New to the Stairwell, and loving it!

New Stairwell Carollers - Cathy and Celina

 
Cathy: It is such a pleasure to sing with the Stairwell Carollers! I joined through audition a couple of months ago. 

Celina: Stairwell Carollers is the first a capella choir where I participate, therefore, it’s challenging, but amazing at the same time.
 

What’s your first impression of our director and founder of the choir, Pierre Massie? 

 

Cathy: Pierre Massie is a retired music teacher who has been directing the choir for 45 years now. He has a great deal of musical experience and is very dedicated to the choir.

 

Celina: I feel that only in 3 months my level has improved... and I still have a lot of work to do!

How do you like our repertoire for Christmas 2022?

 
Cathy: The repertoire is wonderful. The music is challenging and fun but not extremely difficult. Pierre is a talented composer and has written or arranged some of the beautiful pieces himself. Choir members are encouraged to give their input into the repertoire for the next term.

Could you describe the choir in a few words?

Cathy: I would describe the choir as an advanced, high-caliber choir.

Celina: It’s being a long time since I was in a choir where I had to practice almost every day, but when our voices mix together, the result is so beautiful that all the effort is worth it! 

First impressions of being a Stairweller?

Cathy: We are expected to gain a preliminary grasp of the music on our own, with the help of recordings and music software, which allows us to isolate our own part and reduce the speed, as necessary. Our time in rehearsals focuses on dynamics, working through difficult parts and polishing the sound.

 Celina: My very first time singing with the choir I was super impressed of the quality of the voices and how everybody puts a big effort to be prepared for the rehearsals.

What’s the organization of the chorale like?

 
Cathy: Everything is extremely well organized. Members know dates of concerts and rehearsals far in advance and a weekly update from the director keeps everyone well informed. At the beginning of the term, members are told specifically which pieces will be worked on at each rehearsal, which makes it much easier to prepare.

Celina: I am impressed with the way our together time every week is more productive (compared to other choirs where I sang with in the past).

Tell me some things you really love about the choir so far.

 
Cathy: Over the years, the choir has given a significant amount of money towards scholarships and donations to local charities.
It is a well-disciplined choir. Everyone is very friendly, but chatting during rehearsals is kept to a minimum.  The choir makes efforts to welcome newcomers and social events are being planned so that members get to know each other.

Celina: I’m very grateful for the patience that the carollers have with my volume, with my accent, with my high notes, thank you everybody for contributing and help me somehow to become a real caroller at the same level!

Auditions - Join us!

About The Stairwell Carollers:

Pierre Massie created our a cappella choir in 1977 while he was a music student at Ottawa University. With wins in both the 2010 and 2013 Ontario Music Festival Association competitions, we are ranked among the best of Ontario choirs. 

A registered Canadian charity, The Carollers also help local charities with net proceeds from concert tickets, CDs, Digital Downloads and Streaming sales.  Since 1997 we have donated over $143,800 to local charities and scholarships.

A Typical Rehearsal, Stairwell Style

Pierre Massie is in his 42nd year of directing the Stairwell Carollers. There have been changes over the years and the choir has evolved, but Pierre has always directed in performance from the tenor section, singing along with us. 

Pete created the choir in 1977 while getting his B.Mus at Ottawa U. and he has developed a signature  method to his madness which results in award-winning choral excellence.  

#1 Punctual

#1 Show Up

#1 Great Attitude

Yeah, all #1, I know. To Pierre these three things are equally important - and evidence of a true Stairweller.

He runs choir rehearsal from the middle of the circle of singers, usually arranged in sections according to voice.  Everyone stands or sits as they like.

Often Pierre bounces around the room, whirling to face the different groups or individuals - rarely still, rarely seated.

We aren't allowed to cross our legs while seated, since it can inhibit breathing. This does not mean we are inhibited in our personal expression; clearly Alex has found a seating style that the Maestro approves of.

As he makes his way around the room, working the crowd, Pierre deals with questions as they come up.

We record each rehearsal to review performance and for additional practice. Very useful for Podcast episodes too as a record of our warmups and attention to song specifics.

About The Stairwell Carollers:

Pierre Massie created our a cappella choir in 1977 while he was a music student at Ottawa University. With wins in both the 2010 and 2013 Ontario Music Festival Association competitions, we are ranked among the best of Ontario choirs. 

