The Malaspina Choir has appointed Nanaimo choir directors Bruce Farquharson and Lionel Tanod to be the choir’s guest artistic directors for the 2013-14 choral year.
Farquharson will be leading the choir through the fall term, with a concert Nov. 17, and the choir’s annual sing-along Messiah Dec. 15.
He has an extensive background in choral conducting as director of The Island Consort chamber choir and as the former director of A Cappella Plus. He is also a member of the Nanaimo Chamber Orchestra.
Farquharson has lined up a varied program for the fall concert, It’s A Grand Night For Singing, with classical works by Brahms, Mendelssohn, and Copland, and some favourites from the choral and Broadway musical repertoire.
Tanod will be stepping in for the spring term, preparing the choir for a concert in May, featuring the works of composers Samuel Barber, J.S Bach and Leonard Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms and the musical West Side Story.
Tanod also brings a wealth of experience to the conductor role. He has been director of the Island Bel Canto singers for eight years, and is director of the Harbour City Singers, as well as a founding member of Nanaimo Sings! and a member of The Island Consort chamber choir.
Farquharson and Tanod are taking over from Garry Froese, who left as artistic director of the choir in May of this year, while the choir’s executive searches for a new full-time artistic director.
Now in its 43rd year, the Malaspina Choir has a long musical history in Nanaimo. It performed at the opening of the Malaspina College campus in 1976, sang for Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip in 1983, and at the opening ceremonies for Expo ’86.