Reeny Smith gets high recognition in CBC’s Searchlight Competition.

Last week Reeny Smith’s song, Good Girl Swag, ranked in the top 10 out of thousands of deserving submissions. 

Through a combination of public voting and jury selection, the annual competition awards Juno-ready Canadian musicians prizes courtesy of the Juno Awards, the National Music Centre and CBC Music.

By getting to the final round, Reeny Smith accrued national attention to her music and in particular, her song writing.

As Smith says on her website, 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 song writing work. Song writing was never something I thought I was good at, so to have reached this level of validation means a great deal to me.”

Since winning the Talent Trust Portia White Award in 2010, Smith has gone on to receive a series of additional awards including the 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.

Watch the Good Girl Swag official music video. 

Vocalist Janice Jackson in Debut Concert of Teleet Ensemble at St. Mary's Art Gallery

Janice Jackson (centre), Arash Delavar and Mohammad Sahraei are Teleet Ensemble.
Their debut concert is October 21 at St. Mary's University Art Gallery

Vocalist Janice Jackson, Arash Delavar (acoustic, electric guitar), and Mohammad Sahraei (tar, setar, beghlama, and hand drum) are the members of the trio Teleet Ensemble. 

Their debut concert takes place Sunday, October 21, 2018 at 8:00 p.m. at St. Mary’s University Art Gallery

The performance is co-hosted by St. Mary’s University Art Gallery and Janice’s company Vocalypse Productions.

Janice received Talent Trust scholarship to support her voice studies and is also a Portia White award recipient. In addition to being an accomplished soprano, she’s a contemporary music specialist, producer, and vocal instructor and coach.

Janice has performed in over 200 world premieres, many works written specifically for her, and appeared with contemporary music ensembles and in concert halls around the world in cities that include Beijing, Paris, Vienna, Amsterdam, Hamburg, Toronto, Montreal, New York, Berlin, and Johannesburg.

She recently received the Friends of Canadian Music Award, during the Opera From Scratch gala concert at St. Matthews United Church in Halifax.

Teleet is a vernacular (and culinary) Farsi word used to refer to a blend, mix, jumble, or collage of different, even unlikely, ingredients. The Ensemble mixes Western and Middle Eastern instruments, Their songs range from classical to folk, originating from the Applachian Mountains to Iranian farmlands.

Visit the St. Mary’s Gallery Facebook event page for details.

To learn more about Janice and her work, visit janicejackson.ca.

Suzanne Rigden, soprano performs in Mozart's Messiah on December 21 and December 22, 2017 with Symphony NS in Halifax

Suzanne Rigden will perform

suzannerigden.com

in Mozart's Messiah on 

December 21, 2017 and
December 22, 2017
at 7:30 p.m.
Rebecca Cohn Auditorium in Halifax

This evening will feature:

Bernhard Gueller, conductor
Suzanne Rigden, sopranoLauren Segal, mezzo-soprano
Owen McCausland, tenor
Brett Polegato, baritone
The Symphony Nova Scotia Chorus, with the Halifax Camerata Singers under the artistic direction of Jeff Joudrey

From Symphony NS' website:

For the first time in over 15 years, Symphony Nova Scotia presents Mozart’s magnificent Messiah! Once a staple of Christmas concerts worldwide, Mozart’s 1789 arrangement of Handel’s great oratorio is now rarely performed – but it remains a rich, dramatic, and nuanced interpretation that showcases both composers’ incredible genius. With added woodwinds, horns, and trombones, and a variety of new classical colours and flourishes, Mozart’s Messiah is a grand, fascinating masterpiece, and a chance to discover this beloved holiday favourite all over again.

More about Suzanne Rigden can be found at https://www.suzannerigden.com/

For tickets go to: https://symphonynovascotia.ca/concerts-and-tickets/concerts/rebecca-cohn-auditorium/mozarts-messiah/

Congratulations Reeny Smith, Helios Ensemble (Eszther Horvath) and Port Cities (Breagh Mackinnon) on your nomination for Music Nova Scotia Awards

Congratulations to all Music Nova Scotia Award Nominees!

