Arts & Culture

The festive season has arrived, and the Winnipeg Pops Orchestra (WPO) is doing their part to help spread the holly jollies.  

To say that a dedicated classical and jazz music radio station is a rarity in the Canadian media landscape is a bit of an understatement.

Winnipeg's Classic 107 is one of only two in the country.

It is thanks to the vision and commitment of Golden West CEO and President Elmer Hildebrand that the station remains a favourite of classical and jazz fans across southern Manitoba and beyond.  

Mr. Hildebrand -- or, more casually, Elmer -- joined Morning Light host Simeon Rusnak to reflect on the first decade of Winnipeg's Classic 107 being on air.

Ten years ago today, on a wicked winter's morning in Winnipeg, Classic 107 came to air with the glorious and hopeful strains of Beethoven's Ode to Joy. 

Celebrating 99 years of outstanding singing, the Winnipeg Boys’ Choir has become a musical institution in the city, cultivating young talent while building friendships and creating shared memories amongst its ranks.   

The busyness of the holiday season is nearly upon us. And that may have you scrambling for the "ideal" gift -- be it for someone you know or, perhaps, a treat for yourself. 

The fine folks at McNally Robinson Booksellers are emphatic in their belief that a book makes the perfect gift (and we tend to agree!) so why not let them help you in finding the ideal new title in "What to Read."

Chris Hall and Kathleen Friesen were in studio with their latest selections. 

This Sunday, December 3rd at 3:00pm at St. Andrews River Heights United Church, The Winnipeg Singers in collaboration with the Pembina Trails Voices Chorale will present their concert called “Christmas is for Children: A Child’s Christmas in Wales.”

Centered around the nostalgic, charming and multi-sensory poem by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas of the same name, this concert will provide a truly memorable afternoon of Christmas carols while at the same time summoning up the sights, smells and feelings of the holiday season.

One of the sure signs that the holiday season is here is the sound of Christmas Carols and the jingle of bells ringing in the season. Put the two together and you have absolute magic. Nothing puts the shimmer on a good Christmas melody like the sound of handbells.

This Sunday, December, 3rd at 2:00pm at Chapel Lawn the Ring Out Handbell Quartet will be performing a “Christmas Handbell Ringing” concert.

This Saturday, December 2nd at 7:00pm at Westworth United Church, the Esprit Singers will be presenting a concert called “And Suddenly.”

For those unfamiliar with the Esprit Singers, they are Manitoba’s premiere women’s choir. They have performed in Iceland to rave reviews and have performed with some of Winnipeg’s best musicians. They have also commissioned new works and arrangements from such composers as Ron Paley, David Scott, Glenn Sutherland and Neil Weisensel

This Sunday, December 3rd at 1:00 on the Centennial Concert Hall’s Piano Nobile the Manitoba Band Association (MBA) will be warming up audiences hands, feet and especially ears with the low, warm, sonorous sounds of low brass courtesy of a mass choir of tuba and euphonium players.

This weekend, the winner of the 2023 Eckhardt-Gramatté National Music Competition – or “E-Gré” as it’s often called – returns to Manitoba for an intimate recital at her old stomping grounds.