Welcome Susan Hanrahan and Michelle Lahey to the Talent Trust Board of Directors

The Nova Scotia Talent Trust Annual General Meeting was held on May 30, 2022.  It was wonderful to come together to reflect on the 2021-22 fiscal year, and NSTT's 77th year serving the arts community! 

The successes, growth, and support the Talent Trust offers to Nova Scotia's emerging artists wouldn't happen without the support of our Board of Directors.  They volunteer their time and expertise each year to ensure the Talent Trust meets its mission and goals.  We warmly welcome Susan Hanrahan and Michelle Lahey to our Board of Directors.

Susan Hanrahan recently retired after working 33 years with Craft Nova Scotia, 26 of them as the organization’s Executive Director. In that role, Susan worked to provide Nova Scotian craftspeople opportunities to participate in exhibitions, art fairs, trade shows, educational and best-practices missions, conferences, and partnerships with craft organizations and events both here and across Canada, the USA, and Europe. Susan was a founding member of Craft Alliance Atlantic Association, and was heavily involved with the Canadian Crafts Federation, Arts Nova Scotia, the Nova Scotia Cultural Network, and the Cultural Federations of Nova Scotia. 

“The right support at the right time can make a huge difference to an artist’s career. Not only does the Nova Scotia Talent Trust contribute financial assistance through scholarships and awards, it also provides the critical validation and encouragement so necessary to the growth and development of all artists. For more than 75 years, the NSTT has made significant contributions to the well-being of our provincial cultural community. I am honoured to serve on the NSTT Board as it continues this vital work.” - Susan Hanrahan

Michelle Lahey is an instructor in Cape Breton University's School of Arts and Social Science. She also serves on a number of boards including: Talbot House and the Cape Breton Centre for Craft & Design. She regularly volunteers for the Free Legal Clinic located at the Sydney courthouse.  Michelle obtained her B.A. from Cape Breton University, and received her LL.B., and B.C.L. from McGill University in 2017. After graduating, Michelle articled with a regional firm in Nova Scotia, until she was admitted to the Nova Scotia Bar in June 2018. In April 2019, Michelle joined the Sydney law office of LaFosse MacLeod.

"The Nova Scotia Talent Trust's mission is integral in ensuring the continued vibrancy of Nova Scotia's arts community. By supporting emerging artists with important financial assistance, the Trust directly impacts the province's cultural landscape and fosters the growth of its creative industries. I am delighted to help advance this vital work as a board member." - Michelle Lahey

Once again, welcome to Susan and Michelle.  And a thank you to our returning Board members: Adrian Hoffman (Acting Chair), Victoria Hines (Vice Chair), Natalie Wells, (Treasurer), Breagh MacKinnon (Secretary), Pamela Ritchie (Development Committee Chair), and Wallace Smith Jr.  Your commitment and dedication to the Talent Trust is very appreciated by all.  

You can find the full roster of our NSTT board on our website. 

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Team Talent Trust Success at the Bluenose Marathon!

What an amazing experience for Team Talent Trust this past weekend at the Bluenose Marathon! 

 

Thanks to the hard work of the Team Talent Trust walkers/runners a total of $4678.62 was raised!

 

Thank you to everyone who supported Team Talent Trust. Your support provides scholarships to young artists when they need them the most. 

 

Team Talent Trust Members:

• Catilyn Dwyer, NSTT supporter
• Natalie Wells, NSTT Treasurer
• Victoria Hines, NSTT Acting Chair
• Andrew Son, NSTT scholarship recipient
• Andrea Urquhart, Executive Director
• Jacqueline Steudler, Former ED & NSTT supporter
  

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India Gailey Album Release: to you through

 

Cellist, composer, improviser, and former Talent Trust scholarship recipient, India Gailey, is releasing a new solo cello album called to you through on Redshift Records on May 13. It features works by Fjóla Evans, Philip Glass, Michael Gordon, Yaz Lancaster, and Anne Leilehua Lanzilotti. 

The album can be pre-ordered here. 

And there is a release concert on May 13, 8pm at St. George's Round Church.  

Tickets for that are available here.