A registered Canadian charity, The Carollers also help local charities with net proceeds from concert tickets, CD and cookbook sales.  Since 1997 we have donated over $143,800 to local charities and scholarships.

Listen LIVE - Pierre Massie featured on the Peace Tower carillon - NOON today

 Dominion Carillonneur, Andrea McCrady,  will once again honour Stairwell Caroller director and choral composer Pierre Massie with a carillon program of his music.

The Noon Hour carillon performance will take place Dec 14, 2019.

LISTEN LIVE ONLINE 

Exclusively made up of Pierre's arrangements and compositions, the concert features a carillon setting of his "Nouvelle Agréable"  by Wendy Earl - one of Andrea McCrady's graduate students.

If you missed the LIVE performance, here is a recording of a past performance of Stairwell Carol by Dominion Carillonneur, Andrea McCrady.

About The Stairwell Carollers:

Pierre Massie started our a cappella choir in 1977 while a music student at Ottawa University. The Stairwell Carollers are ranked among the best of Ontario choirs, winning both the 2010 and 2013 Ontario Music Festival Association competitions. 

A registered Canadian charity, we also help local charities with our concert, CD and cookbook sales.

Twitter, NEW Gloucester Wassail Youtube vid and Christmas Concerts!

Follow The Stairwell Carollers - @StairwellChoir on Twitter!

#Ottawa #Choral #Concerts - The Stairwell Carollers https://t.co/mVuhXSvou0 Dec 14th and 18th, 2019 #Christmas pic.twitter.com/ksmzeOseTo

— The Stairwell Carollers (@StairwellChoir) December 11, 2019

Don't miss our tweets - and those of tenor, David Rain - Choral Composer - @DavidRain56

Countdown: #10 of 10 reasons to come hear our @StairwellChoir concert at Southminster Church, Sat Dec 14 at 7:30pm:

Pierre Massie musical gems like Do You Hear What I Hear?

Tickets only $15 in advance:https://t.co/yTWzGE6rbT

You won't be disappointed!https://t.co/j5mzIRMKzL

— David Rain, Choral Composer (@DavidRain56) December 11, 2019

NEW VIDEO - Ottawa choir, The Stairwell Carollers, perform The Gloucester Wassail, arranged by R. Vaughan Williams.

This version of “The Gloucester Wassail” is on our “Mourning Dove” CD.

All our CDs are available on our website in both CD and MP3 formats.

Audio: Tom Barnes.
Recorded at Southminster United Church, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, Dec 15th, 2018.
Videographers: Matthieu Brennan, Elisa Torlone
Editing: Pierre Massie

About The Stairwell Carollers:

Pierre Massie created our a cappella choir in 1977 while he was a music student at Ottawa University. With wins in both the 2010 and 2013 Ontario Music Festival Association competitions, we are ranked among the best of Ontario choirs. 

A registered Canadian charity, The Carollers also help local charities with net proceeds from concert, CD and cookbook sales.  Since 1997 we have donated over $140,000 to local charities and scholarships.

Ottawa Choral Masterclass with Gabriel Lewis-O'Connor - Limited enrolment, BOOK NOW!

MASTERCLASS with Gabriel Lewis O’Connor 

former member of Chanticleer

Gabriel Lewis-O'connor lunches with Pete during last years choral workshop

Gabe has recently returned to the Midwest from Seattle, Washington, where he was an active singer, director and choral clinician. Currently a doctoral student in choral conducting at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Gabe received his master’s degree from the same institution, studying with Dr. Robert Bode.

Gabriel Lewis-O'Connor in workshop with Stairwell and the Glebe choirs

Prior to graduate school, he sang for four years, with the
professional vocal ensemble Chanticleer.

Gabe received a bachelor’s degree from Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin, and hails from Lawrence, Kansas.

Gabe and Holly enjoy a laugh at last year's Galillee Choir Retreat in Arnprior

As a teacher and conductor he frequently leads both vocal masterclasses and choral clinics at the high school and collegiate levels, and, above all else, is passionate about sharing music with others.

When not making music with others, Gabe tries to spend as much time outside as possible with his wife Lauren, fishing-obsessed 7 year-old son Eamon, and fiery 5 year-old daughter Celia.