Former Scholarship recipients are nominated for the following Music Nova Scotia Awards:

Delta Halifax & Delta Barrington Entertainer of the Year

• Port Cities (Band member Breagh Mackinnon 2013 NSTT Chico Berardi Award)
• Reeny Smith (Talent Trust 2010 Portia White Award)

African Nova Scotian Artist of the Year - Sponsored by the Town of Truro Diversity Advisory Committee

• Reeny Smith (Talent Trust 2010 Portia White Award)

Digital Artist of the Year - Sponsored by HAF Skate and Tattoo/Jimolly's Bakery Cafe

• Port Cities (Band member Breagh Mackinnon 2013 NSTT Chico Berardi Award)

Group Recording of the Year

• Port Cities - "Port Cities" (Band member Breagh Mackinnon 2013 NSTT Chico Berardi Award)

Music Video of the Year

• Dave Sampson & Port Cities - "Trouble" (Director: Mat Barkley)

Recording of the Year - Sponsored by My Home Apparel

• Port Cities - "Port Cities" (Band member Breagh Mackinnon 2013 NSTT Chico Berardi Award)

Classical Recording of the Year

• Helios Vocal Ensemble - "An Illuminated Christmas" (member Eszther Horvath 2016 Kenneth Elloway Award)

Pop Recording of the Year - Sponsored by Open Hearth Park

• Port Cities - "Port Cities" (Band member Breagh Mackinnon 2013 NSTT Chico Berardi Award)

The full list of nominees can be found at https://nsmw.ca/music-nominees/

and https://nsmw.ca/industry-nominees/

Janice Jackson creates 'Opera From Scrap' at Nocturne October 14, 2017

Opera From Scrap

information and photo: nocturnehalifax.ca

Janice Isabel Jackson

& Arianne Pollet-Brannen
at Nocturne October 14, 2017

from 6 p.m. - midnight 

RBC Waterside Centre,
1871 Upper Water St

"Opera From Scrap" is an interactive opera by Janice Isabel Jackson, transformed into a phantasmagorical creature in real time by Arianne Pollet-Brannen.

"Opera from Scrap" is an interactive opera. The soloist, Janice Isabel Jackson, transforms into a phantasmagorical opera character while an elaborate costume is constructed onto her by visual artist Arianne Pollet-Brannen. Materials for the costume will be assembled from scraps of fabric, some of which contributed by the audience. In a similar manner, material for the opera will be assembled from live tweets, texts and melodies submitted by the public as well as various sounds extracted from the surroundings. Words, tweets, stories, scraps of paper, fabric, flowers, and other unplanned items will all converge in a manner that completely transforms the vocalist. The singer is required to absorb and create sounds and melodies that will either be concrete stories, unexpected random expressions, or abstract sounds throughout the performance. This project allows the public to experience a continuous transformation throughout the evening. Short recordings of audience comments and singing will also be taken and played back as part of the landscape during the ongoing performance. At the end of the evening, at 11:15pm, the public is invited to return to the scene and experience the fruits of the slow metamorphosis in which the re-envisioned and costumed opera singer presents a newly created 30-minute opera. This manifestation of visual and performance art creates a platform where the audience becomes a storyteller, composer, collaborator, and co-conspirator throughout. Write your words and ideas on scraps of paper and material, tell us your stories, sing your songs, tweet us @jacksonnewmusic

Audio
Performance
Sculpture/3D
Audience Interaction
Family Friendly

nocturnehalifax.ca

Reeny Smith performing at Stanfest in Canso, NS on July 2, 2017 at 11 a.m.

http://www.stanfest.com/

Reeny Smith will perform at the Stanfest on

Sunday, July 2 at 11 a.m.

