Praised for his “authoritative voice” (Boston Musical Intelligencer) and “contagious sensibility” (Revue l’Opéra), Canadian-American Baritone, Raphaël Laden-Guindon maintains an active performing schedule in the US and Canada. In the 2023-24 season, he will appear as a guest artist in productions of Matthew Peterson’s Voir Dire as The Baritone and Britten’s Midsummer Night’s Dream as Quince with the Boston Conservatory. He was heard as Harapha in Handel’s Samson with the Cambridge Chamber Ensemble. His 2022-23 season featured a role debut and as the title role in Le nozze di Figaro with NEMPAC Opera and the Boston Festival Orchestra and the world premiere of Keiko Devaux’s chamber opera: L’écoute du Perdu with Musique 3 Femmes and Ensemble Paramaribo. Other credits include The Accomplice in Whispers: Echoes from the Halls and Belcore (Cover) in L’Elisir d’amore with Boston Opera Collaborative, the title role in Don Giovanni, Ophémon in L’amant anonyme (Chevalier de St-Georges), Bob in The Old Maid and the Thief (Menotti), Mr. Olsen in Street Scene (Weil), and Publio (cover) in La Clemenza di Tito (Mozart) with Opera McGill; Aristeo in Orfeo (Rossi), Corebo in La Didone (Cavalli) and Aristone in Xerse (Cavalli) with the Yale Baroque Opera Project. Raphaël holds a master’s degree from McGill University during which he was a recipient of both SSHRC and FRQSC master’s research grants. He is a staff singer at Trinity Church in the city of Boston.
Ode to Joy Text & Translation
Text by Friedrich Schiller (1759–1805)
O Freunde, nicht diese Töne!
Sondern laßt uns angenehmere
anstimmen und freudenvollere!
Freude, schöner Götterfunken,
Tochter aus Elysium,
Wir betreten feuertrunken,
Himmlische, dein Heiligtum!
Deine Zauber binden wieder,
Was die Mode streng geteilt;
Alle Menschen werden Brüder,
Wo dein sanfter Flügel weilt.
Wem der große Wurf gelungen,
Eines Freundes Freund zu sein,
Wer ein holdes Weib errungen,
Mische seinen Jubel ein!
Ja, wer auch nur eine Seele
Sein nennt auf dem Erdenrund!
Und wer’s nie gekonnt, der stehle
Weinend sich aus diesem Bund.
Freude trinken alle Wesen
An den Brüsten der Natur;
Alle Guten, alle Bösen
Folgen ihrer Rosenspur.
Küsse gab sie uns und Reben,
Einen Freund, geprüft im Tod;
Wollust ward dem Wurm gegeben,
Und der Cherub steht vor Gott!
Froh, wie seine Sonnen fliegen
Durch des Himmels prächt’gen Plan,
Laufet, Brüder, eure Bahn, Freudig,
wie ein Held zum Siegen.
Seid umschlungen, Millionen.
Diesen Kuß der ganzen Welt!
Brüder! Über’m Sternenzelt
Muß ein lieber Vater wohnen.
Ihr stürzt nieder, Millionen?
Ahnest du den Schöpfer, Welt?
Such’ ihn über’m Sternenzelt!
Über Sternen muß er wohnen.
English translation
Oh friends, no more of these sounds!
Let us sing more cheerful songs,
More full of joy!
Joy, bright spark of divinity,
Daughter of Elysium,
Fire-inspired we tread
Thy sanctuary!
Thy magic power reunites
All that custom has divided;
All men become brothers
Under the sway of thy gentle wings.
Whoever has created
An abiding friendship,
Or has won
A true and loving wife,
All who can call at least one soul theirs,
Join in our song of praise!
But any who cannot must creep tearfully
Away from our circle.
All creatures drink of joy
At nature’s breast.
Just and unjust
Alike taste of her gift;
She gave us kisses and the fruit of the vine,
A tried friend to the end.
Even the worm can feel contentment,
And the cherub stands before God!
Gladly, like the heavenly bodies
Which He set on their courses through the
splendor of the firmament;
Thus, brothers, you should run your race,
As a hero going to conquest.
You millions, I embrace you.
This kiss is for all the world!
Brothers, above the starry canopy
There must dwell a loving Father.
Do you fall in worship, you millions?
World, do you know your Creator?
Seek Him in the heavens!
Above the stars must He dwell.
The Saskatoon Youth Orchestra
The Saskatoon Youth Orchestra Inc. serves elementary, high school, and university students from Saskatoon and surrounding communities, and consists of two programs. The Saskatoon Youth Orchestra is a full orchestra for players aged 14 to 25 under the direction of Richard Carnegie. Repertoire consists of professional calibre music in a broad range of styles.
The youth orchestra remains an important source of the city’s classical musicians. Many SYO alumni have gone on to share their talent as professional performers or educators. Many others have become leaders in the community. Among alumni are Michael Swan, concertmaster of the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra, Peter England, longtime music teacher and Saskatoon Summer Players producer, and Saskatoon city councillor Mairen Loewen. Music directors have included founder Murray Adaskin, Dr. David Kaplan, Dwain Nelson and Jack Johnson. The modern SYO began in 1983 and was led for 25 years by Wayne Toews and George Charpentier.
William Rowson was a member of the SYO violin section throughout the 1990-1993 seasons, starting as one of the youngest members at the time. He vividly remembers walking into the rehearsal room when they were beginning to play a piece he composed himself, being swept up in the soundscape.
Richard Carnegie SYO Music Director
Richard Carnegie has been principal double bass of the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Players since 2006 and was appointed music director of the Saskatoon Youth Orchestra in July 2009. His creative activities blur the line of a traditional classical musician and include a professional acting debut with Persephone Theatre, frequent performances with the Mark DeJong Trio, collaborations with singer-songwriters and rock bands and his one-man show “Conversations with My Double Bass.”
Richard served as instructor of the youth orchestra’s Double Bass Program from 2006-2008 and continues to work as a sessional lecturer in the Department of Music at the University of Saskatchewan. He enjoys a busy private teaching studio and is a frequent clinician in Saskatoon-area schools. Receiving a Bachelor of Music in 2003 from the Manhattan School of Music, Richard pursued additional studies at the Royal Conservatory of Music’s Glenn Gould School and the National Arts Centre Summer Music Institute. His principal teachers were Joel Quarrington and Timothy Cobb. While these teachers along with experiences in youth orchestras were the shaping musical forces in Richard’s youth, it is his parents whom he credits for the great fortune to have a professional life filled with music. While neither are musicians, neither flinched at the idea of the first person in the family to obtain a degree doing so in music. Both were committed to supporting anything that was done with drive, hard work and passion; values they themselves instilled.
In his spare time Richard is an avid cook, reader and board game enthusiast. He has served as chair of the Saskatoon Symphony Players’ Committee and on the executive board of the Saskatoon Musicians’ Association. He plays on a double bass made by Saskatoon luthier Darren Molnar.
Bernadette Wilson Saskatoon Strings Music Director
Bernadette Wilson has been conducting the Saskatoon Strings since 2002. She has founded other groups such as the ‘Saskatoon Suzuki Cello’ program, the cello choir ‘Molto Cellissimo’, and under her direction the Mesh String Quartet won first prize at the Canadian Music Competitions in Toronto in 2004.
Bernadette has a B.A. with high honours as well as a B.Ed. with great distinction, both from the University of Saskatchewan. Before becoming a professional musician, she taught both music and French for five years in the Saskatoon School System. Bernadette studied cello for seven years with Gary Russell of the Montreal Symphony and with Janos Starker at the Banff School of Fine Arts. Her teaching skills were further honed through extensive training in the Suzuki Method.
Bernadette has been a member of the cello section in the Saskatoon Symphony since 1979 and teaches cello from her home to students ranging in age from four to 75. Watching the growth in her students’ skills has been a source of joy and satisfaction for her. From her Suzuki training Bernadette learned that you are never too old and rarely too young to study and enjoy music.
In addition to her dedication to music, Bernadette has a passion both for palaeontology and her family. She collected fossils all her life, and has taken every palaeontology class offered by the U of S and has donated many of her finds to the Geology Department. Before starting her family she spent seven summers working in the field for the Tyrell Museum, and one summer for the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences. Bernadette has two children, Robin, a professional animator who lives in Vancouver, and Heather, a professional musician; both were members of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada.
Andrew Kesler, composer

ANDREW KESLER
Musician | Producer | Composer | Arranger | Orchestrator | Educator
www.andrewkesler.com
Suite for the Prairies
Suite for the Prairies (for Symphony Orchestra) – 2021
2-for-1 Subscriptions
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September 21, 2024
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October 26, 2024
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February 15, 2025
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March 8, 2025
Pictures at an Exhibition
March 29, 2025
Chopin and the New World
May 3, 2025
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An Evening of Pink Floyd
November 16, 2024
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December 7, 2024
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January 25, 2025
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April 12, 2025
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Music Talk – Sask Celebration
Guest host, and SSO principal flute, Joey (Xiaoying) Zhuang sits down to chat with Sask Celebration conductor William Rowson on Tuesday, March 19th, live from the McNally Robinson Travel Alcove.
Cris Derksen, cello
Juno-nominated Cris Derksen is an Internationally respected Indigenous Cellist and Composer. In a world where almost everything—people, music, cultures—gets labelled and slotted into simple categories, Cris Derksen represents a challenge. Originally from Northern Alberta, she comes from a line of chiefs from NorthTall Cree Reserve on her father’s side and a line of strong Mennonite homesteaders on her mother’s. Derksen braids the traditional and contemporary, weaving her classical background and Indigenous ancestry with new school electronics to create genre-defying music.
As composer Derksen has a foot in many worlds, 2019 compositions include Maada’ookii Songlines – a Mass Choral piece for 250 singers Commissioned by Luminato Festival. Rebellion—a short symphony commissioned by the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. Iron Peggy – a Theatre piece commissioned by the Vancouver Children’s Festival. A new performance art piece commissioned by the National Art Gallery of Canada, Ikumagiialit. Her 2018 works include the DORA Award for Best Sound Design for Theatre 2018; Kiinalik: these sharp tools, TIFF Premier Biidaaban (the dawn comes) Short Animation Film by Amanda Strong, Ka:hawai Dance Company production of BloodTides, Kamloopa Theatre production, 2018 Banff Centre for the Arts String Quartet Residency White Mans Cattle and Wood Quintet International 5 bucks per head.
As a performer, Derksen performs nationally and internationally solo and with some of Canada’s finest, including Tanya Tagaq, Buffy Sainte Marie, Naomi Klein, and Leanne Simpson, to name a few. Recent destinations include Hong Kong, Australia, Mongolia, Sweden, and a whole lot of Canada—the place Derksen refers to as home.
Tania Miller, conductor
Canadian Conductor Tania Miller has distinguished herself as a dynamic interpreter, musician and innovator. On the podium, Maestra Miller projects authority, dynamism and sheer love of the experience of making music. As one critic put it, she delivers calm intensity . . . expressive, colourful and full of life . . . her experience and charisma are audible.” Others call her performances “technically immaculate, vivid and stirring”.
Tania Miller has recently been named as Artistic Director of the Brott Music Festival in Canada. She is the Artistic Director and Conductor of the National Academy Orchestra of Canada and of Brott Opera. Maestra Miller’s 23-24 season includes her debut with Vancouver Opera in the production of Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, a concert with highly acclaimed soprano, Sondra Radvanovsky and Vancouver’s Opera West, and debuts with the Baton Rouge Symphony, Illinois Symphony, with return engagements to the Springfield Symphony, Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, and London Symphonia, among others. Miller served as interim Principal Conductor of the Rhode Island Philharmonic in the 22-23 season, and recently made her debut with the Warsaw Philharmonic, I Musici de Montreal, and the New Haven Symphony.
Miller has conducted the KBS Symphony in Seoul, and the Virtuoso Chamber Orchestra at the World Orchestra Festival in Daegu, South Korea with concerts in Daegu, Hwaseong, and Seoul. She has appeared as a guest conductor in Canada, the United States and Europe with such orchestras as the Bern Symphony Orchestra, NFM Wroclåw Philharmonic, Toronto Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Chicago Symphony, Oregon Symphony, Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra, Ottawa’s National Arts Centre Orchestra, Orchestra Métropolitain de Montreal, Vancouver Symphony, Orchestre Symphonique de Quebec, Naples Philharmonic, Hartford Symphony, Madison Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, Winnipeg Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic and numerous others. Maestro Miller was Music Director of Canada’s Victoria Symphony for 14 years, and was named Music Director Emerita for her commitment to the orchestra and community. She has distinguished herself as a visionary leader and innovator with a deep commitment to contemporary repertoire and composers and has gained a national reputation as a highly effective advocate and communicator for the arts.
Miller conducted Calgary Opera’s 2022 production of Lehar’s Merry Widow and numerous opera productions as Artistic Director of Michigan Opera Works and guest conductor of Opera McGill in Montreal. She was Assistant Conductor of the Carmel Bach Festival for four seasons, and Assistant and Associate Conductor of the Vancouver Symphony from 2000-2004. She was Assistant Conductor of the Banff Summer Festival of the Arts opera production of Michael Daugherty’s Jackie O.
Ms. Miller has a Doctorate and Masters degree in Conducting from the University of Michigan. Maestro Miller received an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Royal Roads University, and an Honorary Fellowship Diploma from Canada’s Royal Conservatory of Music for her commitment to leadership in community and music education. She was recipient of the 2017 Friends of Canadian Music award from the Canadian League of Composers for her dedication to the performance of contemporary music.
Sara Davis Buechner, piano
Noted for her musical command, cosmopolitan artistry, and visionary independence, Sara Davis Buechner is one of the most original concert pianists of our time. Lauded for her “intelligence, integrity and all-encompassing technical prowess” (New York Times), “thoughtful artistry in the full service of music” (Washington Post), and “astounding virtuosity” (Philippine Star), Japan’s InTune magazine sums up: “Buechner has no superior.”
In her twenties Ms. Buechner earned a bouquet of top prizes at the world’s premiere international piano competitions — Queen Elisabeth (Brussels), Leeds, Mozart (Salzburg), Beethoven (Vienna), and Sydney. She was a Bronze Medalist of the 1986 Tschaikowsky Competition in Moscow and the Gold Medalist of the 1984 Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition.
Ms. Buechner has performed in every state and province of North America — as recitalist, chamber musician and soloist with top orchestras like the New York Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony and Philadelphia Orchestra; and in venues such as Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center and the Hollywood Bowl. She has toured throughout Latin and South America and Europe; and she enjoys a special following in Asia, where she has been a featured soloist with the Sydney Symphony, New Zealand Philharmonic, New Japan Philharmonic and Shanghai Philharmonic, among many others.
She has commissioned and premiered important contemporary scores by composers such as Michael Brown, John Corigliano, Ray Green, Dick Hyman, Vitězslavá Kaprálová, Jared Miller, Joaquín Nin-Culmell, and Yukiko Nishimura. Ms. Buechner’s performance versatility extends to unique collaborations with film and dance (including tours with the Mark Morris Dance Group, and Japanese kabuki-mime-mask dancer Yayoi Hirano).
Ms. Buechner has released numerous acclaimed recordings of rare piano music by composers such as Rudolf Friml (“a revelation” — The New York Times), Dana Suesse, Joseph Lamb, Joaquín Turina, Miklós Rózsa, and Ferruccio Busoni (including the world première recording of the Bach-Busoni “Goldberg” Variations). Stereophile magazine selected her Gershwin CD as “Recording of the Month,” and her interpretation of Hollywood Piano Concertos won Germany’s coveted Deutsches Schauplatten Preis. Most recently her recorded traversal of the score to Carl Dreiser’s silent movie classic Master of the House (1925) may be heard on Criterion Collection DVD.
Sara Davis Buechner joined the faculty of Temple University’s Boyer College of Music and Dance in 2016, after previously teaching at the Manhattan School of Music, New York University and the University of British Columbia. She has presented masterclasses and workshops at major pedagogic venues worldwide, adjudicated important international piano competitions, and is also a contributing editor for Dover Publications International. In 2017 Ms. Buechner marked her 30th year as a dedicated Yamaha Artist.
As a proud transgender woman, Ms. Buechner also appears as a speaker and performer at important LGBTQ events, and has contributed interviews and articles about her own experience to numerous media outlets worldwide.
Sara is a dual American-Canadian citizen who makes her home in Philadelphia.