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Ivars Taurins, Principal Baroque Conductor
Ivars Taurins conducts symphonic and choral repertoire with equal expertise. Principal Baroque Conductor of the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra since 2001, he has also appeared as guest conductor with the Edmonton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Saskatoon, Victoria and Windsor symphonies, Orchestra London, Canadian Chamber Ensemble, Vancouver Chamber Choir, Pro Coro Canada, the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and Elora Festival Singers. He was director of the 2000 Ontario Youth Choir, 2003 Nova Scotia Youth Choir, and 2004 Alberta University and College Choir. In 2007, he directed a Respighi opera at the Glenn Gould School, RCM.
Founder and director of the Tafelmusik Chamber Choir since 1981, he was also principal violist of the Tafelmusik Orchestra for its first 23 years. Under his direction the Tafelmusik Chamber Choir has been widely praised for its clarity and brilliance, and was awarded the Canada Council’s 1991 Healey Willan Prize “in recognition of the consistently high level of achievement by the choir and its unique contribution to choral art in Canada.”
His regular appearances as conductor of the Tafelmusik Chamber Choir and Orchestra have received widespread critical acclaim and are frequently heard on CBC Radio. His recordings (CBC Records) with Tafelmusik, which include the complete choruses from Handel’s Messiah, the Bach motets, and a CD of French 19th- and 20th-century a capella music entitled Chants sacrés et profanes, have all received Juno nominations. A CD celebrating the choir’s 25th anniversary, featuring the music of Bach, Vivaldi and Mondonville was recently released by CBC Records. The choir was featured at the Toronto International Choral Festival (2002), Canadian Voices (2004), and has premiered works by Omar Daniels, Chan Ka Nin, Brian Cherney and Paul Frehner with Soundstreams Canada.
A passionate lecturer and teacher, Mr. Taurins teaches conducting and baroque ensembles at the University of Toronto, and has been a guest teacher at the universities of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Western Ontario, Alberta, and Windsor, and at the Glenn Gould School, RCM in Toronto. Mr. Taurins is director of the vocal/choral programme at the annual Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute. |
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