the combining of histories, traditions, languages and cultures of the World.
C5’s repertoire includes songs composed by its own members, one of which received a gold medal in a Chinese children’s song writing competition held in Beijing.
Contribution:
C5 supports its members’ development through an active program of choral learning and performance. In the practice of learning and operations as a choir, C5 will nurture strong parent-conductor-student relationships with close ties to the community. It undertakes to foster, recognize and appreciate the contributions and achievements of its members.
Our choir teaches members Chinese and Western songs, a fusion of the two, and helps them to develop a better sense of cultures with a focus on the Chinese, English, and French languages.
Target Audience:
C5 aspires to become widely recognized for the quality of its music, its positive way to develop and nurture its members in the Chinese community in Ottawa. It also works on attracting local communities interested in Chinese cultures in general and in Chinese music in particular. C5 has focus on cultural exchanges between Canada and China nationwide, it extends its stage in Canada, China and countries around the world when applicable.
Yadong Guan
Music Instructor, Carleton University
Master, Musical composition, Laval University. Quebec , Canada
B.Music, pipa performence, The Central University for Nationalities, Beijing, China
Hailing from Beijing, Yadong Guan is a true musical ambassador who brilliantly masters the pipa, one of the Silk Road hidden treasures with impressive virtuosity, offering audiences a truly exotic experience. Since her arrival in Canada in 1997, the pipa virtuoso, who completed her Master degree studies in music composition at l'Université Laval, has adapted a wide variety of Western music to her instrument. The elegant virtuoso has toured Canada, China etc. on several occasions. She is teaching pipa and conducting Chinese ensemble in Carleton University.
Her exceptional contribution to the development of Chinese culture has won her several prestigious accolades, including a ministerial prize, awarded at the UN World Women’s Conference in 1995. At the Moncton Film Festival 2010 she received the award of “The best original scores” for the music of the movie <They killed my cat>, and also received the award “Outstanding artist 2010” given by the Toronto Fairchild TV and Talentvision TV. Her compositing <Grandma> recently received Gold Award for the Children’s song creation contest given by the Capital Normal Conservatory in China.
Carleton University site: https://carleton.ca/music/people/yadong-guan/
Conductors
Zhuomin Liu
Zhuomin Liu graduated from Xinghai Conservatory of Music in China and majored in music composition. She is a Chinese Canadian musician, RCM registered advanced specialist piano teacher. Being a music composer, apart from dedicating to piano teaching, she created a lot of music products in different style over the past decade . She also worked as a artistic directior for many successful local city and/or community music shows .
Zhuomin Liu has been cooperating with Guan Yadong studio since 2016. Being the arranger of the original song "grandmother's hug", she mixed vocal with different instruments such as piano, cello, violin and Chinese pipa. She explored the amalgamation of Chinese and Western music elements. This art work won the gold medal in the "Beauty Of The Heart" children's song creation contest in 2017 Year.
We hope she can create more classic works for the public in the future.
Patricia Kaiser
Patricia Kaiser is a trained vocal music teacher with 19 years of elementary teaching experience, primarily with the Ottawa Catholic School Board. She has extensive experience performing in a variety of choirs, including Ensemble Calixa Lavalée under the direction of Laurence Ewashko. She has also performed in and served as music director for several amateur musical theatre productions. Patricia currently sings with the Canterbury Trebles women’s choir, who have achieved 2nd place in Canada at the national level of competition.
Patricia's passion is children's choral music, and she has been directing children's choirs, both in Canada and in Germany, over the past 18 years. Patricia has worked with OCSB choirs since 2006, and is in her 10th year as director of the Young Voices Choir. The Young Voices Choir is the training choir for the OCSB Children's Choir, and is comprised of approximately 50 singers from 9-13 years old. Under Patricia’s direction, the Young Voices have often achieved first place in their class in the Kiwanis Music Festival, and have been recipients of the Centennial Choir Award.
OCSB Young Voices Choir Website: http://choirs.ocsb.ca/young-voices-choir
Antonio Llaca
Antonio Llaca has been conducting Coro Vivo Ottawa since 2009. Cuban born, Antonio obtained his Bachelor of Music in Musicology at the University of Ottawa, where he also studied choral conducting and classical guitar. Prior to this, Antonio first undertook studies in music at the Instituto Universitario de Estudios Musicales (IUDEM) in Caracas, Venezuela. He holds a Master’s degree in Choral Conducting from Université de Sherbrooke (Montreal) under the tutelage of Maestro Robert Ingari.