About India (from her website):

India Yeshe Gailey (she/they) is an American Canadian cellist, composer, and improviser currently based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Pinned as “a young musician to watch” (Scotia Festival), she draws from many eras and genres to craft poetic narratives of sound, most often performing in the realms of classical and experimental music. She frequently works with living composers, musicians outside of the Western Classical tradition, and the intersection of standard and obscure. She has toured across Canada, The United States, and Germany as a soloist, chamber musician, and collaborator. India is also a member of the award-winning environmental quartet New Hermitage, which recently released their fifth recording, Unearth, to critical acclaim. 

India recently completed her Master of Music degree at McGill’s Schulich School of Music under the tutelage of Matt Haimovitz. Since then, she has worked with several much-admired composers of our time, including Philip Glass, Yaz Lancaster, Amy Brandon, Michael Harrison, Anne Lanzilotti, Nicole Lizée, and Andrew Noseworthy. India’s most recent work has been presented by organizations such as the Canadian Music Centre (TO), Government House (NS), International Contemporary Ensemble (NY), Metropolis Ensemble (NY), and Upstream Music (NS). India released her debut album, Lucid, a collaboration with three other emerging Canadian composers, in 2017. 2022 will bring the release of her new solo cello album to you through on Redshift Records, a recording of Lizée’s “Bookburners,” ft. NYC-based turntablist DJ P-Love, as well as a series of commissioned works written especially for India by Canadian composers. 

India holds numerous honours, including awards from the Nova Scotia Talent Trust, the Canada Council for the Arts, Acadia University, and McGill University. In 2021, she was bestowed an “Emerging Artist Recognition Award” from Arts Nova Scotia. Venues at which she has performed or held residencies include the Canadian Music Centre, Domaine Forget, Garth Newel Music Center, Green Lake Festival, Halifax Jazz Festival, OBEY Convention, Open Waters Festival, Scotia Festival of Music, Tuckamore Festival, and other various halls, galleries, homes, bars, gardens, and castles. She can also be heard regularly on CBC and CKDU radio stations. 

India received her Bachelor of Music degree from Acadia University, where she studied with Norman Adams and Christoph Both. Over the years, she has played in masterclasses for renowned cellists such as Emmanuelle Bertrand, Colin Carr, Denise Djokic, Blair Lofgren, Antonio Lysy, Philippe Müller, and Shauna Rolston. Chamber music mentors include Denise Lupien, Ilya Poletaev, members of the Daedalus, Kronos, and Shanghai string quartets, Garth Newel Piano Quartet, Apple Hill Chamber Players, and Gryphon Trio. She studied improvisation with Jerry Granelli and Javanese Gamelan with Ken Shorley. 

As a composer, India is inspired by interdisciplinary interaction, and her compositions often explore environmentalism, magical realism, or minimalism. In addition to her musical studies, she has studied visual art at NSCAD University, and as a child studied ballet and contemporary dance, these other disciplines informing her compositional work. She has written music for Ear Camera, Keep Good (Theatre) Company, The Acadia Gamelan Ensemble, New Hermitage, and for various combos of musicians and dancers. She is currently working on a new body of work for solo cello. When not creating music, India enjoys making visual art, writing poetry, facilitating social meditation, and being with the trees, rocks, sky, and earth.

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Talent Trust Scholarships: Frequently Asked Questions

Scholarships — Frequently Asked Questions 

How do I know if I'm eligible for a Talent Trust scholarship? 

Visit our Eligibility page for the list of criteria.

What kind of study programs does the Talent Trust support?

• University arts programs
• College arts programs (like NSCC)
• Programs in film, dance, theatre, music, literary arts, visual arts, or circus arts offered by private institutions
• Private studies with one teacher
• Summer classes in the arts
• Summer festival study opportunities
• Mentorships
• Artist residencies
• If you’re considering a study program not on this list, please let us know so we can assess its eligibility. 
  (We don’t fund the Verbier Music Festival Orchestra summer placement because it is free.)

Do you support arts teacher training?  

No. We don’t provide scholarships for teacher training programs. 

Do you support art therapy training?

