Artists

Great Lake Swimmers

Since 2001, Toronto's Great Lake Swimmers have been steadily producing some of the most emotionally affecting and quietly radiant folk music of the decade. On their fourth album, Lost Channels (Nettwerk), they continue to hone a remarkably haunting, heartfelt folk-pop sound, mixing ambient textures with skilful instrumental interplay.

Tony Dekker's voice is still the band's most captivating presence, showcasing his soul-searching lyrics in all it's melancholy splendour. It's a voice that is capable of conveying heartache and comfort all in the space of a single phrase. Though his supporting cast has changed over the years'with the exception of longtime right-hand man Erik Arnesen - Dekker has always encircled him self with sympathetic players who value spacious arrangements that frame his vocals.

Over time, the band has evolved from a sparse, delicate and hushed unit into a well-rounded folk rock band, sacrificing none of their original intimacy while upping both the volume and tempos when necessary. Dekker chooses to record in old churches, community halls, abandoned grain silos and rural locations. It's easy to hear why. His voice doesn't need any studio embellishment, standing at its strongest when bathed in natural reverb and enriched by the historical context surrounding it. www.greatlakeswimmers.com

Jillian Lebeck

Canadian jazz pianist/composer/vocalist Jillian Lebeck is one of the most dynamic and exciting voices on the Canadian Jazz scene. Jillian is recipient of several awards including the BMG Jazz Award and the Yamaha Rising Star Award, and she just recently finished a tour of double bills with Grammy winning NYC singer songwriter Jesse Harris. She has toured Canada and Europe and has been featured at the Montreal International Jazz Festival, the Top of the Senator in Toronto, and the Calgary Jazz Festival. Her projects have been featured on CBC Radio's Studio One Jazz Series and she continues to receive regular airplay on CBC's "Hot Air", "After Hours", l'espace musique, The Signal, KPLU, and NPR.

Vancouver Symphony Orchestra String Quartet

Olivia Blander

Originally from Ottawa, Olivia Blander completed her Masters of Music degree at Yale University in the studio of professor Aldo Parisot. She received her Bachelors degree from the Harid Conservatory (Boca Raton, Florida) where she studied with Canadian cellist Johanne Perron.

Olivia has appeared frequently as a soloist and chamber musician on CBC radio, including the nationally broadcast "Debut Series". She has been a participant in several major summer festivals including classes at the Banff Centre for the Arts, and the fellowship program of the Tanglewood Music Centre.

After returning to Ottawa from the U.S. in 2000, Olivia enjoyed four months working with the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra, and joined the Vancouver Symphony in September 2001.

Andrew Brown

Andrew James Brown is the Associate-Principal violist of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and was a member of the CBC Radio Orchestra for over eighteen years. An enthusiastic chamber musician, he has worked extensively with Vancouver's leading musical organizations, including the Vetta Quartet, Curio, the Vancouver New Music Ensemble and Masterpiece Players. Andrew performs with violinist Mary Sokol Brown and cellist Ariel Barnes in the ensemble Trio Accord (www.trioaccord.ca). Their debut recording of Bach's Goldberg-Variations has just been released by Skylark Music.

Andrew has performed throughout North America, Korea, China and Japan, and recently spent three months with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra. He enjoys the eclectic musical environment in Vancouver where his engagements have ranged from intimate chamber music performances to rock and roll at the Coliseum with members of Led Zeppelin.

A former member of the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, Andrew earned his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees at The College Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati - studying with Donald McInnes, Paul Coletti, Gerald Stanick and Masao Kawasaki

Karen Gerbrecht

Karen began playing the violin very young, influenced by four generations of musicians in her family. She studied at the Vancouver Academy of Music until leaving BC to pursue a post-secondary education at the North Carolina School of the Arts. Graduating first in her university class, Karen was awarded the single highest scholarship awarded by NCSA; the Sarah Graham Kenan Scholarship. After graduation, while performing as Associate Concertmaster of the Spoleto Festival Opera Orchestra (Spoleto, Italy) Karen was named Director of Chamber Music at Davidson College, (Davidson, NC) and remained in that post for two years until winning a position in the Vancouver Symphony, where she is Associate Principal Second.

After settling in Vancouver, Karen was appointed to the faculty of the Vancouver Academy of Music, and taught there from 1990 - 2002. As both a chamber musician and an orchestral player, Karen has performed throughout Europe, Canada, the US and Asia, and she continues to count traveling as one of her favorite pursuits. Since joining the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Karen has been named a McBride Scholar at Bryn Mawr in Philadelphia and has twice attended the Banff Centre for the Arts as an Artist-in-Residence.

Rebecca Whitling

Rebecca Whitling is a member of the first violin section of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and is Principal Second Violin of the CBC Radio Orchestra. She is also the violinist in the new music quintet Standing Wave, whose CD Redline was released in February 2007.

Rebecca is a graduate of McGill and Indiana Universities, and she played in the New World Symphony from 1992-95. She has appeared as a chamber and orchestral musician at Tanglewood, Schleswig-Holstein, Ojai, and Cabrillo music festivals. As a member of the prize-winning Plymouth String Quartet, she performed at festivals and concert series in the U.S., Europe, and South America.

Rebecca plays regularly with great musicians in all kinds of musical groups in and around Vancouver, including the Vancouver New Music Society, the Babayaga String Quartet, the New Orchestra Workshop, the NU:BC ensemble, Tango Paradiso, the Hard Rubber Orchestra, and the Tony Wilson Sextet. She has appeared as a soloist with the Vancouver Philharmonic and the Semiahmoo Strings and this spring she will be a featured soloist with the Prince George Symphony Orchestra and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.