Dec 7 | 3:00 PM
Bella Concert Hall
MESSAGE FROM TERRY CLARK
DIRECTOR, MOUNT ROYAL UNIVERSITY
Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome! On behalf of our musicians and speech artists, it is a joy to gather with you this afternoon in the beautiful Bella Concert Hall for this year’s Winter Fantasia performance. At a time of year filled with both reflection and celebration, the performing arts have a unique power to bring us together, to warm our spirits, and to remind us of the beauty that lives within tradition, community, and hope.
This afternoon’s program invites you to step into a world shaped by evocative songs, stories, and music. From the gentle glow of familiar carols, to the grandeur of orchestral masterpieces, to stories about holiday adventures such as hunting for the perfect Christmas tree, each piece has been chosen to evoke the wonder, joy, and gratitude that define winter and this festive time. Whether the holiday season for you is a cherished family celebration, a spiritual moment, a fond memory, or simply a time to pause and appreciate the gifts of the year, we’re honored to share this afternoon with you. May the music and words that fill this hall lift your heart, ignite your imagination, and offer you a sense of connection and comfort.
Thank you for joining us. Please settle in, relax, and let the joy of the season begin!
Terry Clark Director Mount Royal University Conservatory
PROGRAMME
Conservatory Sinfonia
Brook Green Suite
“Prelude”
Gustav Holst
Mount Royal Arietta
Here Comes the Snow
Teresa Jennings
Speech Arts and Drama
Ensemble
Snow
Karla Kuskin
Mount Royal Ariel
Petit Flocon
Anonymous
Mount Royal Aria
Cold Snap
Mark Hayes
Speech Arts and Drama
Ensemble
No Two Snowflakes
Sheree Fitch
Mount Royal Arioso
In Winter
trad. Arranged by
Victor C. Johnson
STORY
Mount Royal Aria
Stars that Twinkle and Shine
Joyce Eilers
Mount Royal Arietta
A Winter Wish
Dave and Jean Perry
STORY
Mount Royal Arioso
Winter Bells
trad. Arranged by Alan Billingsley
Mount Royal Youth Choir
Pakkanen
trad. Arranged by Soila Sariola
STORY
Mount Royal Ariel
The Penguin Dance
Clifford Crawley
Mount Royal Arioso
Snowflakes Dancing
John Purifoy
Conservatory Sinfonia
Brook Green Suite
“Air”
Gustav Holst
STORY
Speech Arts and Drama
Ensemble
Our Christmas Tree
Jack Prelutsky
Mount Royal Arioso & Aria
The Christmas Tree Feud
John Jacobson and Cristi
Cary Miller
Mount Royal Youth Choir
Ding-a-Ding-a Ding
Greg Gilpin
STORY
Mount Royal Arietta & Aria
December Canon
Mark Burrows
STORY
Mount Royal Youth Choir
The Frost
Erin Propp, arranged by
Absolon Figueroa
STORY Conservatory Sinfonia
Brook Green Suite
“Dance”
Gustav Holst
STORY
Mount Royal Ariel & Arietta
A Wish for Peace
Denise Gagne and Craig
Cassils
Mount Royal Ariel, Arietta, Aria, Arioso, & Youth Choir
Night Before Christmas
Ruth Artman
ENSEMBLE AND DIRECTOR BIOGRAPHIES
Conservatory Sinfonia
Conservatory Sinfonia is an award-winning ensemble for advanced string players ages 12 to 16. This orchestra performs music from professional repertoire and a high degree of commitment is expected. In addition to weekly rehearsals, players participate in an annual workshop with a guest conductor. Formerly known as Conservatory Strings, the ensemble has produced two CDs and have been recorded by the CBC. Conservatory Sinfonia prepares young musicians for future participation in the Calgary Youth Orchestra.
Chris Sandvoss - Director Chris Sandvoss studied violin with his mother, an early childhood specialist, and viola with the eminent teachers Harold Gomez, John Thompson and John Lowry. He went on to work with some of the world's legendary pedagogues, including Gerald Stanick, Hatto Beyerle, Karen Tuttle, Martha Strongin-Katz and Donald McInnes. Mr. Sandvoss performed and taught at festivals in Europe and North America, and appeared as an orchestra musician, conductor, soloist, recitalist and chamber musician on stage, radio, TV and CD. He was the founding violist of the internationally renowned Lands End Ensemble, the 13th St. Trio and the UCalgary Quartet. Mr. Sandvoss has taught at The University of Calgary and the Mount Royal University. Conservatory, where he currently teaches violin, viola, chamber music, facilitates the viola Academy/AP Program and conducts the Conservatory Sinfonia.