No. We don’t provide scholarships for art therapy training programs. 

Do the application requirements change from year to year?

Possibly. We regularly review our application requirements, so they could change from one year to the next.

Tip: Review the General Application Guidelines and support material requirements for your discipline before you begin your application. You can find all updated files at nstalenttrust.ns.ca/Scholarships/Support-Material/

I study with a private teacher. What do I need for my application? 

Collect all the information required in the General Application Guidelines (page 2). See our General Application Guidelines for details.

Combine all the information from your teacher in one PDF file before adding it to your application. 

Late submissions of private teacher information will not be accepted. 

Tip: Get in touch with your teacher at least a month before the deadline. 

What browser should I use to submit my application?
Our system is built to work best with Chrome. Note: Microsoft's Internet Explorer is out of date and will not work with our system.

How long does it take to complete the online application?
According to our latest survey, plan on spending an hour or more to complete the application process. If you have all your information before you begin, you may be able to shorten that time.

Tip: Plan ahead. Carefully review all the application and support material requirements before you begin.

Do I have to complete the application at once? Can I start today and finish it tomorrow? 

The system is able to save everything so you can work on your application a little at a time. 

Tip 1: Use Chrome as your browser for best results. 

Tip 2: If you have any technical problems let us know right away.

How much can I ask for in my Budget?

Our scholarships are between $800 - $4000. You can only ask for a portion of your study expenses.

How many video links can I attach to my application?  

One video link. Combine your videos into one file. Your video index needs to indicate at what time each piece starts and ends, e.g.  introduction 0:00 – 0:32, first music piece title 0:32 – 2:58 etc

Tip: In addition to the video index in your application, add the start time of each piece in the video information section on YouTube. Don't change the video link until the end of the application year.

I don’t want anyone to see my application video. What can I do? 

On YouTube you can set the video to unlisted. Only people with the link can see it. Do not make the video private. If you do, we won’t be able to view it. 

I’m a visual artist. Can I upload separate images of my work? 

No. You need to upload a portfolio in PDF format containing all your images and the information of each image. 

Tips: 
Use high quality photos (no large files); no frames should show (crop if necessary), only your artwork is important

Your images should be 72 dpi for your digital portfolio (300 dpi is only required for printing)

Each page should contain a single image of your work and its description (10 images = 10 pages)

Keep it simple! (maximum file size is 8 MB)

What happens after I submit my application?  

Our staff will look through your application to make sure all required files are attached and your links work. If we see anything that could be improved, we’ll send you an email and ask you to send an updated version by email.

When your application is complete, you will receive a confirmation email that also contains the date when you will be contacted with your application results. 

Be patient: our staff will get in touch with you as soon as possible. 

Tip: The earlier you apply, the more time you will have to improve your application. 

I made a mistake in my application and only noticed after I pressed submit. What can I do? 

Email our staff at scholarship(at)nstalenttrust.ns.ca and let us know right away. We can adjust your application for you. 

Do not try to update your application yourself! The system will create duplicates which will make it difficult for us to know which version is the correct one. 

Tips: 
Start your application process early so you have enough time to thoroughly review it. 

Save your application and read through it a day or two later to catch any small errors. Then submit it.

COVID-19 adjustments in 2022

Given the importance of maintaining social/physical distancing, and possible self-isolation for some, we understand that meeting some of the application requirements for the Spring/Summer scholarship deadline will not be possible. For example, it may not be possible to record your videos in a studio/theatre or to have someone accompany you for your piece. 

Please know we will be understanding of these limitations and will welcome modifications (filming in your living room, solo performances rather than being accompanied, etc.). Please do your best to meet the requirements that are within your control. (side note: Always hold your camera horizontal so that the Scholarship Selection Committee members can see you fully.)

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Scholarship Applications for May 1 Deadline Now Accepted

Applications are now being accepted for Nova Scotia Talent Trust scholarships for studies between September 1, 2022 and April 30, 2023. The deadline is May 1 at 5 p.m. ADT. Learn more here.

Apply early so that we can help you improve your application and avoid last minute technical problems.