The Mainstage Gospel hour will include:
One Bright Morning I’ll Fly Away Sanctified Brothers, Reeny Smith, Leonard Sumner, Salt and Light Bluegrass, JP Cormier

More information about the Stan Rogers Folk Festival in Canso, NS can be found at:

http://www.stanfest.com/

Portia White Gala Concert Nov 25, 2016 with Allison Angelo, soprano

Allison Angelo to perform at the 

Portia White Award Gala Concert on

November 25, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. at

Faith Tabernacle Church in Halifax (corner of Summit Street and Windsor)

Get your tickets of $15 each today at Eventbrite:

http://tiny.cc/Portia2016

Proceeds will support NSTT's Portia White Award.

Janice Jackson to perform in Le Tombeau de Barbeau - (Un)Fogotten Voices

Le Tombeau de Barbeau - (Un)Forgotten Voices

January 10th, 2016 at 7:30PM
Sir James Dunn Theatre, 6101 University Ave, Halifax, NS

Read More Here

Jerome Blais' (Un)Forgotten Voices - Le Tombeau de Barbeau with Janice Jackson, soprano and 1986 NSTT Portia White award recipient, is a multimedia show based on the work of Canadian folklorist Marius Barbeau (1883-1969), who many consider the father of Canadian ethnomusicology. This concert represents Jérôme Blais’ very personal commentary on Barbeau’s work, in particular the massive collection of wax roll recordings found at the Canadian Museum of Civilization. 

Part of Upstream Music Association's OPEN WATERS FESTIVAL 2016'

For a Full Line - Up go to: www.upstreammusic.org

Tickets:

$25 / $20 (students / seniors)

Dalhousie Arts Centre Box Office

902.494.3820 or toll free 800.874.1669

Online at artscentre.dal.ca

Suzanne Rigden, soprano home for Opera Nova Scotia Recital on Friday, November 6, 2015

Suzanne Rigden, one of the brightest new singing stars on the Canadian opera scene, will return to her native HRM to offer the Opera Nova Scotia Distinguished Artist Recital, 

Friday, November 6, 7:30 p.m., Lilian Piercey Concert Hall, Maritime Conservatory for the Performing Arts in Halifax.

The brilliant and vivacious young soprano will sing a program of lyric concert repertoire and virtuoso operatic solos. A special highlight will be Zerbinetta’s Aria from Richard Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos, perhaps the most challenging feat in opera. Her pianist will be Tara Scott.

Suzanne Rigden is a NSTT scholarship recipient and the winner of the 2007 NSTT Portia White Award

The Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts,     

6199 Chebucto Road, Halifax

http://www.nsopera.org/

Tickets available at the door or through Opera NS Office 902-425-8586

General Admission $35.00 (incl. HST and $10 tax receipt) Students $5.00

Reeny Smith at the Halifax Jazz Festival, July 12, 2015

Experience Reeny Smith live on

Sunday, July 12, 2015
Main Stage at 5 p.m.

Part of the Free Concert Series

From the Halifax Jazz Festival website:

HALLELUJAH PRAISE CHOIR FEATURING REENY SMITH AND FRIENDS (Halifax, NS)
5:00 PM | gospel
The Hallelujah Praise Choir will bend your ear with over 50 singers from North Preston’s Saint Thomas Baptist Church, performing modern and traditional songs in jazz-influenced four-part harmonies. Reeny Smith is one of Nova Scotia’s most exciting young voices and the winner of 2014’s Galaxie Rising Star Award, and 2015’s African Nova Scotia Music Association’s Artist of the Year. Prepare for goosebumps.

More information about Reeny can be found at her website: http://www.iamreeny.com

Reeny Smith - one of Casino Nova Scotia Artist in Residence Program Finalists

Congratulations Reeny Smith!

