Music builds bridges, and that’s the idea behind the Encounters series of free concerts by Soundstreams. The Encounters concert kicks off the venerable organization’s 40th anniversary season.
The concert
The concert has a theme of shared spirituality. Titled Sacred Sounds: Creator, Christianity, and Finding Paths Forward, the program, curated by Rena Roussin, will feature both music and meditative readings that draw from Christian and Indigenous spiritual traditions.
The concert aims to acknowledge the contradictions and complexities involved in bringing these traditions together. The Christian Church has been a source of harm to Indigenous people; at the same time, many still find comfort in its teachings. Indigenous spirituality, in contrast, celebrates Creator and matriarchal principles.
It’s a way to honour the idea that those diverse threads can exist in society and influence our lives, while considering the path forward.
The details
The concert features Canadian/Métis Mezzo-Soprano Rebecca Cuddy, Roger Twance on trumpet, and Rachael Kerr on the piano, with Métis musicologist Rena Roussin as curator/moderator. The mood is informal, and the evening blends performance, discussion and audience participation.
Rena Roussin is a doctoral candidate in musicology at the University of Toronto, and the Musicologist in Residence of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir.
Rebecca Cuddy is a two-time Dora Award Nominated performer who appeared in Soundstreams’ Garden of Vanished Pleasures, among others, and made her Canadian Opera Company debut in 2022.
Roger Twance is an Ojibwé who combines music with his faith. He studied music at York University in Toronto, and serves as the porter of the Chapelle Notre-Dame-De-Lourdes de Montréal.
Pianist Rachael Kerr is a versatile performer whose career includes performing as a soloist, chamber musician, collaborator, and coach. She is on the music staff of the Canadian Opera Company, and a Facultry Vocal Coach at the Royal Conservatory of Music.
- Heliconian Club, 35 Hazelton Ave, Toronto
- Thursday, December 1 @ 8 p.m.
Limited seating; reserve your tickets here.
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