We advise applicants to read the submission guidelines  carefully and to submit applications early since there are a number of changes for film, music, visual arts, dance, circus arts, literary arts, and theatre this year.

Please let the studying artists in your life know about our scholarship program.

For questions about scholarships and applications please get in touch with our Scholarship Program Coordinator Jackie Dowling at scholarship(at)nstalenttrust.ns.ca. 

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The World of Yousuf Karsh: A Private Essence

Portia White's connection to the Talent Trust runs deep. In 1944, members of the Halifax Ladies Club, along with voice teacher Dr. Ernesto Vinci, successfully advocated the city of Halifax and the province of Nova Scotia for unparalleled financial support towards her studies in New York. Portia White ascended to become one of the best singers of the 20th century. The Talent Trust, with the help of the Dalhousie Music in Medicine HEALS Program, supports her legacy through the Portia White Award for a Nova Scotia voice student. You can lean more about the Portia White/Talent Trust connection here.

Running March 12 - October 16, 2022 the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 is hosting a special exhibition featuring the work of famed photographer Yousuf Karsh, the photographer of the iconic Portia White image many recognize today.

You can learn more about The World of Yousuf Karsh: A Private Essence exhibit here.

 

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2022 Talent Trust Scholarship Application Deadlines Announced

We’re pleased to announce we are ready to receive new scholarship applications for 2022.

The deadline for scholarship applications for Spring/Summer studies is fast approaching!

The scholarship application process will again happen online.

We advise applicants to read the submission guidelines carefully and to submit applications early since there are a number of changes for film, music, visual arts, dance, circus arts, literary arts, and theatre this year.

Scholarship application deadlines are:

• Spring/Summer study: 5:00 p.m. Atlantic Standard Time (AST)
  March 1, 2022 (for studies between May 1 and August 31, 2022)

• Fall/Winter study: 5:00 p.m. Atlantic Daylight Saving Time (ADT)
  May 1, 2022 (for studies between September 1, 2022 and April 30, 2023)

For more information, visit nstalenttrust.ca or get in touch by email with our Scholarship Program Coordinator Jackie Dowling at scholarship@nstalenttrust.ns.ca

Please help us spread the word: If you know a Nova Scotian student that is studying in the arts, let them know about this opportunity and our March 1 and May 1 deadlines.

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Holiday Cheer with Reeny Smith

Former Talent Trust recipient Reeny Smith has a new Christmas single AND is currently on tour!

You can find her tour dates here: https://www.iamreeny.com/

And hear her new single, Dear Santa, here: 

https://youtu.be/98xzbvNGFgk

About Reeny (from her website: https://www.iamreeny.com/about.html)

Since releasing her first in EP in 2015, “I Am Reeny,” Reeny Smith’s powerful voice and vibrant, emotional rollercoaster of a stage show have solidified her as one of the most enthralling artists in Canada.

Signing with Cymba Music Publishing in 2016, she released her breakout single, “Good Girl Swag”, a song with an unrelenting positivity in an increasingly harsh world. Smith went on to win Music Nova Scotia’s African Canadian Artist of the Year award in 2016, 2017 and 2018, as well as Best RnB Artist award in The Coast’s Best of Halifax awards in 2017 and 2018.

She’s collaborated with artists like Quake Matthews, and opened for Anderson Paak at the Halifax Jazz Festival, but through it all, Smith says the thing she’s the proudest of is developing her craft as a songwriter and being recognized for all of the hard work she’s put into the depth and realism of her work.

“My biggest achievement thus far has been recognized internationally for my songwriting work. Songwriting was never something I thought I was good at, so to have reached this level of validation means a great deal to me.”

