Stephanie Martin (composer)

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For the singer-songwriter, see Stephanie Martin.

Stephanie Martin
BornTillsonburg, Ontario, Canada
Genreschoral
Occupation(s)Composer, conductor, organist
Websitehttp://www.stephaniemartinmusic.com/

Stephanie Martin (born 1962)[1] is a Canadian composer, conductor, and associate professor of music at York University's School of the Arts, Media, Performance and Design.

Biography[edit]

Martin was born in Tillsonburg, Ontario.[2] She began to learn music as a child, and once said "When I was a kid I listened obsessively to Machaut's Messe de Nostre Dame, written in the 14th century."[3]

Martin holds a Bachelor's Degree in music from Wilfrid Laurier University, a Master of Arts degree from the University of Toronto, and an Associate Diploma from the Royal Canadian College of Organists.[4] As of 2019, Martin is an associate professor in the music department at York University.

She is founder and director of the medieval music ensemble Schola Magdalena,[5] spent 20 years from 1997 to 2017 as artistic director of Pax Christi Chorale,[6] and worked as the music director and organist of the Church of Saint Mary Magdalene in Toronto.

Partial list of works[edit]

Regarding her composition practices, Martin said in an interview "I don’t have a very healthy composition practice. I am a binger. I carve out blocks of time when I don’t do anything but compose. That means I neglect some other important things, but it does mean I can accomplish my writing goals very quickly and efficiently."[7]

  • Babel: A choral symphony (2015; Choral with full orchestra)[8]
  • When You Are Old (2016; various voices with piano)[9]
  • God So Loved The World (2017; SATB with two treble instruments)[10]
  • Sacred Songs for Small Choirs (2018; various voices, a capella)[11]
  • The Llandovery Castle (2018; opera for six singers, chorus, and chamber orchestra; libretto by Paul Ciufo)[12]
  • An Earthly Tree (2018; SATB with divisi)[13]

The Llandovery Castle opera[edit]

Martin's first opera, The Llandovery Castle, is about the 1918 sinking of HMHS Llandovery Castle and was inspired when Martin noticed a commemorative plaque in honour of a nurse who died in the sinking and later suggested the idea to playwright Paul Ciufo who became the librettist.[14] Ciufo used "a nurse's diary, articles and transcripts from a subsequent war crimes trial" as resources when dramatizing the story.[15] The opera premiered on 26 June 2018 at Calvin Presbyterian Church in Toronto.

Awards[edit]

  • Recipient of Leslie Bell Prize for Choral Conducting (1998)
  • First prize in the Exultate Chamber Singers’ composition competition (2009)[4]
  • First prize in the Association of Anglican Musicians composer's competition (2010)[4]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Rachel Rensink-Hoff (3 November 2015). "THE LIFE AND WORKS OF FOUR FEMALE CANADIAN CHORAL COMPOSERS" (PDF). Choral Journal. McMaster University. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  2. ^ Buell, MJ (31 October 2014). "November's Child / Stephanie Martin". The Whole Note. Archived from the original on 19 September 2015. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  3. ^ Barcza, Leslie (2 March 2016). "Questions for Stephanie Martin: Babel". barczablog. Archived from the original on 22 March 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  4. ^ a b c "Profile: Stephanie Martin". ampd.yorku.ca. York University. Archived from the original on 28 May 2018. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  5. ^ "The Ensemble". Schola Magdalena. Archived from the original on 25 October 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  6. ^ Chang, Brian (20 April 2017). "What's Next For Stephanie Martin After Pax Christi Chorale?". Ludwig van Toronto. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  7. ^ Boutda, Matthew (28 January 2019). "Canadian Composers Interview Series with Stephanie Martin". Alliance for Canadian New Music Projects. Archived from the original on 20 February 2019. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  8. ^ "Babel: A choral symphony". Canadian Music Centre. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  9. ^ "When You Are Old". renforthmusic.com. Renforth Music. Archived from the original on 1 February 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  10. ^ "God So Loved The World". renforthmusic.com. Renforth Music. Archived from the original on 1 May 2018. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  11. ^ "Sacred Songs for Small Choirs". renforthmusic.com. Renforth Music. Archived from the original on 1 February 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  12. ^ "Creative Team". llandoverycastle.ca. Bicycle Opera Project. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  13. ^ "Stephanie Martin: An Earthly Tree, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir". YouTube. Toronto Mendelssohn Choir. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  14. ^ Terauds, John (24 June 2018). "New Canadian opera recalls wartime tragedy at sea". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 10 August 2019. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  15. ^ Szklarski, Cassandra (8 November 2017). "Opera to focus on Great War nurses 100 years after hospital ship sinking". National Post. Canadian Press. Retrieved 20 February 2019.

External links[edit]

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