Conservatory Sinfonia - List
VIOLINS
Traian Teslaru**
Caitlin Hobel*
Aries Carter
Austin Goa
Danni Zhang
Jimmy Xu
Joseph Ma
Katrice Shu
Lauryn Bottomley
Luna Leung
Melissa Vaca Gonzales
Sofia Toncheva
Tamelyn You
Winnie Wang
Nga Yin Chang
**= concertmaster
*= section principal
of Members
VIOLAS
Nolan Shi*
Keaton Beck
Victoria Butler
Sophie Ryskine
CELLOS
Ben Swalm*
Cindy Ma
Jeremy Hobel
Natalie Cao
Peter Xu
Santiago Jamett
BASS
Zoey Alingig
Speech Arts and Drama
The Conservatory’s Speech Arts and Drama program is known across Canada for its leadership in curriculum and faculty. Children and teens develop the flexibility and power of the speaking voice in dynamic learning environments including short and long term group classes, private lessons, and an annual non-competitive speech and drama festival.
Speech and drama training is a boost for shy children, a haven for children that love literature, and a magical outlet for children that are driven to perform. It gives students the confidence to speak, be heard, and engage listeners in everyday communication, whether at school, or on the stage. Students share their own ideas in speeches and stories, and give voice to the printed page, elevating works of poetry, prose and drama in spoken word performance. A broad, developmental curriculum and a supportive environment allows each student to achieve the unique potential of their voice and hone their individual speaking style, and take ownership of skills that will serve them for a lifetime.
Jennifer Orr- Director (Speech and Drama Arts)
As both educator and administrator, Jennifer Orr has inspired countless students and cultivated excellence in speech arts curriculum and program design, transforming and elevating the practice and experience of teachers and students across Canada.
Jennifer has worked at Calgary’s Mount Royal University Conservatory for more than three decades, where as instructor and program facilitator she has built a
program that is a cornerstone of the Conservatory’s offerings. Jennifer was honoured with the 2025 Teaching Excellence in Lifelong Learning Award in recognition of her exemplary efforts and commitment of MRU faculty to the art of teaching and learning.
Jennifer has a long-standing affiliation with the Royal Conservatory of Music, serving as Speech and Drama specialist and senior member of the College of Examiners, supporting and encouraging teachers and examiners across Canada. Jennifer was honoured to be named an RCM Teacher of Distinction in September 2025.
Guided by her belief that speech arts is a vital art form, Jennifer has empowered generations of studentsmany of whom credit their speech arts training as "the thing that made the difference" in their road to success. She is passionate about the art of communication and delights in sharing poetry and stories with students, empowering them to explore their creativity and speak with confidence.
Speech Arts and Drama - List of Performers
Malachi Chan
Max Phone
Angela Shen
Luke Shen
Mount Royal Ariel Choir
Mount Royal Conservatory's youngest choral group, Ariel provides an introductory experience in choral music. Singers begin a life-long journey in music in a fun and creative environment. Kindergarten students will begin to learn vocal and musical literacy while fostering the enjoyment of music. Children in Kindergarten will build social and emotional connections as they pursue musical excellence with new friends. Ariel will conclude their year of learning with the Mount Royal Conservatory's family of choirs on Calgary's finest stages.
August Bassett - Director (Ariel)
August Bassett is a music specialist with the Calgary Catholic School District and has taught music in schools, community groups, and privately since 2011. August graduated from the University of Calgary with a Bachelor of Music in Flute Performance, with additional studies in Voice. After studying contemporary flute performance in New York with renowned teacher Robert Dick, August returned to Calgary to complete a Bachelor of Education degree, also from the University of Calgary.
Growing up singing along to cassette tapes in the family minivan, August has been singing her whole life! She has sung in many choirs, and has found a home in Enchor Chamber Choir, which she has been a member of since 2014. Outside of her teaching career, August enjoys playing flute with several community orchestras, which have included the St. Giles Orchestra, the Rocky Mountain Symphony Orchestra, and the Red Deer Symphony Orchestra.
August believes that everybody has a singing voice and strives to provide quality music education in an interactive and fun environment.
