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Artscene St. Jude's Celebration of the Arts (COTA) not only recently ended its 24th concert season, it also said `good-bye' to two long-standing members. The April 25 concert marked the close of the six-season tenure of chair Ross Connell and artistic director Doug Field. The duo took over COTA in 2009 after the departure of then artistic director Don Pangman with the mission to maintain St. Jude's "high artistic standards" from the previous 18 seasons. "We quickly discovered that our skill sets and goals were complementary," said Connell. "I have a great appreciation of many different kinds of music, and Doug has arts management skills on top of his musical training." Both Connell and Field are active members of St. Jude's parish and brought with them diverse backgrounds to their roles. Connell has a background in business and IT, while Field worked in broadcasting for CBC Radio and Television and performing arts management for the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony and Intrada Brass of Oakville. During six seasons at the helm, the pair 23 | Friday, May 15, 2015 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com "Connected to your Community" St. Jude's COTA says farewell to artistic director, chair ensured COTA continued its tradition of presenting Canadian performers with an emphasis on choral music. Such performers included: musica intima, the Elora Festival Singers, Nathaniel Dett Chorale and Elmer Iseler Singers, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra of Toronto, St. Cecilia String Quartet, Montréal's Arion Baroque Ensemble, Sylvia Tyson, and Canadian Jazz Quartet, to name a few. Connell and Field both said they kept in mind St. Jude's Anglican Church is a liturgical space when determining the content and size of every performing group. "Looking back, with my performing background in wind music, I'm surprised -- and pleased -- that we placed such an emphasis on choral and vocal music," said Field. "Choral music connects with people in a way no other kind of music can." Connell and Field both thanked the COTA committee, sponsors, patrons and St. Jude's staff for their support of the annual concert series. The new COTA artistic director is Simon Walker. St. Jude's Celebration of the Arts (COTA) chair Ross Connell, left, and artistic director Doug Field are leaving their positions after a six-year tenure overseeing the concert-series event. Simon Walker will be the new COTA artistic director. | submitted photo State of the Art exhibit by HDSB students Students of the Halton District School Board (HDSB) will show their State of the Art works during the 10th annual secondary school art exhibit. Running Tuesday (May 19) to next Friday (May 22) at Burlington's New Street Education Centre, 3250 New St., the show is created by Grades 9-12 students from schools across the HDSB. The works of art incorporate paintings, sketchings, sculptures, photography and mixed media. "Halton does a fantastic job with arts education, and this is evident in the quality of visual artwork at the secondary art show," said Kevin McConvey, HDSB acting-instructional program leader for the arts. "Our students are very fortunate to have dedicated and talented teachers who help them navigate and understand the creative process. The resulting work is of very high quality, and the art show provides a unique opportunity for secondary students to share their talents with a wide and varied audience." An opening reception takes place Tuesday from 7-8 p.m., while the exhibit will continue to be open for viewing between 8:30 a.m.-8:30 p.m. next Wednesday-Thursday (May 20-21), and 8:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Friday, May 22. COLLECT IV E SOUL CURRENT SW ELL | SCOT T HELMAN OUR LADY PEACE F INGER ELEV EN W EEZER T D STAGE | BURLINGTON WAT ERF RONT T I C K E T S O N SA L E AT S O U N D O F M U S I C . C A