To participate in The Masterclass you must…

1. Be a CURRENT OR FORMER MEMBER of any Greater Ottawa/Gatineau region choir.
2. Prepare the following three songs -

(Scores provided at registration – files are provided for practice purposes)

Fa una canzone – Orazio Vecchi – Public domain

Tourdion (Quand je bois du vin) – Pierre Attaignant – Public domain

Remember – Stephen Chatman – copyright – Original scores provided at registration

MASTERCLASS DETAILS

Date: Saturday May 18. 2019

Time: 9 am to noon ( 8:30 am registration)

Cost: $25 

All music scores included in your registration package

Location: Saint Joseph Parish Hall, 2757 St. Joseph Blvd, Orléans, ON K1C 1G4

We have room for 60 participants; first come, first serve

If sold out, email us.  Your name will be added to our cancellation list.

Click on the Canada Helps logo to register. Deadline is May 15, 2019

Click here to Register now

Only 60 spots available

Workshop hosted by The Stairwell Carollers chamber choir - furthering choral excellence and development in Ottawa's choral community now for over 41 years. 

About Us:

Pierre Massie started The Stairwell Carollers in 1977 while obtaining his Bachelor in Music Education at U of Ottawa. Pete sings, plays piano, saxophone and flute and attained a grade 6 in all band instruments (including violin) - making him one of the most valuable and effective Secondary School music teachers in Ontario. 

Now retired from teaching, he directs our a cappella choir from the tenor section, giving the Carollers chorus their signature look and sound. 

The Stairwell Carollers hold top marks from years of participation in local Kiwanis festivals, going on to win both the 2010 and 2013 Ontario Music Festival Association competitions.  

A registered Canadian charity, we continue to help local charities with our concert, CD and cookbook sales.

Donations receive a charitable receipt.

Pierre Massie receives GG Award - Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers

We are proud to announce that our Director, Pierre Massie has been awarded the coveted Governor General's Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers.

As it says on the Governor General's website, "Since founding the Stairwell Carollers in 1977, Pierre Massie has been an ambassador for choral music and instrumental in spreading the joy and beauty of a cappella music both locally and around the world. Proceeds from the group’s concerts go to many local charities and scholarship programs."

Pete was surprised and thrilled to hear of his nomination and subsequent award earlier in the year, but was hesitant to brag about it. Now the cat is out of the bag!

Pierre will be wearing his medal at our upcoming Stairwell Caroller Christmas concerts, so please take a moment to congratulate him after the show.

From the Governor General's website "The Medal for Volunteers consists of a silver circular medal that is 36 mm in diameter with a suspension ring. The obverse depicts a contemporary effigy of the Sovereign, circumscribed with the inscription in capital letters of the Canadian Royal Title and the word “CANADA”, separated by two maple leaves.

The reverse indicates the ideas of caring and generosity, represented by two interlaced hearts. The sunburst pattern of the rim symbolizes the time that volunteers are giving and their actions. The ribbon uses the viceregal colours of blue and gold. The five gold stripes evoke the fingers of a hand, present in the Caring Canadian Award emblem, while the deep red colour is associated with royalty.

The design of medal was created by the Canadian Heraldic Authority, based on a concept by Darcy DeMarsico of the Chancellery of Honours. The medal is manufactured by the Royal Canadian Mint at its Ottawa facility."

Pierre would like to thank those who submitted his nomination. He also thanks The Governor General of Canada, Her Excellency the Right Honourable Julie Payette,  for choosing him for this Award.

Only 2 

Stairwell Caroller 2018 concerts left

Tickets HERE 

A teaser playlist of a few of the carols you will hear at our concerts. Enjoy!

About The Stairwell Carollers:

Pierre Massie created our a cappella choir in 1977 while a music student at Ottawa University. The Stairwell Carollers are ranked among the best of Ontario choirs, winning both the 2010 and 2013 Ontario Music Festival Association competitions. 

A registered Canadian charity, our group helps local charities with net proceeds from concert, CD and cookbook sales.

Carillon Performance features Ottawa composer and arranger Pierre Massie - listen live ONLINE

We are thrilled to announce that our beloved Dominion Carillonneur, Andrea McCrady,  will again honour Stairwell Caroller director and choral composer Pierre Massie with a carillon program of his music.

The noon hour carillon performance will take place Dec 17, 2018.

LISTEN to the concert LIVE ONLINE 

Exclusively made up of Pierre's arrangements and compositions, the concert features the premiere of a new carillon setting of his "Nouvelle Agréable"  by Wendy Earl - one of Andrea McCrady's graduating students.

