Welcome to the Cape Breton Chorale website!

50 years

The Cape Breton Chorale has been thrilling audiences since its formation fifty years ago. The Chorale has given more than 200 performances throughout the Maritimes, England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland.

The Chorale has shared the stage with a variety of musical stars, ranging from Celine Dion to Rita MacNeil and has performed before numerous visiting dignitaries including Queen Elizabeth II.

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Christmas With the Cape Breton Chorale

When: Saturday, December 7, 2024

Where: Ukrainian Parish Hall, Whitney Pier

 

Two events to choose from!

Festive Family Fun

Concert with sweets & coffee/tea

1:30 pm

Tickets: $10 Children under 12, $15 Students (with ID), $30 Adults,
$60 Family of four. Available here or by calling (902)270-2591.

Holiday Wine and Dine

Concert with three-course meal & wine or beverage

7:30 pm

Tickets: $60 Meal and concert (including gratuity) available until Dec 3, 2024
Concert only $20. Available here or by calling (902)270-2591
Cash Bar

 

Read More in the Cape Breton Post 

More details to come and will be posted here and on our socials. Follow @cbchorale to stay up to date

Fall 2024

 

Chasing the Years
Cape Breton Chorale and friends present
100 Years of Popular Song

Special Guests:

Ciarán MacGillivray,
tenor

Kurt Sampson,
bass and vocal percussion

Malcolm MacNeil,
guitar

Featuring the the winning submission of our recent Song Arrangement Competition by Benjamin Siegerson.

 
Come, Josephine, in My Flying Machine (1910) 
Fred Fisher - music
Alfred Bryan – lyrics
Benjamin Siegerson -- arrangement
 
Benjamin Sigerson is an award winning pianist and composer. He is based on Vancouver, British Columbia.
Find out more about this composer and his work by visiting

 

When: Saturday, November 2 2024, 7:30 pm,

Where: Sacred Heart Downtown, 217 George St, Sydney NS

Tickets: $30 General Admission, $15 Student (Valid Student ID required at the door). Available HERE or by calling (902)270-2591

Doors open at 6:30 pm
Bar service available
 

A Letter From Ryan Billington

Cheers to the Cape Breton Chorale!

On this once-in-a-lifetime occasion, I wish to welcome all members of the Chorale spanning 50 years of music making, our patrons, and guests. You have all played very important roles in the continued success of the organization whether as choristers. soloists, instrumentalists, Executive members, Board members, or supporters all in your own unique ways, whether for a short or long duration. On this significant milestone, we all gather to commemorate our collective achievements, challenges, highs and lows, and of course share in some beautiful music.

I have been honoured to serve as the director for the Cape Breton Chorale since 2017 and feel fortunate to have met Sr. Rita Clare in the 2017-2018 season. As I progressed through the rigorous audition process, I was able to spend a few moments getting to know her. I had heard of her work with the Chorale for many years before this time. Having been appointed director by Sr. Rita and the hiring committee surely counts as one of the proudest achievements of my time in Nova Scotia and my entire music career. I am pleased to join everyone in remembering her with great thanks as our founding director.

It has always been a warm and grounding experience to meet so many people in the greater circle of the Chorale and its patrons over the past 7 years. When I came to Nova Scotia in 2004 to work at StFX University, I didn't know more than one person in the entire province. Since joining the Chorale, I seem to always be meeting someone who is connected to other people through the group or through StFX over many generations and scenarios. It is wonderful to be a part of this network of educators, musicians, spiritual leaders, and professionals of all kinds.

Together as the Cape Breton Chorale family, lets salute all of those who have passed on, those who have remained steadfast to carry on singing, and those who will keep the music going into the future -- Congratulations on 50 years of singing, and here's to many more!

With Sincere admiration,

Ryan Billington

2024 Sister Rita Clare Scholarship Recipient

The Cape Breton Chorale is pleased to announce that Victoria McDougall is recipient of the 2024 Sister Rita Clare Scholarship.

Photo Credit: Warren Gordon

Coxheath resident Victoria McDougall is a recent graduate of Riverview Rural High School (French Immersion Certificate). She will be attending the Berklee College of Music in Boston this fall where she will begin her Bachelor of Music Degree in Voice Performance.

