Greetings from the 2022 Festival Committee

Frank Exley

MESSAGE FROM FRANK EXLEY

DUE TO THE UPCOMING HEALTH CHALLENGES AT THIS TIME THE FESTIVAL IN FEBRUARY WILL ONCE AGAIN BE ONLINE. GUIDELINES HAVE BEEN POSTED IN THE SYLLABUS TO ASSIST WITH THIS PROCESS

Chairperson of the St. Thomas Rotary Music Festival Committee

Having survived the challenges of conducting an online festival for the first time last year we look forward this year to once again holding a festival where our entrants will be able to offer a live performance in front of our adjudicators. With the addition of new awards last year we will likely be able to offer over $6000,00 in scholarship money at this year’s festival as well as funding for students in need of financial assistance for lessons and festival competitions. Appropriate venues have been chosen to hopefully offer the best acoustics and accessibility for each participant thanks to the many local churches who have stepped forward once again.

One area that we most look forward to is being able to once again welcome choirs and bands into the festival competition which often allows each to evaluate the success of their programs thanks to the helpful comments of the adjudicators. We also appreciate the many music teachers both private and in our schools that encourage their students to participate in our festival, Part of the learning process in music is being able to step forward and perform in a public setting such as a music festival. In this way we might be looking forward to enjoying the performance of your music for a lifetime. By taking part in a festival we are increasing our confidence in ourselves in a very unique way. Please check the list of awards available since there have been some improvement and changes from last year. We also know that many participants will be able to enroll in the provincial O.M.F.A. competition that also helps improve your music skills.

Registering in this year’s festival will once again be done online with the schedule for the performance of each competitor being also done through a computer notice. All the information about our festival can be found on the 2022 St. Thomas Rotary Music Festival web site or by contacting any member of our festival committee.

Putting together our festival is a team effort and its success depends on the efforts of many volunteers. As always those who might be interested in assisting us with this most worthwhile project need only contact one of our committee members.

Frank Exley
2022 Music Festival Chair.

Adjudicators for the Music Festival

Stéphan Sylvestre

Stéphan Sylvestre - Piano

Stéphan Sylvestre ranks among the most sought-after Canadian pianists. Compared by critics to Arthur Rubinstein for his natural talent and flawless technique (La Presse, Montreal), he has given performances across Canada, in the United States, South America, Europe, the Middle East, Russia and Asia. He performed in major concert halls such as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Saint Petersburg Conservatory, St. Martin-in-the-Fields, the Place des Arts, the National Arts Centre, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, and recorded live for the BBC. Mr. Sylvestre appeared with leading orchestras in Canada including the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, the Orchestre Métropolitain, Sinfonia Toronto and the Orchestra London, and performed in festivals and series such as the Ottawa ChamberFest, Parry Sound’s Festival of the Sound, the Lanaudière International Festival, Pro Musica and the Winnipeg Virtuosi.

Highly praised as a chamber musician, he collaborated and recorded with artists and ensembles such as James Campbell, James Sommerville, Martin Beaver, Michel Strauss, Alain Trudel, Ransom Wilson, Rivka Golani, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, the Penderecki, New Zealand, New Orford, Alcan and Arthur-Leblanc string quartets, as well as with first chairs of the Israel Philharmonic. His discography, released under Canadian labels ATMA, CBC, Marquis Classics and Espace 21 Records, has been recognized with outstanding reviews worldwide. Nominated for Prix Opus award in Quebec, his recordings of Brahms’ late piano pieces were placed alongside Murray Perahia’s interpretations by WholeNote magazine, and the Strad Magazine in the UK gave a stunning review of his recording of Szymanovski’s complete works for violin and piano with violinist Jerzy Kaplanek.

Mr. Sylvestre regularly gives master classes around the world and sits on juries of national and international competitions. He is also regularly invited to adjudicate for leading higher education institutions and music schools, including the Glenn Gould School and the Conservatoire de Montréal. Highly in demand as a pedagogue of the new generation, his research on the art of performance focuses on the interconnection between the instrument, the awareness of the body and the mental state of the performer. His students are frequent prizewinners in major competitions, and have been awarded prestigious research grants. Mr. Sylvestre is Associate Professor and head of Keyboard Studies at Western University Canada since 2005. His teachers have included Leon Fleisher, John Perry, Marc Durand and Marek Jablonski.

Jacqueline Sadler

Jacqueline Sadler - Vocal and Choral

A graduate of the University of Western Ontario in Voice Performance, Ms. Sadler has performed in over 40 professional theatrical productions, as soprano soloist, music director, conductor, composer, and actor.  Her performances have taken her from seven seasons at The Charlottetown Festival, to the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and everywhere in between.  

As an educator, Ms. Sadler has been fortunate to share her experiences while teaching at The Randolph Academy in Toronto, Sheridan College, St. Lawrence College, and the universities of Queen’s and Waterloo. A multi-instrumentalist, Ms. Sadler also plays the organ, and broke a Guinness World Record for Church Organ Marathon playing at 40 hours, 36 minutes.