Ariel - List of Members
Emma Close
Annalise Cook
Ivy Dong
Natalie Dong
He Yilan
Addison Hornak
Claire Levesque
Harper Lyu
Joy Mierau
Harper Shi
Qijia Sun
Faith Yang
David Jiahe Yu
Hongyi Zhou
Mount Royal Arietta Choir
Arietta provides an opportunity for young singers to begin a life-long journey in music by instilling a love of singing on which to build a foundation for their musical development. Using choral repertoire, vocal and musical literacy is carefully developed, while allowing our singers to build social and emotional connections as they pursue musical excellence with new friends. Arietta regularly shares their gift of music with the Calgary community, and performs with the Mount Royal Conservatory's family of choirs on Calgary's finest stages.
Sarah McCune - Director (Arietta)
Sarah McCune has been a music specialist for 15 years, working with the Calgary Board of Education for the majority of her career. She has a Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Education from the University of Lethbridge, and holds Orff-Schulwerk Level 3 Certification.
Sarah is passionate about the value of high- quality music education and is actively involved in facilitating and presenting professional development for teachers. Having been a choir kid herself, Sarah is excited to share her love of music and help young musicians discover the joy of singing together.
Karen Neufeld - Accompanist (Arietta)
Karen has been an elementary music specialist with the Calgary Board of Education for the past 21 years. She has conducted children’s choirs, and participated in community and church choirs as a singer and piano accompanist. Karen has a passion for making music accessible and enjoyable for all, whether it is for children in the classroom or in choir, for adults in the community or for seniors living with challenges such as dementia. Karen holds Bachelor of Music and Education degrees from the University of Calgary, as well as a Diploma in Music Therapy from Capilano College.
Arietta - List of Members
Scarlett Archer
Henry Auld
Edric Bia
Khushi Bhalla
Bruce Birnie
Chase Button
Katelyn Deng
Farrell Amelia
Kendall Gin
Max Golinski
Mira Gong
Ethan Guan
Kaylna Hinds
Elliott Hornak
Li Zhuo Hu
Liran Hu
Jasper Jia
Sarah Kangles
Edith Leew
Gangjian Li
Isaiah Liu
Eden Lu
Elena Marenco
Hannah McClelland
Oliver Morgan
Wyn Newby
Meera Paskaradevan
Allison Pirca Ceballos
Robertson Eileen
Mount Royal Aria Choir
Arianna Ronga
Yuna Shen
Katya Skripets
Emmy Tran
Abigail Varghese
Ainsley Ward
Nicole Warner
Sophia Xu
Aria singers continue their musical development by exploring more advanced repertoire and expanding their performance opportunities. These experiences allow the singers to build social and emotional connections as they pursue musical excellence with each other in a fun and creative environment. Aria regularly shares their gift of music with the Calgary community, and performs with the Mount Royal Conservatory’s family of choirs on Calgary’s finest stages.
Léane Mercier-Tardif - Director (Aria)
Léane Mercier-Tardif studied at the Faculté St.Jean of the University of Alberta where she obtained her Bachelor of Education with a major in French and minor in Music. Following University, Léane obtained a scholarship to study music pedagogy for 1 year at the Zoltán Kodály Pedagogical Institute of Music in Kecskemét, Hungary. Following this she obtained a Diploma of Fine Arts (Kodály Focus) from the U of C. Léane taught for 6 years as a music specialist in Edmonton and Calgary before moving to the UK for 3 years.
While in the UK she attended the Dalcroze International Summer School in Canterbury. Léane’s choral experience ranges from teaching on and off with the Calgary Boys Choir since 2004 to leading children’s choirs at her schools to singing with several choirs in every city that she has called home. She is currently a member of the EnChor Chamber Ensemble led by Mount Royal Children’s Choir artistic director Liz Paynter. What Léane loves doing most is sharing her love of music with children and her family.
Eileen Kosasih - Accompanist (Aria)
Eileen Kosasih is a multifaceted visual artist, musician, and presenter, based in Calgary. Eileen’s arts education includes a Bachelor of Arts in Music in Violin Performance from Ambrose University, pre- collegiate piano diploma from the American College of Musicians, Master of Music in Orchestral Conducting from Azusa Pacific University, and Master of Art in Fine and Decorative Art and Design from Sotheby’s Institute of Art New York. In addition to founding and conducting Calgary Arts Orchestra (2014-2015) and being assistant conductor to the Beverly Hills Synagogue Orchestra, Eileen has programmed concert series at the Cranbrook History Centre, the King Eddy at the National Music Centre, and for Classical Revolution Calgary. Her practical work spans Principal Pianist for the Calgary Boys’ Choir, Resident Accompanist for Out of the Blue Choir, and Accompanist for Mount Royal Conservatory studios. Eileen’s string positions extend to Principal Second Violin for the Symphony of the Kootenays, Concertmaster for the St. David’s United Orchestra, and Principal Viola for Uptown Strings. As an active freelance performer, she has contributed to the local music scene via many organizations.