While at the University of Ottawa, Antonio worked closely with Laurence Ewashko, he also held the position of Choral Assistant to the Ottawa Festival Chorus at the National Arts Centre from 2007 to 2011, working closely with Maestro Ewashko, as well as with internationally acclaimed Choral Conductor, Duain Wolfe. In March 2012, Antonio was among six selected choral conductors who worked under Michael Zaugg in the Montreal Choral Institute for the 2012 master class edition.
In addition to his conducting positions, Antonio has been highly involved in the Ottawa music community and is well known and regarded by those who have worked with him. Antonio is a classical guitarist and classical mandolin player, and has performed in venues such as the Ottawa Jazz Festival, Ottawa Bluesfest, and the Ottawa Folk Festival, as well as with the National Arts Centre Orchestra and Montreal's Orchestre Métropolitain. Currently, he is engaged as a conducting teacher at Carleton University, instructing students in special stylistic features of Instrumental conducting as well as a variety of practical techniques – gesture, conducting patterns, score study, etc.
Carleton University site: https://carleton.ca/music/people/antonio-llaca/
Voice teacher
Shawne Elizabeth
Shawne Elizabeth teaches Classical Voice and Musical Theatre for the SSAC for several years. For Fusion Opera Company Ooh Lah Lah Opera, Shawne created characters for four topical shows and three children’s operas. She soloed with Opera Lyra Ottawa, Ottawa Pocket Opera, Opera in Piazza, Ottawa Savoy Society, Opera Breva, Theatre Lyrique de Hull, Brahms Choir, Choeur Classique de l’Outaouais, Carleton University Choir and Blackburn Chorus.
Shawne specializes in light French and Viennese coloratura repertoire, and interprets French and German Art Song with sensitivity. She starred in over a dozen operettas by Offenbach, Sullivan, Lehar, J. Strauss, and Le Coq. Sacred performances include standard works like Schubert Mass in G, Vivaldi Gloria, Haydn’s Harmony Mass and The Creation, Handel’s Messiah, Mozart Requiem and Mass in C, and the Rutter and Fauré Requiems.
Shawne appeared with the National Art Centre Orchestra, The Gatineau Symphony, The Virtuosi Orchestra, The Bohuslav Martinu Philharmonic, The Karlovy Vary Orchestra, Thirteen Strings and the Ottawa Chamber Orchestra. She conducts vocal workshops and has a private studio in her home.
Carleton University site: https://carleton.ca/music/people/shawne-elizabeth/
Ania Hejnar
Ms. Hejnar began her voice studies at age sixteen with Professor Ewelina Kwaśniewska, who was a lead soprano at the Grand Theater Opera in Lodz, Poland. Her collaboration with her professor in University of Ottawa led to invitations to perform in a variety of works and venues, among them the University of Ottawa Opera Company and the Opera Music Orchestra, in roles such as Susanna in Mozart’s Le Nozzle di Figaro, Queen of the Night in Die Zauberflöte, Frasquita in Bizet’s Carmen and soprano soloist in Brahm's Reqiuem. Ms. Hejnar has also performed for Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and former Governor General Michaëlle Jean, while also participating in Opera Lyra Ottawa’s production of Puccini’s Turandot. In 2011, she received first prize in the Canadian Music Competition, where she was invited to perform in numerous concerts with Orchestre Metropolitain in Montreal. She also won first place in the Alexander/Buono International Voice Competition leading to her Carnegie Hall Debut.
Since graduation the Master's Program from OttawaU, Ms. Hejnar has been soprano for Opera Lyra Studio performing as Mabel from Pirate's of Penzance and doubling the Queen of the Night and First Lady from Die Zauberflöte. She has appeared as the soprano soloist in Haydn's Creation Handel's Messiah, Carmina Burana, Mozart's Great Mass in C Minor and Exsultate Jubilate. She has been a finalist in the Brian Law Competition in 2013 and 2015. Ms. Hejnar currently performs the National Anthem at University of Ottawa Convocations, TD Place Events for RedBlack and Fury games. She has recently performed for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at a Portrait Unveiling Ceremony and at a University of Ottawa Convocation Ceremony. In May 2016, she received First Place in the Canadian Model and Talent Convention in Singing and Adult Female Commercial.
As a certified Suzuki Teacher, she instructs her Private Studio where she teaches voice and violin, and is affiliated with Ottawa Suzuki Strings as a group class and private teacher. Ms. Hejnar additionally teaches through Canada Music Academy, and is the music and drama teacher at the Glebe Montessori school.
https://suzukiassociation.org/user/login/?group=2&from=%2Fpeople%2Fania-hejnar-throop%2F