Ballet Victoria & Victoria Choral Society: Carl Orff's 'Carmina Burana'
$34.75-$100 CAD ($28.75-$82 CAD senior/military/student, $18.50-$48.50 CAD child)
- Abby Boggs, soprano
- Carson Moore, countertenor
- Nathan David McDonald, baritone
- Wendy Stofer, piano
- Jane Edler-Davis, piano
- Brian Wismath, conductor
Carl Orff's epic score, live music, and the emotionally charged voices of the 150-member Victoria Choral Society and musicians under the baton of Brian Wismath drive one of Paul Destrooper's masterpieces. Don't miss this riveting performance inspired by timeless medieval songs where love and passion make the world go round.
"Exhilarating music, dramatic story, visual spectacle, and stirring voices" – G. Litwin, Times Colonist
About Victoria Choral Society
The Victoria Choral Society, directed by Brian Wismath, is an auditioned, mixed-voice symphonic choir dedicated to presenting the finest choral music from baroque to contemporary. Founded in 1934, the Victoria Choral Society has played a leading role in Victoria’s cultural life, and has performed with every Victoria Symphony conductor since the Symphony’s inception.
https://www.victoriachoralsociety.ca/About Abby Boggs, soprano
American coloratura soprano Abby Boggs sings with the Vancouver Chamber Choir and Laudate Singers in Vancouver. She performed as the soprano soloist in Laudate's performance of Bach's Weihnachtsoratorium with orchestra in December 2022, and appeared as L'Hébé, L'Amour, and Zima with Denman Island Baroque in a concert performance Rameau's Les Indes galantes.
Before the pandemic, Abby enjoyed a full 2019-2020 season so as a soprano soloist in Schubert's Mass in G major, Haydn's "Lord Nelson" Mass, and Mozart's Vesperae solennes de confessore with the Victoria Choral Society and Linden Singers, as well as in Pacific Opera's production of Il Trittico.
Abby is a graduate of Benjamin Butterfield's vocal studio at the University of Victoria, where she earned her Master of Music in Voice Performance. She studied with Dr. Sarah Holman at Wheaton Conservatory for her Bachelor of Music, and with Sonja Tengblad through New England Conservatory Preparatory School and the Handel and Haydn Society. She works as the Curator of the Dal Schindell Gallery at Regent College in Vancouver.
https://vancouverchamberchoir.com/portfolio-item/abby-boggs/About Nathan David McDonald, baritone
Commanding a repertoire spanning several centuries, from renaissance polyphony to modern opera, Nathan David McDonald, baritone, is often lauded for his vocal versatility. With a diverse musical background, including a degree in trumpet and seven years as a church Music Director, Nathan brings a wealth of experience and musicianship to his craft.
Active as an oratorio singer, Nathan has appeared with a variety of West Coast ensembles such as the Pacific Baroque Festival Orchestra, Victoria Philharmonic Choir, Cowichan Consort, and Vox Humana Chamber Choir. Recent highlights include Handel's Apollo e Dafne with Victoria Baroque led by Steven Divine; Bach's Magnificat with the Sooke Philharmonic and Victoria Choral Society; Bach's Christmas Oratorio with the Okanagan Festival Singers; the World Premiere of two new pieces at a Poetry and Song gala by East Van Opera; and Jean-Joseph de Mondonville's Cantate Domino at the Pacific Baroque Festival.
Nathan has presented recitals in Canada and the United States, and has sung professionally in choirs on 4 continents. A veteran of youth-oriented choral projects, Nathan has sung several times with the National Youth Choir of Canada and World Youth Choir, as well as the Carnegie Hall Chamber Choir (New York, NY), Weimar Bach Cantata Academy (Weimar, Germany), JSB Ensemble (Stuttgart, Germany), and Academia Internacional Teatro del Lago (Chile).
Operatic highlights include Nathan's 2016 mainstage debut with Pacific Opera Victoria (POV) as Fiorello in Rossini's Barber of Seville; solo chorus in the POV's school touring production of Mary's Wedding by Andrew Macdonald; performing the role of Marcello (2018) and Papageno (2017) in POV's Living Opera in schools program; and singing the role of Marcello in Puccini's La Bohème at Edmonton's NUOVA festival. Other operatic roles include Il Conte (Le Nozze di Figaro – Mozart), Dandini (La Cenerentola – Rossini), Don Alfonso (Cosi fan tutte – Mozart), Marco (Gianni Schicchi – Puccini), Colas (Bastien und Bastienne – Mozart), and Mr. Gobineau (The Medium – Menotti).
Nathan is a member of the Voice Faculty at the Victoria Conservatory of Music and the Canadian College of Performing Arts. He serves as Music Director/Kantor at Lutheran Church of the Cross, Victoria, and is mentored by soprano, Nancy Argenta.
https://nathandavidmcdonald.com/en/About Wendy Stofer, piano
Wendy Stofer received a BMus degree in piano performance from the University of Washington and a MMus degree in collaborative piano performance from the University of Michigan. While pursuing doctoral studies with Martin Katz at the University of Michigan, Wendy was appointed to the music faculty of the University of Alaska Fairbanks, where she subsequently taught for five years. Since returning to Victoria in 1991, she has been much in demand as accompanist and chamber musician, performing at the Old Schoolhouse Concert series, the Hornby Festival, and as one of the official pianists for the International Clarinet Association's ClarinetFest in Vancouver. Wendy is the collaborative pianist for winds and brass at the Victoria Conservatory of Music and regularly performs with pianist Jane Edler-Davis in the piano duo KlaVIERhands.
Wendy is the 2008 recipient of the British Columbia Choral Federation's Joyce O. Maguire Award for Outstanding Long Term Service as a Choral Accompanist.