CANTORES CELESTES GIVES BACK
The members of Cantores Celestes believe in giving back to the community and have donated over $60,000 to local charities. The choir actively performs at various religious services and musical celebrations in the greater Toronto area.
CANTORES CELESTES GIVES DONATIONS TO:
The Friars Family "Celebrate" Fund
The Gerstein Centre
Music at the Towers
Stella's Place
Trinty Anglican Church Simcoe
Majengo Children's Home in Tanzania
Eva's – Giving Toronto's Street Youth a New Start
Donation to a Syrian Refugee Family Sponsorship
Outreach programme at Emmanuel Howard Park Church
Sistering
Romero House
Lanark Country Interval House (Perth Ontario)
Huband Cradle of Hope
George Herman House
St. Paul's United Church, Perth Ontario
Loads of Love
Put Up Your Dukes
St. John's United Church World Music Fund
West Toronto Keys to Inclusion
Assaulted Women's Helpline
Fred Victor Bethlehem Shelter
Rainbow Songs Foundation (RSF)
Royal York Road United Church Music Programme
Stephen Lewis Grandmothers to Grandmothers
Campaign and Help Lesotho
Because I am a Girl - Plan Canada
Second Harvest
Music Programme at Dublin St. United Church Guelph
Daily Bread: The Fellowship Centre, London Ontario
EMPEROR STRING QUARTET
Formed in 1983, the Emperor String Quartet has been a musical mainstay on the Toronto social scene, performing their inimitable brand of chamber music for a vast array of public, private, corporate and government functions and concerts. The Emperor String Quartet has performed in Toronto, Ottawa and Washington for the reigning monarchs of Great Britain, Sweden, the Netherlands, Norway and Jordan as well as presidents, prime ministers, governors and state leaders from over ten countries.
ABOUT CANTORES CELESTES
Cantores Celestes Maritimes was formed in June 2022 with 14 singers. We now have 18 and are looking forward to growing our members in the very near future. We are building on the 30 year tradition of Cantores Celestes Toronto.
The choir was founded in 1989 by Founder and Director Kelly Galbraith. The ensemble began as a group of eight women who wanted to sing interesting thematic choral programs and develop concerts that involved participation from other art forms. These concerts have included exhibits from local visual artists, readings from Toronto authors, dramatic presentations, period costumes and a variety of multimedia presentations.
We are a not-for-profit, non-professional group (only as far as wages are concerned; not referring to quality!) who perform for the love of singing! From our beginnings as an eight-woman choir we have grown into a 50-plus voice ensemble representing treble voices of all ages and from all walks of life.
Cantores Celestes does not rely on government grants to subsidize its activities. Audience attendance and sponsorships in the form of concert advertising ads are truly responsible for the continuing success of this highly trained and enthusiastic choir. The cost of admission is a small price to pay to ensure that inspirational music continues to be an integral part of community life.
Cantores Celestes has appeared on CBC Radio One and Radio Two, as well as in the commercially-released CBC video Clyde Gilmour, a Celebration in Words and Music. They have recorded music for three films and have released six CDs: Wassail!; Bright Shining as the Sun; Love's Pure Light; The Circle Never Ends; Wake Up in the Moonlight Singing; and Women of Light. Cantores Celestes has toured the Maritime provinces and throughout western and eastern Ontario. The choir was invited to participate in Festival 500 in Newfoundland and performed in both the opening concert at Barrie's 2010 Colours of Music Festival, and the 2012 Toronto Vocal Arts Festival. The members were involved in a mass choir performance celebrating International Women‘s Day in Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center in 2014. They were the only women's choir invited to sing in the 1,000 - performer production of R. Murray Schafer's Apocalypsis for the 2015 Luminato Festival at Toronto's Sony Centre, and sang at a special tribute concert in 2018 at the Arts and Letters Club in Toronto honouring his music.
They have recorded music for three films and have released seven CDs: Wassail!; Bright Shining as the Sun; Love's Pure Light; The Circle Never Ends; Wake Up in the Moonlight Singing; Women of Light and Joyous Light. In May 2018 they sang under the baton of Sir. John Rutter in Carnegie Hall at a concert featuring his music and a Carnegie Hall premiere.
