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www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Thursday, April 20, 2017 | 30 OCS gives The Canadian Maple to Canada for its 150th byAbigail Cukier Special to the Beaver W hen it came time to plan their spring concerts, members of the Oakville Choral Society decided to celebrate Canada' s 150th anniversary. The concerts will be presented Friday, April 21 and Saturday, April 22, and will feature the world premiere of The Canadian Maple, com posed for the occasion by the chorus' s m usic director, David Bowser. Work on The Canadian Maple started more than a year ago, w hen Bowser decided to com pose his piece based on the responses of elementary school students to the question, "What does Canada mean to me?" Choir members approached local elementary school teachers to ask if they would participate and students between age five and 11 shared their ideas through written contributions and drawings. Bowser w ove these elements together into a musical work for choir, piano and video. Recorded voiceovers will feature members of the Oakville Children' s Choir and the original children' s artwork will be on display. The choir will be accompanied by pianist, Anne Marie Leonard. "The inclusion of children was essential to the spirit of hope and optimism of our country I wanted to express in the work," Members of the Oakville Choral Society rehearse in anticipation of this weekend's concerts and the debut of the new song, The Canadian Maple. | submitted photo said Bowser. "Writing words and drawing or painting pictures was the m ost inclusive way for children to express themselves. I compiled a series of about 40 words or phrases written by school children and filmed members of the Oakville Children' s Choir speaking the words for the multimedia com ponent of the piece. "My favourite part of the w hole process was working with the 13 young members of the Oakville Childrens Choir on the video. They were really professional and great fun to work with." Schools participating in The Canadian Maple project include Oakville schools, Dearcroft Montessori School, Fern Hill School, Heritage Glen Public School and West Oak Public School, as well as Runnymede Public School in Toronto. "We are particularly excited about this concert," said chorus member Elizabeth Peck. "It is all music by Canadian composers. Having the Canadian theme and working with the community has really brought us all together. "And to be working on a brand new com position is exciting. We all agree it will be sung by other choirs in the future." The 60 members of the Oakville Choral Society, one of Oakville' s longest established arts groups will perform m usic by Canadian composers Healey Willan, Leslie Bell, Matthew Emery, Stephan Chapman, Mark Sirett and Calixa Lavallee, w ho wrote the m usic to O Canada, to a Newfoundland sea shanty. Concerts w ill take place on Friday, April 21 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, April 22 at 2 p.m. at ClearView Christian Reformed Church, 2300 Sheridan Garden Dr. (at Ford Drive). For tickets or more information, visit www. oakvillechoral.com. 'AMAZING RoqER's # !# Interlocking Tumblestone, Retaining Walls, rl_ANdscApiNq For aOyour Seasoned Needs Garden Installation, Sodding & Excavating, Call for F R E E Estimate plus more ISO C (905) 827-8158 · www.rogerslandscaping.org neStars HomeStars AVOID DRAGGING YOUR FAMILY THROUGH DIVORCE COURT. Lower the emotional damage on everyone now, before it's too late. MEDIATION Choose the civilized way to separate. Stop fighting,start moving forward. Save thousands ... and stay out of court. H o m e S ta rs E-mail: dawn@comerstone-mediation.com or call: 9 0 5 -5 6 7 -6 8 3 3 Dawn is an Accredited Family Mediator with a degree in psychology and a Masters in Law from Osgoode Hall Law School, w ith a specialization in Alternative Dispute Resolution. Dawn has been m ediating fam ilies full tim e since 2000. CORNERSTONE M ED IA TIO N 4 4 7 SPEERS RD, UNIT 5, OAKVILLE, O N