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Rosemary Siemens is a name that, over the years, has been increasingly associated with excellence. The violinist and singer, a Plum Coulee native, has travelled the world over to share her talents in some of the most sacred and renowned locations.
From performing at the 100-year-old country music icon the Grand Ole Opry and her tenure as the violinist for the Tenors (formerly known as the Canadian Tenors) to playing in St. Peter's Basilica and the Sistine Chapel, the scale of her performance venues has matched her talent. Even so, ever mindful of her roots, she reflects on how her successes can support her faith and her ministry.
Given such a rich, multifaceted career, it’s no wonder that Siemens was recently selected for a significant royal honour.
‘It was a cool way to start off the year’
Siemens, along with her husband and fellow musician Eli Bennett, were both recipients of King Charles III’s Coronation Medal.
“It was a cool way to start off the year,” she says. “It was given to us by Senator Don Plett, and we found out about it just before Christmas. He told us that he had nominated us and that we were going to be awarded it, and he put on a beautiful award reception at the Vancouver Club.”
In addition to being honoured, Siemens says she and Bennett also opened and closed the dazzling event with symbolic performances.
“It was a wonderful evening. We got to start the evening off with our version of ‘God Save the Queen’ that we had made for the queen, but we changed the lyrics to ‘God save the King,’” she says, adding that it was a unique experience because it has been quite some time since this version of the song has been applicable. “Then, we closed the night with our version of ‘O Canada.’ It was very special to play and sing there as well. It was a total honour.”
A once-in-a-lifetime token
Siemens says there were six recipients of the medal in total.
As its name suggests, the Coronation Medal, administered by the Chancellery of Honours at Rideau Hall, was instituted to commemorate the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III.
There are very specific criteria to be eligible for the prestigious accolade.
According to the Government of Canada, recipients must “have made a significant contribution to Canada or to a particular province, territory, region of, or community in, Canada, or attained an outstanding achievement abroad that brings credit to Canada.”
A 400-piece orchestra made by two
As anomalous as the Coronation Medal is, it is not the first — or even second — royal honour that Siemens and Bennett have received. The pair was also the recipient of 2012’s Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee Medal, which commemorated 60 years since the monarch’s Accession, and Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee Medal a decade later in 2022 to commemorate 70 years.
Siemens says that the award in 2022 inspired the rendition of ‘God Save the Queen’ that the pair adapted for the Coronation Medal ceremony. It was a labour of gratitude.
“When we got the Diamond, we wanted to think about a way that we could thank the Queen, and so, that’s when we put together our version of ‘God Save the Queen.’ We did it during COVID when we had the chance, and we had all this time on our hands,” she says. “We put together a 400-piece orchestra — just the two of us.”
One might ask how two people record a 400-piece orchestra on their own. The answer is simple but time-consuming: numerous takes.
“I played the violin [approximately] 15 times, then the second violin 15 times, and then the viola, then I sang [about] 200 parts of the choir,” says Siemens. “It took 6 months.”
Does anyone know the Queen?
Siemens says that when the YouTube video was completed at long last, the pair included a special message at the end.
“We said, ‘If anyone knows the Queen, please let us know because we would love to get this to her,’ not thinking that anyone would reach out, but someone did,” she says, adding that they heard from the father of gospel singer Connie Scott. “He contacted us, and he said, ‘I'm really good friends with the royal historian for the queen, and he writes letters to her all the time. I'd love to get in touch with him to see if we can get this to the Queen.’”
Siemens says that she and Bennett put together a “beautiful package” with a Christmas card and CD with the recording for the Queen. One day, a few months later, a letter from Windsor Castle appeared.
“We got a personal letter [of thanks] from the Queen. We couldn't believe it. It was like 3 months before she passed away, so the timing of it and everything was just so special,” she says. “It’s been a total journey. After that, we actually got the Platinum medal and now to get the King's medal is pretty cool. [We’re] totally honoured and humbled.”
Symbols of dedication
While Siemens and Bennett do not set out to be rewarded for their creative contributions to Canada’s arts landscape, the accolades they receive, such as the King Charles III Coronation Medal, are the result of plenty of hard work and tenacity.
