The Department of Music is proud to announce that Stuart Beatch, a recent graduate (BMus, 2015) from our Composition & Theory program, has been awarded the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir's new Choral Composition Competition for emerging Canadian composers.
The competition called on unpublished Canadian composers to submit works for SATB or double choir, either a cappella or with piano or organ accompaniment. A total of 28 submissions were received from emerging composers across Canada.
Submissions were assessed by a panel of four musicians: Noel Edison, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir Artistic Director and Conductor of the Elora Festival Singers; Timothy Corlis, a composer based in British Columbia; Mark Sirett, a conductor, composer and teacher based in Kingston, Ontario; and Mark Vuorinen, a conductor and university professor based in Kitchener, Ontario.
The jury met in December 2015 and selected Beatch's composition, Psalm 100, as the winner of the Debbie Fleming Prize for Choral Composition. Beatch will receive a cash prize of $1000 and will premiere his winning piece at the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir's Choral Conductors' Symposium concert, to be held at Yorkminster Park Baptist Church on Saturday, January 30, 2016.
The Symposium concert is an event that highlights the vibrancy of Canada's choral music scene by bringing together emerging conductors with new compositions by emerging Canadian composers. This concert event is free and will be webcast live across Canada and beyond.
Congratulations, Stuart!
About Stuart Beatch:
Stuart Beatch graduated from the University of Alberta in 2015 with a Bachelor of Music (BMus) degree and also holds a degree in music education from the University of Regina (BMusEd, 2013). His compositions have been performed by vocal and instrumental groups across North America. Beatch's music fuses traditional forms with driving rhythms and contrasting harmonies.
Some of his recent commissions include works for the National Youth Choir of Canada, the Bridge City Brass Band (Saskatoon, SK), the University of Regina Clarinet Choir, and the Greenall High School Choir (Balgonie, SK). Stuart has plans to pursue composition studies at the graduate level in 2016. He currently resides in Regina, Saskatchewan.