Awards & Achievements 
2019 - East Coast Music Award   -    R & B/Soul Recording of the Year
2019 - East Coast Music Awards -  Bucky Adams Memorial Award
2019 - Top 10 CBC Searchlight 
2018 The Coast Best Of Halifax Best R&B Gold winner​
2018 Music NS African Nova Scotian Artist of The Year
2018 ANSMA Artist of The Year
2017 Music NS African Nova Scotian Artist of The Year
2017 The Coast Best Of Halifax Best R&B Gold winner
2016 Music NS African Nova Scotian Artist of The Year
2015 ANSMA Artist of The Year
2015 Music NS African Nova Scotian Artist of The Year
2015 Casino Nova Scotia Artist in Residence Winner
2011 NSTT Teachers Award
2011 ANSMA Rising Star
2010 Halifax Jazz Festival Galaxy Rising Star
Represented Nova Scotia in Canada Games National Artist Program
2010 ANSMA Best Up and Coming Artist
2010 NSTT Portia White Award

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Congratulations Shauntay Grant and India Gailey

Congratulations to former Talent Trust scholarship recipients Shauntay Grant and India Gailey for their recent Arts Nova Scotia Awards.

Shauntay was awarded the Black Artist Recognition Award and India the Emerging Artist Recognition Award.  

India was the winner of the Yue Lih and Marion Kuo Award in 2017 and the Raymond Simpson Award in 2020.

About Shauntay Grant

Shauntay Grant is a poet, playwright, author, and multimedia artist. She is a descendant of Black Loyalists, Jamaican Maroons, and Black Refugees who came to Canada during the 18th and 19th centuries. A multidisciplinary artist with professional degrees in creative writing, music, and journalism, she “creates artworks that are engaging and accessible, but also challenging, rigorous, and informed by deep research (The Royal Society of Canada).” Her honours include a Joseph S. Stauffer Prize from the Canada Council for the Arts, a Robert Merritt Award for her stage play The Bridge, a Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award for Africville, and a Poet of Honour prize from the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word. A member of The Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists, and Scientists, she teaches creative writing at Dalhousie University, shares her blend of words and music internationally at festivals and events, and collaborates with visual artists and art galleries to create multidisciplinary artworks, installations, and exhibitions. She curated the exhibition Stitched Stories: The Family Quilts (Dalhousie Art Gallery, 2016), and the multimedia installation Grandmother, Teach Me (Art Gallery Of Ontario, 2017). Her literary work has been commissioned by Symphony Nova Scotia, Eastern Front Theatre, Against The Grain Theatre, and Obdisian Theatre among others. A former poet laureate for the City of Halifax, her poetry for children and adults has been published in educational resources, anthologies and literary journals. Her forthcoming poetic picture book My Fade Is Fresh will be published in 2022 by Penguin Books.

Website: www.shauntaygrant.com 

Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/shauntay.grant/

About India Gailey  

India Gailey (she/they) is a musician—cellist, composer, vocalist, and improviser––who crosses many eras and genres, most often performing the realms of classical and experimental music. Pinned as a “young musician to watch” (Scotia Festival), she has performed across Canada, the United States, and Germany as a soloist and collaborator. She has worked with numerous contemporary composers, including Yaz Lancaster, Philip Glass, Nicole Lizée, and Michael Harrison. India is the recipient of several honours, including awards from the Nova Scotia Talent Trust, the Canada Council for the Arts, and McGill University, where she earned her Master of Music in cello performance. Her most recent work has been presented by organizations such as the Canadian Music Centre, International Contemporary Ensemble, Metropolis Ensemble, and Government House of Nova Scotia. India is also member of the environmental quartet New Hermitage, which recently released their fifth album, Unearth, to critical acclaim. 2022 will bring the release of a new solo cello album, as well as a series of commissioned works written especially for India by Canadian composers. 

https://www.instagram.com/india.yeshe/

https://www.facebook.com/india.yeshe/

https://indiayeshe.com/

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Karen Myatt: Femoir Album Release

Congratulations to former Talent Trust scholarship recipient and musician Karen Myatt on the release of her new album Femoir.

 

You can buy tickets to the album release concert here. And you can view the official video for Femoir here.

About Karen (from her website):

Karen Myatt has her grandmother to thank for her love of music.

“She turned me on to the American Songbook when I was a youngster,” says the Canadian vocalist. “That, in turn, led me to discover jazz, blues, gospel, soul, and rock music.”

After training at the Randolph Academy in Toronto and graduating from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City, Myatt performed across North and South America.

In 2016, she produced and premiered “Ladies of Song” to sold-out audiences at Neptune Theatre in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Both 2017’s “Songs of the Silver Screen” and 2018’s “Blues Deluxe” were equally successful, earning rave reviews.

Other highlights include headlining the Halifax Jazz Festival and performing with Symphony Nova Scotia.

Her first full-length album – Enchanté (2014) – was recorded in her hometown of Halifax, and features Holly Arsenault (piano), David Langstroth (double bass) and Brock Caldwell (drums).

Her latest effort – Femoir – was recorded at The Sonic Temple Recording Studio in Halifax and was engineered by Darren van Niekerk. The album was mixed and mastered by Christian St. Germain at Studio 360 in Montreal.

Some of Canada’s most renowned musicians appear on the new recording, including Chris Mitchell (saxophone), Matt Myer (trumpet), Lisa MacDougall (keyboards), Adam Fine (bass), Geoff Arsenault (drums), Shimon Walt (cello) and Jennifer Jones (violin).

Along with nine unique takes on classic and contemporary songs, Femoir features five original tracks co-written by Myatt and Montreal composer J. Rimbaudelaire.

“Femoir was conceived at a small café in Rome,” shares Myatt. “It might have been the cappuccino or the cannoli, but something special there gave birth to the project.”

She notes that the album’s 14 tracks celebrate the feminine spirit.

“I found inspiration in both the immediate and eternal elements that define femininity – emotion, creativity, intuition, sensuality, beauty. These songs explore characteristics and archetypes that help to define us as both a species and as individuals. They are more relevant – even required – these days than perhaps ever before.”

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Andrew Boudreau: Family Plan album release

Congratulations to pianist/composer and former Talent Trust scholarship recipient Andrew Boudreau, and his New York based trio Family Plan, on the release of their debut album Family Plan. 

About Family Plan 

Born out of Immaculate Conception, Family Plan is an aesthetically diverse three-person extraction. Descendants in equal parts to sensibilities related to the high and low brow of music, Family Plan is a collective trio consisting of Vicente Hansen on drums, Andrew Boudreau on piano and Simón Willson on bass. At the moment they can be found performing original music that is intended to challenge conceptions of what should be listened to during dinner while trying to enjoy quality family time. 

Vicente and Simón are not only both from the skinny and often forgotten country of Chile, but also claim some sort of family relationship to the famed deceased pianist Claudio Arrau. Andrew is a native of the great northern country of Canada, where winters are very cold and people are very sorry.

Family Plan released their debut album in September 2021 on Endectomorph Records.

More about Andrew Boudreau here.

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Celebrating 35 years: Jeff Joudrey and the Camerata Singers

 

Congratulations to former Talent Trust scholarship recipient Jeff Joudrey (artistic director) and the Camerata Singers for celebrating 35 years of bringing choral excellence to Nova Scotia! 

About the Camerata Singers (from their website)

The Halifax Camerata Singers is Atlantic Canada’s premier chamber choir. Founded in 1986 by Artistic Director Jeff Joudrey, the Nova Scotia ensemble has distinguished itself by performing exciting choral repertoire that covers all periods and styles, with special attention to Canadian music. The auditioned choir is known for its high performance standards, claiming national recognition and the Healy Willan Grand Prize in the 2010 National Competition for Canadian Amateur Choirs.

Members of the Halifax Camerata Singers come from many communities for the opportunity to perform demanding choral repertoire. The choir often appears in collaboration with chamber ensembles, Symphony Nova Scotia, other musicians, and since 2001 has been the core choir of the Symphony Nova Scotia Chorus. The ensemble performs in regional concert series such as Music at the Three Churches, Musique Royale, Music at Trinity, Dartmouth Community Concert Series, and Indian River Festival, P.E.I.

The Halifax Camerata Singers organization has an active program of commissioning choral music from Canadian and international composers and is proud to encourage young singers through its Youth Mentoring Program, bursaries for the Nova Scotia Youth Choir, and commissioning of emerging and established composers. The organization was also instrumental in the success of Xara Choral Theatre, a choral theatre ensemble for young women aged 18–30 years, which was founded as a youth initiative of the Halifax Camerata Singers in 2008.

The choir has made five recordings:  A Time for All Things (2015), Solace:  Songs of Remembrance (2009), Songs of the Stable:  Christmas Music from Canada (2006), Songs of Home (1997), and Celtic Mass for the Sea (1993).  A Time for All Things was nominated for a 2017 East Coast Music Award for Classical Recording of the year, and won Classical Recording of the Year in the 2016 Music Nova Scotia Awards. Recordings are distributed through Leaf Records Inc. and Naxos Canada.

The Halifax Camerata Singers is a not-for-profit society managed by a volunteer board of directors. Funding comes from performances, donations, and fundraising, with supporting grants from the Canada Council for the Arts; Arts Nova Scotia; Halifax Regional Municipality; and the Lloyd Carr-Harris Foundation.

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Devin Huang: Summer Success

Talent Trust scholarship Devin Huang had a busy summer! Congratulations Devin!

Devin won first place in piano at the Emerging Artist Stream at the Federation  of Canadian Music Festival.

Devin also won third place, and the Chopin Award, at the Canadian Federation of Music Teachers’ Association National Piano Competition. 

You can see Devins stunning performance at the CFMTA here.

More about Devin (from his family):

Fourteen-year-old Devin Huang is a Grade 10 student at Sacred Heart School of Halifax and has been a student of Prof. Lynn Stodola since 2016. Since being introduced to piano at the age of seven, he has shown great enthusiasm towards piano performance, both solo and chamber.

Devin has had a very exciting and successful summer competing in two prestigious National competitions: Representing Nova Scotia at the Federation of Canadian Music Festivals National Competition in August, Devin won the First Prize in the Emerging Artist Piano Division, and representing the Nova Scotia Registered Music Teachers’ Association at the Canadian Federation of Music Teachers’ Association Piano Competition in July, he won the Third Prize as well as the Chopin Award for the best performance of a work by Chopin. Devin was the youngest competitor in both of these competitions.  

In August 2020, Devin was named by CBC Music on the Canada’s hot “30 under 30” classical Musicians. He was interviewed by CBC Radio one and his video was broadcasted by CBC TV News also presented on social media by CBC Music. 

Devin has been a regular participant in numerous Nova Scotia Kiwanis Music Festivals, placing first in all of his classes and winning several named prizes and scholarships, including the prestigious President’s Cup for the past four years as well as the Dr. Piano and Yamaha Canada Rose Bowl in 2020 and 2021. 

He has also been the Junior Piano prize winner at the Nova Scotia Provincial Finals in 2018 and 2019 also Senior Piano prize winner in 2021 as well as winner of the Nova Scotia Registered Teachers’ Association Scholarship Competition in both Senior and Advanced Divisions (2020/2021). 

He has been a National Finalist for the Canadian Music Competition, 2017-2019, winning first prize each year in his age category as well as the overall Grand Prize in all instruments, age 11 - 14 in 2018.

In October 2019, Devin had the honour to be invited by the Nova Scotia Talent Trust to play at the Lieutenant Governor’s House which was recorded for Eastlink television. The same year he was featured soloist with Nova Sinfonia, performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto K. 488, and made his recital debut on the Cecilia Concert Series. 

In November 2020, Devin was invited by Scotia Festival of Music to present a solo recital in their 2020/2021 Chamber Music Series at the Peggy Corkum Music Room. 

Devin was honoured and proud to receive the new Peggy Corkum/Musique Royale Legacy Award through the Nova Scotia Talent Trust in 2019 and 2020. 

He was featured by Musique Royale on their 35th Summer Festival by a virtual concert released in August 2020. Devin is very honoured to have been chosen as the first recipient of the Debut Atlantic Music Prize in this year’s Nova Scotia Kiwanis Music Festival (NSKMF).  

Devin has received tremendous support from the music community, receiving awards from the Halifax Ladies’ Musical Club and scholarships and special awards from the Nova Scotia Talent Trust. The generosity and support of these organizations continue to inspire Devin to strive to become a professional pianist.

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