Arts & Culture

A music education crisis is unfolding in Saskatchewan, as the Regina Public School Division moves forward with drastic cuts to its elementary band program — a nationally recognized initiative that has enriched the lives of thousands of students for decades. These cuts, driven by years of provincial underfunding, threaten not only the future of music in schools, but the quality and equity of education itself.

A 1690 Rugeri cello has begun a new chapter in its storied life in the hands of one of Winnipeg’s most exciting young classical musicians.  

David Liam Roberts will be performing on this incredibly rare instrument thanks to a three-year loan from Canada Council for the Arts’ Musical Instrument Bank, which awards rare instruments to talented artists across the country who participate in a competition to use them.  

One of the largest choral families in Winnipeg is announcing a new exciting chapter with the appointment of a new artistic director.  

Leanne Regehr Lee will be taking over the helm of Winnipeg Sonora Voices after years of accompanying and conducting three of the choirs that make up the choral collective. 

“I’m very thrilled about it,” said Regehr Lee in an interview on Morning Light. “It’s really exciting to be part of the leadership team for the organization.” 

What If Theatre is set to take Winnipeg theatregoers away from the Gargoyle Theatre in the West End to the fictional town of Waska, Manitoba. There, a grisly crime that took place forty years ago involving cannibalism still haunts the streets and psyches of its residents, and the once-bustling tourist community is all but deserted as a result.  

It was love that first brought soprano Elin Rombo to Brandon as a young student. 

“We used to joke that it all started with the Balkan War,” she recalls. “Back in Sweden in the 90’s, I had a boyfriend in high school, and he was a refugee from the former Yugoslavia. He couldn’t stay in Sweden for different reasons, and he had to find somewhere to go.” 

Two performances and one honourary degree will mark an incredible week for one of the most beloved storytellers in Canadian classical music. 

“It’s very humbling,” says Tom Allen of the honourary degree he will receive from Brandon University at their convocation proceedings this week.  

A new book aims to empower citizens to ask more intelligent questions and think more critically about how municipal governments spend tax dollars on the services and public infrastructure that make up our day-to-day lives. 

The Winnipeg Pops Orchestra's latest concert showcases the unique role that it plays in the city’s cultural landscape: an opportunity for volunteer musicians to play at a high level and offering an accessible window into classical music for audiences.  

“The Winnipeg Pops Orchestra is a great group of people,” said conductor Tony Cyre in an interview on Morning Light. “They just want to play, they just want to have fun, and they want to make the best music possible.” 

One of Winnipeg’s busiest violinists is asking, ‘What nourishes you?’ with the music on her debut album.  

Elation Pauls set out to answer that question back in 2020 when she was forced to confront a life without consistent music performance in the face of the public health lockdowns.  

“I was really searching, really asking myself, ‘What am I doing as a violinist? Am I serving at all in this capacity?’ she said in an interview on Morning Light.  

This week on Classic 107, we’re turning the spotlight on one of Spain’s most iconic composers: Isaac Albéniz. Born May 29, 1860, Albéniz was a prodigious pianist and composer whose music captures the vivid colors, rhythms, and soul of Spain. To mark his birthday, we’re dedicating the 1 PM hour all week to his piano music, with a complete broadcast of his monumental suite "Iberia" and a performance of his Piano Concerto.