Aria - List of Members
David Auld
Audrey Barber
Steven Barns
Millie Belding
Robertini Aiden Bissainthe
Charlie Bottoms
Willa Bottoms
Clementine De Los Reyes
Eirini Fotopoulos
Marjorie Haynes
Quinn Jones
Zoey Joseph
Andrey Kumar
Avery Lee
Owen Lines
Mount Royal Arioso Choir
Wyatt MacKinnon
Grace Mierau
Norah Oliver
Sriya Paskaradevan
Brielle Peters
Iris Rintoul
Isabella Ronga
Matthias Sadraei
Amélie Tardif
Angela Tshambani
Shatho Tshambani
Katherine Warner
Lillian West
Olivia Xu
Arioso singers pursue the challenge and reward of singing the highest calibre of choral music, including three and four-part scores, multiple languages, and varied genres. Through exceptional musicianship instruction, varied performance opportunities, local and international touring, and collaboration with other performing arts groups, Arioso singers build community, experience social growth, and a passion for musical excellence. Touring further enriches the singers' education and provides an opportunity for the choir to be showcased to a worldwide audience.
Mount Royal Youth Choir
As part of the MRU family of choirs, the Mount Royal Youth Choir will provide singers, in grade 9 and older, performance opportunities grounded in community and artistic excellence. A wide range of the finest choral repertoire, and unique and collaborative performances, are planned to inspire and challenge all Mount Royal Youth Choir singers to their finest levels of musicianship.
Elizabeth Paynter - Director (Arioso & Mount Royal Youth Choir)
Choir director Elizabeth Paynter has been a music specialist with the Calgary Board of Education for over 30 years, and from early in her teaching career began directing choirs in the Calgary choral community. Elizabeth is the Artistic Director of the Children and Youth Choral Program at Mount Royal University, the founder and director of EnChor Chamber Choir, an auditioned vocal ensemble, and she is the Director of Music at Scarboro United Church. Elizabeth is passionate about making music accessible to all, and her extensive teaching experience allows her to guide and motivate musicians of all ages to the highest level of achievement, with much joy and laughter along the way.
Melissa Ko - Accompanist (Arioso & Mount Royal Youth Choir)
Playing piano has been a part of Melissa’s life for nearly 30 years. She has accompanied various musical theatre groups over the years including Storybook Theatre, Front Row Centre Players, Morpheus Theatre, and the Painted Fish Performing Arts Society. Melissa currently plays for Mount Royal University’s Arioso and Aria children’s choirs.
She is also the accompanist with the Cum Vino Cantus choir, under the direction of Jean-Louis Bleau and Michael Coburn, and the Calgary Multicultural choir under the direction of Nancy Thomson. Melissa recently accepted an arts position at Scarboro United Church working alongside music director, Liz Paynter. In her spare time when not playing piano or at her 9-5 job at a busy Toyota dealership, Melissa enjoys spending time with her family and her Great Dane, Steve.
Arioso - List of Members
Lucy Berry
Mia Callaghan
Nuala Engelhardt
Briana Fleckenstein
Maya Golinski
Theodore Haynes
Jones Matilda
Logan Joseph
Georgia Kelleher
June Leach
Evelyn Lemee
Juliet Leslie
Angela Li
Beth Lines
Rhys MacQuarrie
McKenzie Ayla
Oliver Shen
Rebecca Shen
Elaine Sun
Fiona Swanson
Mount Royal Choir - List of Members
Allie Groeneveld
Zain Dabash
Iain Heffel
Aubrey Li
Kip Karambowich
Olivia Ma
Mannan Arjun
Stella Meldrum
Declyn McMahon
Billie Oh
Brynn Parker
Planidin Ruby
Sophie Robinson
Mulan Song
Évangeline Tardif
Zachary Thomas
Nathaniel Varghese
Theia Wong
Anny Xu
Anxin Zhang
Frank Zhang
Tristan Zhang
Alyssa Ruppel
Angela Nicole Uy
Lorence G Uy
Olivia Wang
Kateri Wasch
Adysson Yon
The Mount Royal Choral Association of Calgary is grateful forthe supportfrom:
