Hailed by critics as “charismatic, crisp, precise, and elegant”, Janna Sailor has firmly established herself as a conductor, violinist, and groundbreaking visionary on the Canadian music scene. Originally from rural Saskatchewan, Janna completed her studies in violin and conducting at the Brandon School of Music and the University of British Columbia.
Recently listed on the Women in Music Canada’s “Honour Roll 10 Female Artists to Watch” in March of 2023, and Winner of the Betty Webster Award for Orchestral Innovation from Orchestras Canada, Janna combines diverse experiences on the international stage with a deep sense of community, equality, and social justice. Janna’s creative output is firmly rooted in the conviction that classical music should be inclusive and accessible to all. This guiding principle has led Janna to work on a number of artsbased social initiatives, including music instruction for disadvantaged youth in downtown Vancouver’s Eastside, fundraising and outreach activities for immigrants, establishing music therapy programs, and the founding of the Allegra Chamber Orchestra, an allfemale professional ensemble with a social action mandate to champion the works of female minority artists and to enact change through music.
Highlights for Janna Sailor in 2024 include presenting at the International Conductor Guild Conference in New York as well as at the Global Leaders Institute Innovation Summit in Arequipa, Peru. In January, Janna conducts the debut of IndigiDivas: Indigenous Stories and Opera Hits in Vancouver with Allegra Chamber Orchestra, and with guest artist Marion Newman and the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra. Janna Sailor leads the Saskatoon Symphony in YXE Divas, showcasing local female artists in pops, rock, blues and jazz, and returns to conduct Torch Songs with Julie Nesrallah with the Saskatoon Symphony.
Janna has conducted major orchestras and ensembles including Ottawa Symphony Orchestra, Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Symphony Nova Scotia, Kingston Symphony, Brott Festival (National Academy Orchestra), Winnipeg Symphony, Edmonton Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, Vancouver Philharmonic Orchestra, Vancouver InterCultural Orchestra, Kensington Sinfonia, Saskatoon Symphony, Regina Symphony, Symphony New Brunswick, and Société de musique contemporaine du Québec.
Active as a concert producer, Janna’s work can be seen on stages across Canada, and heard on the airwaves as a producer for CBC Calgary.
Oli Guselle is a settler born in Saskatoon (Treaty 6) now residing in Toronto (Treaty 13). They just graduated this spring with their Bachelors of Music in vocal performance from the University of Toronto, and though they are a classically trained mezzo, they put no limit on their musical expression and enjoy singing everything from musical theatre to R&B and are currently in 3 punk bands. Recent credits include: Prince Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus (SO 2019), Marie Anna von Mozart in Mozart Re-reimagined (SO and SSO 2021), Yitzhak in Hedwig and the Angry Inch (Sparrow Theatre 2021), and The Hero in The Sinai Sessions concept album (Dandelion Theatre 2022). They are so grateful to be performing among such wonderful colleagues, and would like to thank their family, friends, and the Saskatoon arts community for supporting them on their musical journey thus far.
Multifaceted artist Danika Lorèn has not only made a name as a vocalist, but also as a composer. Having obtained a masters degree in opera at the University of Toronto, Danika continued training as a vocalist with the Canadian Opera Company’s Ensemble Program from 2016-18. Some of Danika’s signature roles include: Gilda (Rigoletto), Musetta (La Bohème), Adina (L’elisir d’amore), Ginevra/Dalinda (Ariodante), Despina (Così fan Tutte) and Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro).