Women's College Hospital Sexual Assault &
Domestic Violence Care Centre
A.L.S. Society of Canada for Research
Opera New Brunswick
Restoration of Minister's Island in N.B.
Music Programme Christ Church Cathedral, Fredericton
Jean Tweed Centre
Floyd Honey Foundation (twice)
Stephen Lewis Foundation
Red Door Family Centre
HOPE (The Helping Our People Endure Foundation)
URBAN PROMISE (twice)
Free the Children
Big Sisters
Silver Creek Nursey School - Music Programme
Food Bank - Bloor West Village
St. Peter's Anglican Church Out Reach Programme
Runnymede Health Care Centre (three times)
The High Park Adventure & Volunteer
Stewardship Program
Chef School for Teens with Developmental Disabilities
Out of the Cold (Bloor West Village)
Out of the Cold (Yorkminister Park Baptist Church)
Toronto Library Foundation - Reading and Literacy
Canadian Lung Association Programmes
Making Faces - For Children with Facial Differences
St John's United Church - Outreach Programme (twice)
Stephen Lewis Foundation
Syme-Woolner Neighbourhood & Family Centre
KELLY GALBRAITH, Artistic Director & Conductor
Choral Music has always been a passion of Cantores Celestes director Kelly Galbraith. Since her childhood she has not only sung in choirs, but as a student in high school was music director and organist at a local church in Saint John. While a student at Mount Allison, she had opportunities to conduct the Mt. A Women's Choir and it was that experience that shaped her quest to discover the greatest beauty that choral music offers.
Her work life has been closely connected to CBC Radio. She began her career as Music Consultant for CBC International Relations and from that position gained experience as producer for 'Choral Concert' and 'Saturday Afternoon at the Opera' and she organized the 'CBC Choral Competition for Amateur Choirs.' Kelly was the Senior Producer for the classical music program 'Music & Company' and produced a special radio day celebrating the 500th Anniversary of the Life and Times of Thomas Tallis. When CBC Radio began to broadcast on Sirius, Kelly was involved with its development. Besides conducting Cantores Celestes, the choir she founded thirty years ago, she is the conductor of the mixed voice Manulife Financial Choir (twenty -seven years) and the first ever conductor of the CBC Complaints Choir. Kelly loves broadcasting and is currently a freelance producer working for both CBC Radio One, CBC RadioTwo, Sirius and the Digital CBC Music Channels. For many years she was also programmer for CBC/StingRay Classical Music Galaxie channels 'Opera Plus' and 'Classic Masters.' Kelly was the guest conductor for the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir's 2011 Singsation, teaching and conducting Faure's Requiem. She has been the organist and music director of various churches in Toronto teaching singers age 3 to 93. She also produced a World Music Sunday Series featuring the best musicians in Toronto.
Check out her blogs:
www.kellygalbraithblog.com : Themes & Variations
www.notthechurchlady.wordpress.com : Have Organ Shoes Will Travel
CANTORES CELESTES
Treble Choir
DR. KEVIN LANGFORD, Accompanist
We are thrilled to announce that Dr. Kevin Langford is one of
Cantores Celestes' collaborative accompanists as we begin our new incarnation in Saint John. Dr. Langford was involved as director of
the Saint John Rotary Boys Choir and the Saint John Rotary Young Men’s Ensemble for over 30 years. He founded the Rothesay- Kings Rotary Girls Choir in 1989 and continued to work with the choir as co-director and accompanist until it ceased operations in 2017. He spent over 35 years as a highly respected music teacher and his choirs won many awards. Dr. Langford is also director of music at St. Luke’s Anglican Church in Saint John, a much respected member of the Saint John Men's Chorus under the leadership of Kelly Galbraith. Dr. Langford is a member of St. Mary's band. Among many distinguished accolades, Dr. Langford was bestowed a Doctor of Letters honoris causa in 2003 and the 2020 New Brunswick Choral Federation Distinguished Service Award. Welcome aboard!