 

Victoria has been studying piano and theory with Katherine Fraser since the age of seven. She has also studied voice under Robyn Cathcart and Deborah Jeans. She has studied with Monica MacNeil while at Riverview, along with Joe Waye for guitar. She has been very involved with productions at local theatres and has also danced since a very young age.
Victoria has also been awarded the following:
 
- A full tuition scholarship to the Berklee College of Music
- The Helen Creighton Foundation Prize for Singing
- The Melvin J Findlay Prize for Baroque Piano
- The Dorothy Dean Wilkinson Scholarship
- The Russell LeBlanc Memorial Scholarship

The Cape Breton Chorale congratulates Victoria and extends best wishes to all applicants on their graduation. We wish all of you the best in your future endeavours!

 

Song Arrangement Competition

 

 

Cape Breton Chorale Song Arrangement Competition

 

As part of the approaching 2024-2025 concert season, the Cape Breton Chorale invites composer/arrangers to submit SATB arrangements of popular songs to a Song Arrangement Competition. The deadline for submission is September 9, 2024, and the winning arrangement will be performed in November of 2024.

 

Prize Amount: $1,500

 

About the Cape Breton Chorale

The Cape Breton Chorale has been an important choral ensemble in Nova Scotia since 1973, when Sr. Rita Clare (1933-2017) founded the choir. The choir has championed and premiered well-known SATB choral arrangements of Cape Breton songs including Song for the Mira, We Rise Again and others. For more information on our choir history and to hear our recordings, go to www.capebretonchorale.com.

 

Eligibility and Writing Guidelines

This competition is open to Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and landed immigrants. Submissions must not be previously commissioned, performed, or published.

 

Permission/Copyright

The Cape Breton Chorale reports all performances to SOCAN, paying fees for performance rights of registered material. Arrangers are responsible for securing permission to arrange from the songwriter or publisher if the song is not in public domain. Here is a self-publishing option: www.arrangeme.com.

 

General

The submission must be an arrangement of an existing song from any of the following categories: folk song/singer-songwriter, Billboard hit, B-side, Brill Building, Canadian song, Great American Songbook, musical, film soundtrack, obscure gem; songs with interesting stories, harmony, or form elements are ideal. Carefully tailored mashups are possible contenders. Original songs written by applicants will also be considered provided they follow a distinguishable variation of a popular song format.

 

Clichéd or ‘overdone’ songs are discouraged unless parodied or significantly restructured. If a song has been previously arranged for choir several times (e.g. Bohemian Rhapsody, When I Fall in Love), please consider choosing something else. We encourage an individual creative approach to choral writing that suits our ensemble. Treatments presenting changes to compositional style, performance style, rhythm/meter/feel, or offering reharmonization are welcome.

Song Lyric Considerations

Candidates should choose songs with lyrics carrying a theme that may tell a story; and/or may be philosophical, romantic, celebrational, universal, poetic, or humorous; and otherwise can be suitable for a multi-generational adult choir.

 

Length, Instrumentation, and Voicing

  • Submissions should be 3-5 minutes in length.

  • While there may be some a cappella sections, a notated piano accompaniment should be included.

  • Solo(s) for soprano, alto, tenor, and/or baritone may be included.

  • Voicing is for SATB choir (40-50 singers).

  • Soprano and Alto parts may include various divisi: SSA, SAA, SSAA.

  • An additional instrument part may be included.

 

Score Preparation

  • Scores must be presented using notation software and sent in pdf file format.

  • Parts should be laid out in open score, with accompaniment set below the vocal parts, and chord symbols above the piano staff. Closed score may be used for sections with homophonic textures.

  • Instrument part(s), if applicable, should be placed above the vocal parts in concert key. A separate instrument part in the correct instrument transposition must also be included.

 

Submission Instructions

There is no entry fee for this competition. Submit files on or before September 9, 2024.

 

Include the applicant’s name, contact information, and song title in the subject and body of the email.

Only the song title should be included as part of the attached files.

 

Example: Look for the Silver Lining.2024.pdf

 

The adjudication panel will see the anonymous scores. Composer identity will remain hidden from the panel until after the selection has been made. Submit the score, any applicable instrument part, and/or text sheet of the completed arrangement in PDF file format via email to the address included below. Include a letter of permission for use of the song, or the license at the bottom of the first page of the score, if applicable.

 

The inclusion of a notation software demo recording (mp3 or wav format) is appreciated but not required.

 

Please submit files to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

 

Selection, Performance

The submissions will be adjudicated by a panel from the Cape Breton Chorale organization.

The Chorale Artistic Director will then contact the winning arranger by phone/email on or before September 16, 2024.

 

A live performance of the winning arrangement will take place on Saturday, November 2, 2024, in Sydney, Nova Scotia.