About The Stairwell Carollers:

Pierre Massie started our a cappella choir in 1977 while a music student at Ottawa University. The Stairwell Carollers are ranked among the best of Ontario choirs, winning both the 2010 and 2013 Ontario Music Festival Association competitions. 

A registered Canadian charity, we also help local charities with our concert, CD and cookbook sales.

Fledgling Composer Rain Stretches Wings - Part 2 - His Music Flows like Water

A torrent of musical creation has poured from David's heart even before he discovered his muse in his beloved Rideau Falls.  In his own words, he tells us his compositional story. (Holly)

In 2015, at the ripe age of 63, I first got the urge to write a piece of music for a cappella choir, a Missa Brevis.

In 2016, I first experienced that unique thrill of hearing one of my pieces performed in public, the “Rideau Carol” written specially for and dedicated to my choir the Stairwell Carollers.

Audio: Tom Barnes.  Recorded at Knox Presbyterian Church, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, Dec 16th, 2016.
Videographers: Gert-Jan van Heuzen, Andrew Mason
Editing: Pierre Massie

In 2017, led masterfully by our choir director Pierre Massie, the Carollers performed my second piece in public, a challenging arrangement of the German classic, “Es ist ein Ros entsprungen”
And this spring in 2018, I got to hear a third piece performed by the Carollers, another challenging arrangement, this time of the medieval song, “In natali Domini.” A true thrill!
Throughout all of this, I have been mentored by Pierre, who has taken huge amounts of his precious time to listen to my new works, review them, make comments and suggestions, push me this way, pull me that way, and generally challenge me to make each piece the best that it can be. I owe him a huge debt, thanks Pierre!

Well, I’ve been totally bitten by this “composing bug” and have now written 17 (!) pieces for mixed a cappella choir.  Check out my YouTube channel.

It’s way too much for one choir to digest, so I’ve naturally been looking for ways to speed up the process of hearing what each piece actually sounds like, sung by real singers, and not by the artificial sounds of a computer program. (I should mention that I don’t play the piano well enough to hear most of my pieces on a piano even.)

One initiative of mine has worked out quite nicely. A few current and former Carollers have formed a small singing ensemble that we call the “Ad hoc Chorale.” It started out as an invitation to come test out and “workshop” some of my new pieces. The first session went well and the second is coming up soon, and there is even interest to widen the net a bit, as some of our “Ad hoc” members are also choral composers, so I’m really looking forward to hearing their pieces workshopped too!

The other idea I had was to enter various choral composition contests. Not with the main aim of winning, as that might not be realistic, but with the hopes that somehow somewhere someone on the jury panels might actually like one of my pieces and who knows, might program it in future years. (Did I mention that I’m now 66, unknown as a composer, and I’m not sure how many years I have left to explore this new passion of mine.)

Anyways, fast forward to when to my total shock, I got an email from Jon Washburn, the director of one of Canada’s top choirs, the Vancouver Chamber Choir. Jon informed me that my application to the VCC’s “Interplay” composer workshop had been accepted!

Yikes, did that thought make me nervous! But then I thought, this is a professional choir, one of the very best in Canada, and all I had to do is show up, sit back, listen, and learn. How tough could that be?

On April 4, 2018 some of my choral works along with 2 other Vancouver composers were sung by the VCC choir led by Jon and I received their comments and critiques on my pieces.

But that's another tale for later.

Sincere thanks to Jon and the Vancouver Chamber Choir for offering me this unique opportunity to learn and grow as a composer, and a special shout out to the SOCAN Foundation for making this “Interplay” workshop with Jon and the VCC possible.

David Rain, a fledgling composer, has sung tenor with the Stairwell Carollers for 25 years.

Composer Rain Stretches Wings - Part 1 - Vancouver Chamber Choir

For fans of choral music, this past summer's Music and Beyond festival in Ottawa certainly went “beyond.” What a lineup Artistic Director Julian Armour assembled!

The Elmer Iseler singers, The Gesualdo Six, Stairwell Caroller favourite John Rutter, Daniel Taylor’s Theatre of Early Music, another Caroller favourite Chanticleer (our 40th anniversary workshop was led by former Chanticleer singer Gabe Lewis-O'Connor), and many others!

I attended all these concerts, but the one that I had specially circled on my calendar was the Vancouver Chamber Choir concert on July 13.

As faithful readers of the Stairwell Carollers blog will recall, I wrote about my excitement when I learned that a “fledgling composer” like myself had been accepted to have my compositions sung by the Vancouver Chamber Choir.