She resides in Eastern Ontario where she raises 8 chickens, taps maple trees, sings to her plants, and bakes a mean focaccia.

Ms. Sadler is looking forward to hearing the performers, live and in person, at this year’s Festival. Sing your heart out and tell your story!

Irene Tandberg

Irene Tandberg - Strings

Violinist, Irene Tandberg's career as performer and pedagogue spans four decades. She has established a vibrant private studio where students have been honoured with many prestigious scholarships and awards, obtained positions at notable international & domestic schools & orchestras, and pursued distinguished solo careers.

Irene’s long tenure as Co-Director of FCTE inspired her to pursue enriching the student experiences and she is the founding director of the Young Artists Pre-College Academy. YAPCA’s diverse programming cultivates motivated students who are inspired to explore a high level of technical finesse and artistry in a collegial, non-competitive environment. Weekly Performance, Chamber and Master classes offer students the opportunity to master their skills and expand their musical knowledge under the tutelage of a dynamic faculty and guest artists. YAPCA is actively engaged in collaborative projects throughout the community, nurturing a lifelong commitment in supporting the arts.

Irene was born in Denmark. Her first teacher was her grandfather, Wolf Notkin (a member of the Royal Danish National Symphony Orchestra), who is to be credited with nurturing her deep love of music and inspiring a life long journey of discovery through sound. In later years her principal teachers were Gwen Thompson and Dana Mazurkevich at the University of Western Ontario. Irene then went on to follow her passion and vocation for performance and teaching with acclaimed pedagogues, while concurrently pursuing Suzuki teacher training.

Past recordings and performances reflect an eclectic range of engagements on Modern and Baroque violin. She has had the privilege to perform in core, principal and solo positions with many fine orchestras and chamber groups including L’Harmonie Universelle, Nota Bene and Arcady. In 1989 she founded the string quartet, Octo Mani.

Irene is a vastly experienced and fervent pedagogue who has both written and given invited talks on performance, teaching and practice strategies. She is also a very active festival adjudicator, master class teacher and workshop clinician in music programs and teaching institutions across Canada.

In addition to running her private studio, acting as the Coordinator for Western 360 and Directing YAPCA, she is a faculty member in the Performance Department at the University of Western Ontario, where is the recipient of the student council “Award of Excellence” in teaching. At FCTE she initiated partnering with Western in Community Engaged learning and Pedagogy Course mentorship which continues through the Young Artists Pre-College Academy.

Linda Wharton

Linda Wharton - Bands and Instrumental

Linda taught for many years at London Central Secondary School, leading a music department where almost half of the student body participated.  She conducted the Senior Concert Band, Wind Ensemble, and the Jazz Band. Linda has received many teaching awards and her ensembles have had numerous successes locally, regionally, provincially, and nationally.

 

A founding member of the Thames Valley Honour Band and a past treasurer on the board for the Ontario Music Educators’ Association, Linda was the 2015 recipient of the Forest City London Music Awards Lifetime Achievement Award for being an outstanding contributor to the London and area music community. 

 

In the past few years, Linda has been adjudicating at Kiwanis Festivals, MusicFest and at the Atlantic Band Festival.  She is currently teaching Conducting and Instrumental  Ensemble Techniques at Western University, Don Wright Faculty of Music. Linda is also an avid Dragonboat paddler!

Adjudicators Scoring System

Please read carefully the rules for our system for issuing performances scores. For added clarification we include this explanation of how marks are presented and how certificates will be completed. Adjudicator results: On the Adjudicator’s Report page the adjudicator will write a specific percentage mark for each performance. The adjudicator will take into account:

  1. The choice of music in respect to content and format
  2. The quality of the music itself and its performance value
  3. The appropriateness of the music to the performer’s skill level, ability, and stage of development
  4. The time limit for each performance is respected (where applicable)

The adjudicator results will indicate the following evaluations on the certificates to be presented by the adjudicators:

  1. For results between 90% and 100% the seal will be GOLD
  2. For results between 80% and 89%the seal will be SILVER
  3. For results between70% and 79% the seal will be BRONZE

Scholarships

It is intended that scholarships be used to further musical studies. Some scholarships are funded by investments in past years; others are financed by annual donors. The decisions of the Scholarships Committee will be based upon the recommendations of the adjudicators and the funds available. The Scholarships Committee may also give consideration to students who have participated in more than one section or more than one class even if their highest mark is Silver. All award decisions are from the recommendation of the adjudicators to the scholarship committee.

Important dates for the 2022 Festival:

Registration opens - Oct 11th, 2021
Registration closes - Jan 15th, 2022
Youtube submissions - Jan 16th to Feb 27th
Evaluation by Adjudicators - Feb 28th - Mar 6th 2022
Major Awards Competition - TBA
Keynotes Concert (if possible) - Apr 8th, 2022 7:00PM

DUE TO THE UPCOMING HEALTH CHALLENGES AT THIS TIME THE FESTIVAL IN FEBRUARY WILL ONCE AGAIN BE ONLINE. GUIDELINES HAVE BEEN POSTED IN THE SYLLABUS TO ASSIST WITH THIS PROCESS