The pair recently concluded a tour across Canada to perform in various provinces, including Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta, and British Columbia. Siemens says she and Bennett have also been focussed on their YouTube channel, on which the musicians are quickly gaining momentum with inspirational music and traditional Christian hymns.
“I don’t think [many] people realize with our YouTube channel, Eli is working from six in the morning until ten at night,” she says. “A lot of people don't realize what it takes to put a new song out every single week, and we do two videos a week, Sunday and Wednesday. We just work, work, work, honestly.”
Connecting the world, younger generations with God
Despite all the work, Siemens says she’s glad that the couple can do it from home. It makes it easier for projects and their visions to be a family affair.
“Our boys can be home with us. It’s really a family ministry. My parents have been so involved,” she says. “We love what we do. We love that we're changing lives and bringing people closer to God, and we've now been heard in every country in the world, if you can imagine. We have 150 million views combined from YouTube and Facebook, and almost 600,000 subscribers now, and so the mission of bringing back the hymns is truly coming to life.”
Siemens finds it meaningful that when it comes to the demographics of the pair’s listeners, as surprising as it may be, 50% are under the age of 45.
“I love this stat because a lot of people think the hymns are just for older people, but now, we're having a huge surge of younger listeners, which I absolutely love because I love that we're bringing hymns to a younger generation,” she says. “We love what we do. We get so much back from what we do, but an award here and there is always totally awesome [too].”
‘We pray that people are going to be saved through this video’
As for what comes next for Siemens and Bennett — there is a lot on the horizon. For Siemens, as she and Bennett have reflected on the possibilities of their worldwide viewership, a path forward has become clear.
“Now that we have this amazing audience around the world, [we wondered] how we can actually share the gospel with people,” she says. “[The] next thing that we're doing . . . is bringing it back to Billy Graham and the crusades. I was at one when I was a kid, and I remember it so vividly, and a lot of people know that the song that was played [at the] altar call was ‘Just As I Am,’ so I thought, ‘Let's do a version of [it],’” she says, adding that she and Bennett collaborated with the Clearbrook HymnSing Choir for the project, which hasn’t been released yet.
“They shot this beautiful video, and what we did in the middle of it — I don't think it's ever been done before — but I did an altar call in the middle of the video. I'm hoping this will resonate with people who have been to those crusades, and maybe people who have could send it to the next generation," she says. "We pray that people are going to be saved through this video. It's a very unique thing that we're doing, and I hope it's going to touch a lot of lives around the world.”
"I want to go to the White House and do a hymn sing"
The video will not be the first time that Siemens has been involved in an altar call on the world’s stage. She says that last year when she played the Grand Ole Opry as a part of the Inspirational Country Music Awards, she was asked to do an altar call at the end of the show.
“I met this pastor . . . Jonathan Shuttlesworth, and I actually felt led to ask him to do it,” she says. “I got permission for him, and he closed the show with an altar call at the Grand Ole Opry, which I don't know if it's ever been done there before. 70% of the Grand Ole Opry stood up and either rededicated . . . or gave their lives to Jesus. It was so powerful.”
The life-altering occurrence inspired Siemens.
“I thought if God can open a door like the Grand Ole Opry, I want to do a hymn sing at Carnegie Hall — I want to go to the White House and do a hymn sing,” she says. “I want to go to these amazing places that God has opened doors for me and now bring the hymns to these places and change lives for eternity. That’s my next goal.”
For now, Siemens says a more immediate goal is to sit down with her husband to reflect on the pair’s most recent achievement — the King Charles III Coronation Medal.
“We said that we were going to go out for dinner and just kind of think about this and celebrate it,” she laughs. “It's hard to take the time to do that, but it’s really important. We will do that.”
'I love you guys'
As always, Siemens is also thankful for the support she feels from her “hometown community” as she progresses in her career and her ministry.
“I love you guys and you've been so supportive, and it just really lifts me up. I know people are praying for me [in the Pembina Valley],” she says. “It's not always easy to do what we do, and there's a lot of battles, and I think God has brought us through this because we never intended to do music . . . . We're very thankful to be walking in what he called us to do.”
Siemens also adds a request.
“I just continue to ask for prayers from the community,” she says. “I appreciate you all so much. Thank you for joining me on this journey.”
To explore Siemens and Bennett’s musical talent on the pair’s YouTube channel, click here.
With files from Jayme Giesbrecht