Collaborations

Current commissions underway with Sarah Quartel:

Winter Day

Revoicing one of her compositions specifically for Esprit Singers.
Premiere December 2026
Funded by Esprit Singers

New piece

To premiere May 2027
Funding provided by private donors, Trudy Blight and Remo De Sordi

New piece

To premiere May 2028
Funding provided by private donor, Murielle Fontaine

Sakiwitowin

Esprit Singers commissioned Sakiwitowin, a new a capella work for treble voices. Rooted in both classical choral traditions and Indigenous musical heritage, Balvour’s compositions embody a profound cultural dialogue.

Sakiwitowin – meaning “community, kindness, love” in Cree – centres on these values alongside the word Tapwe (truth), underscoring the choir’s commitment to fostering reconciliation. This work premiered in spring 2025, recorded in 2026, represents an artistic step forward in acknowledging and celebrating Indigenous perspectives through choral music.

• Premiered May 2025, attended by Mr. Balfour
• Recorded Spring 2026 Recording funded by the Richardson Foundation and The Winnipeg Foundation
• Selected to perform at Podium, the national Canadian Choral Festival

Songs of Spring

• Sister of the Sky (from the poem Morning) – Sara Teasdale
• Fearless Heart (from the poem May Night) – Sara Teasdale
• Sing Before Night (from the poem Dusk in June) – Sara Teasdale

Commission funded by private donation of Trudy Blight and Remo De Sordi

Esprit Singers presented the world premiere of Songs of Spring by internationally sought-after Canadian composer, Sarah Quartel on Sunday, May 5^th, 2024

The commission, is comprised of three songs forming an a cappella song cycle for treble voices. Sarah Quartel writes that the songs can be presented alone too. Anyone who has had the opportunity to sing Sarah Quartel’s work will find these three songs a fascinating glimpse into the composer’s writing as it evolves with continuous commissions and international exposure

The texts to the songs are from three poems by the American lyric poet Sara Teasdale, who won the Pulitzer Prize in 1917.

Sarah Quartel’s treatment of the poetry is as lyrical as Teasdale’s writing, resulting in music evocatively matching the imagery, and rhythms supporting the beat and flow of the text.

• Premiered May 2024, attended by Ms. Quartel
• Recorded Spring 2024
• Performed at Podium to a national audience May 2026 in Victoria B.C. with Sarah attending in person.

Swing It

Commission funded by The Gail Asper Family Foundation.

Esprit Singers continually seeks opportunities to expand artistic boundaries and explore new musical possibilities. Collaborations with celebrated jazz pianist and composer Ron Paley resulted in Traces of Jazz (2023), a concert featuring newly arranged jazz standards alongside the world premiere of Paley’s original composition Swing It (2024). These projects demonstrated the versatility of the ensemble while introducing audiences to innovative intersections between jazz and choral traditions

Ron was awarded the Order of Manitoba 2026 for his reflecting on a lifetime of work in Canada’s jazz scene.

• Premiered May 2024, with Mr. Paley performing at the piano with Esprit Singers.
• Support for the commissioning provided by The Gail Asper Family Foundation.

Incandescent

1. Invocation
2. Incarnation
3. Incandescent

Commission funded by Esprit Singers
We were thrilled to premier a three movement composition, Incandescent, by Winnipeg composer Neil Weisensel and Rachel Landrecht, librettist. The music celebrated the organ in memory of G. Barry Anderson.

This was premiered on April 30, 2022 with guest organist, international performing Sarah Svendson on the Barry Anderson Organ, Knox United Church, Winnipeg.

• Premiered April 30, 2022. Attended by Neil Weisensle and Rachel Landrecht
• Recorded Spring 2022, Recording funded by Esprit Singers.
• Performed at the Royal Canadian College of Organists national conference July 2025, Kitchener ON to a national audience.  Sarah Svendson as organist. Neil and Rachel were in attendance.

White Fields

1. Blackbirds/Svartþrestir
2. Agriculture/Akuryrkja
3. Through the Dark Forest/Um Myrkurskóginn
4. Icy Moon/Frosiðtungl
5. Day Lilies/Daglilian

Commission funded by Canada Council for the Arts.

Esprit de Choeur was thrilled to work with Dr. David Scott.

Dr. Scott created a new choral composition to the text by a young Icelandic poet, Magnus Sigurdsson that was selected pieces premiered in Iceland on August 12, 2018.

The five-movement composition is in a setting of selected poems from the collection, Cold Moons by the Icelandic writer, Magnús Sigurðsson. The text is sung in the original Icelandic dialect and in English, translated by Meg Matich.

• Premiered in Iceland, Harpa Concert Hall,, August 12, 2018. Both David Scott and Magnús Sigurðsson in attendance.
• Recorded Spring 20

On this Late Morn
Song of a Firmament

Commission funded by Esprit Singers

In 2015, Esprit de Choeur commissioned Vancouver composer, Glenn Sutherland, to compose two songs which were premiered by the choir in Vancouver at the Tapestry International Music Festival with Juno award winning pianist Dr. Corey Hamm.

Texts are by Emily Dickenson.

• Premiered in Vancouver, BC. May, 2015 at the Tapestry International Music Festival. Glenn Sutherland attended.
• Recorded Spring 20

Innovation, celebrating composers and their creative voices. As part of this commitment, we offer composers an opportunity to work directly with an experienced treble-voice ensemble through a focused choral workshop.

For many composers, an electronic choral simulator is the first—or only—way to hear a new composition during the creative process. While these tools can provide valuable accuracy in note-writing and demonstrate individual vocal lines, they cannot replicate the experience of working with human voices. A live ensemble offers insight into vocal range, balance, tessitura, breath, diction, ensemble blend, and the density and practicality of part-writing—elements that can be difficult to assess through electronic simulation alone.

Through a limited rehearsal workshop, Esprit Singers provides composers with the opportunity to hear their music performed by a live choir and engage directly in the creative process. Working with the ensemble and Artistic Director, composers can identify areas where adjustments or revisions may enhance the accessibility, readability, musical effectiveness, and overall performance of the work.

This collaborative process allows a composer to move beyond what can be heard through a digital simulator and experience how the music lives in the human voice.

The workshop may also provide a pathway toward a future performance by Esprit Singers, giving the composer the valuable opportunity for a public “airing” of their work and introducing new repertoire to audiences.

Composers are invited to submit original choral compositions for consideration. Works will be selected by the Esprit Singers Artistic Director based on artistic quality and suitability for the workshop and potential future performance.

Selection considerations may include:

• Quality and originality of the composition
• Suitability for treble voices
• Vocal range and technical demands
• Length and overall structure
• Difficulty and rehearsal requirements
• Appropriateness and quality of the text
• Balance, density, and practicality of the vocal writing
• Potential for meaningful revision and development through a live workshop

Through this initiative, Esprit Singers seeks to elevate composers’ creative processes, innovate through collaborative artistic practice, and celebrate the development of new choral repertoire.