The Queen's Guitar Ensemble
Queen's guitar ensemble in performance at the John Deutsch University Centre, March 17, 2005. Left to right: Rodney Hall, Matt English, Jon Sandler, Julien Palassio, David Oickle, Rebecca Phillips, Ali Khajeddin. Absent: Mike Matthews. (Teacher's note: As a consequence of this picture, the ensemble now looks up when performing and has altered the dress code to black shirts!!! A picture truly is worth a thousand words...)
About the Ensemble
The Guitar Ensemble was formed in 2002 as a quartet but has expanded to include eight guitarists. It is intended primarily for students in the Bachelor of Music program, in partial fulfillment of the chamber music component of the degree program, but it is open to interested and committed non-B.Mus. students.
Rehearsals are two hours each week at a set time to prepare for at least one performance per term in an organized Chamber Music Concert. In previous years, extra-curricular performance opportunities have included on-campus recitals and participation in the Royal Conservatory of Toronto's annual Guitar Ensemble Festival.
The 2005/2006 Ensemble
Auditions are held in early September, following the first guitar studio, and consist of scales and sight reading, two very valuable skills for quartet members.
Repertoire for the year will include:
- Concerto for solo oboe and guitar orchestra by Domenico Cimarosa, arr. William Beauvais
- Pez de oro and Lullaby by Nadia Borislova
The ensemble will also be divided up into several duos, trios and quartets to perform compositions and arrangements of Vivaldi, Jurg Kindl, Francis Kleynjans and others.
Previous Activities
In 2004/2005, the quartet was expanded to an ensemble of eight guitarists: Rodney Hall, Matt English, Jon Sandler, Julien Palassio, David Oickle, Rebecca Phillips, Ali Khajeddin and Mike Matthews. Repertoire for the year consisted of:
- 6 pieces from John Dowland (arr. Jeremy Sparks)
- Concerto in D, Antonio Vivaldi (arr. Jeremy Sparks)
- 6 Romances sans paroles, Felix Mendelssohn (arr. Nicolas Courtin)
Performances for the year included two Student Chamber Music concerts at Harrison-LeCaine Hall, a noon-hour recital at the John Deutsch University Centre at Queen's, and participation in a guitar ensemble festival at the Royal Conservatory in Toronto with ensembles from the Royal Conservatory and the University of Toronto.
In 2003/2004, the quartet of guitarists Robin Ghosh, Rebecca Phillips, Mike Matthews and Jim Thorpe performed Cuban Landscapes with Rain and Toccata by Leo Brouwer, and the Introduction and Fandango by Luigi Boccherini (arr. Jeremy Sparks).