MEDIA RELEASE

Young audiences in elementary schools across Alberta will be treated to a brand new musical performance this month. The Banff Centre’s Music Makers production of The Red Tambourine is a dynamic and fun way for elementary school children to learn about the art of making music and the musical traditions of countries around the world.

Join the journey of the magical tambourine as it travels to exotic locations to perform rhythms and music of many cultures, including Brazil, Italy, Hungary, France, and of course, Canada. This 40-minute interactive show introduces young audiences to several instruments including the violin, piano, trumpet, and a plethora of percussion instruments played in innovative ways. The Red Tambourine is sure to get feet tapping, voices roaring, and imaginations running wild.

The Red Tambourine includes performances of Bela Bartok’s Hungarian Dances and Aaron Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man. "The performance not only engages children in a magical story, but introduces them to the excitement that wonderful music can provoke," says Isobel Rolston, artistic director of the Music & Sound program at The Banff Centre.
 

The Banff Centre 
Music Makers: 
from left to right - Ian Hale, Karen Gerbrecht, Malcolm Lim, and Angela Schroeder.

Music & Sound created the Music Makers residency eight years ago as an outreach program. Each year, the Music Makers—artists in residence at The Banff Centre--develop, create, and produce an educational music program to perform in selected schools across Alberta. "The Music Makers residency is a unique opportunity for talented young musicians to explore new ways of bringing music to the public, thereby broadening the scope of their own personal career opportunities," says Isobel Rolston. "And, at the same time, the program supports the musical enthusiasm of youths in the community through encouragement, inspiration, and practical interaction."

The Red Tambourine will run in elementary schools in Cochrane, Exshaw, Banff, and Canmore this week. They will also be performing in Wetaskiwin (March 19-21), and Red Deer (March 24-28). In addition to the Alberta performances, the Music Makers will make return visits to Bow Valley schools (March 11-12) to conduct instrumental clinics for music students. It is this interaction between the Music Makers and young, aspiring music students that makes this program such a success.

Karen Gerbrecht violin (Canada)
Influenced by four generations of musicians in her family, Karen began playing the violin at the age of three. She studied at the Vancouver Academy of Music and then received a Bachelor of Music from the North Carolina School of the Arts (NCSA). Karen graduated first in her university, thereby winning the single top scholarship awarded by NCSA – the Sarah Graham Kenan Scholarship. After graduation, Karen accepted a position as director of Chamber Music at Davidson College, and served in that position until she won a position in the Vancouver Symphony, where she is associate principal second. Karen is also on the faculty of the Vancouver Academy of Music, where she has taught since 1990, and has been named a McBride Scholar at Bryn Mawr in Philadelphia. She has performed throughout Europe, Canada, the United States, and Asia as both a chamber musician and an orchestral player.

Ian Hale percussion (Canada)
Ian graduated from the University of Calgary with a Bachelor of Music degree in Performance. He began his formal percussion studies as a member of the University of Calgary Wind Ensemble under the direction of Dr. Glenn Price for all four years of his degree, and was principal percussionist in 2000. In 1999 the ensemble performed at the International WASBE conference in California to international acclaim. Ian has performed with the Calgary Philharmonic and the Red Deer Symphony orchestras, and has recorded for CBC radio. He has won the University of Calgary Concerto Competition as well as numerous awards at the Kiwanis Music Festival, where he performed at the Stars of the Festival Concert in 1997. He has studied marimba with Leigh Howard Stevens, Gordon Stout, and She-e Wu, and has participated in master classes with composer David Maslanka, percussionist Bob Becker, and marimbist Marie Josee Simard. Ian will be in residence at The Banff Centre until March.

Malcolm Lim percussion (Canada)
Malcolm Lim is a Calgary-based percussionist and composer of Singaporean Chinese decent. His formal studies include a Bachelor of Music degree in Orchestral Percussion from McGill University. He has also studied in New York City and Rio de Janeiro with support from the Alberta Foundation and the Canada Council for the Arts. Among Malcolm’s mentors are Pierre Beluse (Orchestral Percussion), Louis Charbonneau (Orchestral Timpani), Glen Velez (rame Drums), Trichy Sankaran (South Indian Percussion), Alessandra Belloni (Southern Italian Percussion), Marcos Suzanno (Brazilian Percussion), and Michel Mirhige (Arabic Percussion). He has performed with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, the Red Deer Symphony, Altius Brass, Calgary Opera, Lambda, and the Aboriginal Dance Opera Bones. His primary interest lies at the intersection of drumming, vocalizing, conscious breathing, and movement. Malcolm is grateful for the support of his family and The Banff Centre.

Angela Schroeder conducting/trumpet (Canada)
A native of Alberta, Angela Schroeder is active as a performer on piano and trumpet, and as a conductor. She has worked extensively as a music teacher, both privately and in school and community settings. She is currently on leave from the Calgary Board of Education for her residency in Banff. Angela has performed with the International Youth Wind Orchestra in Schladming, Austria; the National Wind Ensemble at Carnegie Hall, New York; and as associate director with the Central Memorial Golden Rams in Brisbane and Sydney, Australia. She is an alumna of the acclaimed University of Calgary Wind Ensemble, and is currently a member of the Calgary Concert. She holds bachelor degrees in Music and Education, a diploma of Fine Arts in Wind Conducting, and the Royal Conservatory ARCT in Piano Performance. Angela plans to pursue her Masters and Doctoral degrees in Conducting next fall, and is thrilled to be a resident at The Banff Centre this year.

Please click here to download 300 dpi version of The Banff Centre Music Makers' image at the top of this media release.

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