Rideau Carol:

First off, I was honoured to have been selected as one of the composers - and flying out from Ottawa to my home town of Vancouver was worth every penny.

As someone who started composing late in life (at age 63), and who has only heard 3 of his 17 choral pieces sung publicly, to have had the opportunity to hear this amazing choir sing 4 of my pieces, 3 of them brand new songs never sung before, is a thrill beyond all thrills.

At times, I was so in awe of the sound of the choir (especially in my arrangement of the Satie piano piece, As Dawn Breaks) that I had to just put down my score, stop following, close my eyes, and just listening to the rich choral sounds that were being produced.

I appreciate greatly that Director Jon Washburn gave his comments freely, not holding anything back, but in a respectful way. I felt like a voyeur at times, as in a way he treated the workshop, like any other rehearsal, i.e. here’s a new piece, choir, let’s give it a try and see how it goes, etc, and when a bit of piano accompaniment was needed, this was done lightly, and only where necessary, and then back to a cappella. That was a treat to witness, i.e. how one of their rehearsals likely goes.

And to have the singers themselves give comments, again freely, really added a huge dimension to my learning, as being a singer myself, I “know” certain things, but hearing from arms length, professional singers…..to hear what works for them and what doesn’t, that really makes you sit up and ponder, bravo!

I also appreciated that Jon allowed me to interact a bit with him and with the singers, that put me at ease and also added to my learning, as I had questions of my own.

The big take aways for me from all of this can be summarized as follows:

1.  Work towards getting the text and the rhythm and the meter all perfectly in synch, such that both choir director and singers have the easiest possible entry point to learning and perfecting your musical creation.

2.  When doing a choral arrangement of someone else’s melody, or in my case a piece on another instrument, don’t be afraid to make it your own, to weave the text and the meter etc to the ends of your own piece and not overly “respecting” the original piece and how it was written. Make it your own.

Never in a thousand years did I think this would happen. I’m in a state of total shock.

Sincere thanks to Jon and the Vancouver Chamber Choir for offering me this unique opportunity to learn and grow as a composer, and a special shout out to the SOCAN Foundation for making this “Interplay” workshop with Jon and the VCC possible.

David Rain, a fledgling composer, has sung tenor with the Stairwell Carollers for 25 years.

Part Two coming Soon!

The Galilee Centre - Part 3 - Concert at St. John Chrysostom in Arnprior

Part 3 - A weekend Away - Concert!

All the singers from both Stairwell and Glebe Collegiate gather in anticipation of the performance.

Pete and René check out the acoustics from the choir loft.

At the concert, the Glebe girl's choir rocked!

The after party went late into the night throughout many of Galilee Centre's cozy rooms. Here in the porch, Gabe regaled the group with tales of Chanticleer.

Kristina proved to be a terrific party pianist. Random singing and carousing ensued.

Denyse and Andrew toast the concert and say farewell for the summer holidays.

Testimony of the weekend's success from returning bass, Keith - as reported in our upcoming Christmas newsletter:

"The Choral Workshop held May 4th to 6th at The Galilee Centre in Arnprior was a true highlight of our 40th anniversary season. The fact that we were "in residence" helped promote those personal contacts and friendships so essential in singing as an ensembled chorale. Gabriel Lewis-O'Connor, former member of the world-renowned male chorus Chanticleer, proved to be a most congenial and engaging leader, while at the same time reflective, analytical, instructive and encouraging.  He is also a great raconteur: the workshops and the informal gatherings- as if not already spirited enough- were further enlivened by Gabe's wealth of stories!  

The concluding concert at St John Chrysostom, with choirs from Glebe Collegiate presenting their own pieces and joining with The Carollers and Gabe as soloist in Pierre's arrangement of "Hostias" from Fauré's Requiem, was, surely, an absolute delight for singer and listener alike!"

 Keith Bailey, bass

Part 1 is HERE

Part 2 - Denyse (en Français) (in English)

Learn more about the Galilee Centre
History of the Galilee Centre
Who are the Oblates?
Galilee Centre Mission and Vision

About The Stairwell Carollers:

Pierre Massie started our a cappella choir in 1977 while a music student at Ottawa U. 

The Stairwell Carollers are proud to have won both the 2010 and 2013 Ontario Music Festival Association competitions. A registered Canadian charity, we also help local charities with our concert, CD and cookbook sales.

All Donations receive a charitable receipt.