Reeny Smith

Information from Music Nova Scotia's newsletter:


The Casino Nova Scotia Artist in Residence program will provide the selected musician or group with $20,000 in funding to assist with developing their career through recording, marketing, and live performance opportunities.  Music Nova Scotia is working with Casino Nova Scotia to administer the program.

Music lovers and fans will have their chance to vote from June 1 – June 5 during the online voting, which counts towards the selection of the finalist.  Go to www.musicnovascotia.ca to vote. The public is welcome to come to the Showcase on June 12 at Casino Nova Scotia. Free admission. Must be 19+.

Finalists Showcase:
Friday, June 12 at 8pm
Schooner Showroom, Casino Nova Scotia
Free admission must be 19+
#CasinoNSAiR

For more information on Casino Nova Scotia’s Artist in Residence Program go to:
www.casinonovascotia.com/air/ or www.musicnovascotia.ca


Reeny Smith (Hometown: North Preston, Nova Scotia)
Reeny has been singing and playing the piano since the age of five. She credits her inspiration for music from time spent with family and friends at her local church, Saint Thomas Baptist, where she plays piano and is a member of three choirs. Her roots in music stem from an incredible gene pool of family musicians. Both Reeny's father and grandfather, Wallace Smith Sr. and Jr., are former members of one of Canada’s Premier Gospel bands, The Gospel Heirs. Her uncles Carson and Murray Downey of the Carson Downey Band are also testaments of the great music legacy that she has to inspire her. Reeny was selected for the Portia White Award for Excellence in Vocal Performance in 2011, along with a scholarship from the Nova Scotia Talent Trust recognizing her outstanding musical attributes.
Website: http://www.iamreeny.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Iamreeny/236723473056697
Twitter: @iamREENY

Portia White Gala Concert with Jennifer Farrell, soprano

Portia White Gala Concert

with Special Guest performance by Jennifer Farrell, soprano

Friday, November 28, 2014

7: 30 p.m. at Faith Tabernacle

6225 Summit Street, Halifax

Tickets are $20 for general admission and $15 for students / seniors
Use our Eventbrite online ticketing service: http://tiny.cc/Portia2014 or
printed tickets can be obtained from chorale and band members, or reserved
through the Medical Humanities office at (902) 494-1533 or at medhuman@dal.ca.

Nova Scotian soprano Jennifer Farrell appears regularly with professional Canadian ensembles in the fields of early music, oratorio, and opera.  Her undergraduate studies were completed at Wilfrid Laurier University, and she went on to earn a Master of Music degree and Doctor of Musical Arts degree with specializations in opera at the University of British Columbia.  Jennifer is also active as a voice instructor, adjudicator, examiner, and lecturer.  After teaching voice at Mount Allison University from 2011-2013, she is now delighted to have returned home to join the faculty at the Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts in Halifax.  The recipient of numerous fellowships and awards, Jennifer was a Portia White Award Recipient in 1999.


Jennifer Farrell will be accompanied by pianist Lynette Wahlstrom
Lynette Wahlstrom: Dalhousie Department of Music, First Baptist Church Halifax, Halifax Camerata Singers, Nova Scotia Choral Federation, Opera Nova Scotia, Halifax Summer Opera Festival, National Youth Choir. Has collaborated with conductors Hilary Apfelstadt, Jakub Martinec, Caron Daley, Jeff Joudrey, Julian Wachner, Robert Ingari, and Patricia Abbott. Holds Bachelor of Music (Brandon University), Licentiate Diploma and Master's of Accompaniment (McGill University), Master's of Piano Performance (Université de Montréal). Boards:
Opera Nova Scotia, Halifax Summer Opera Festival, Early Music Society of Nova Scotia, RCCO Halifax.

The Portia White Gala concert will feature the Dalhousie Health Professions Choral and Ensembles and the Sackville Concert Band. The evening’s entertainment promises a wide variety of repertoire including some seasonal favorites.

Proceeds of this concert go to support a young Nova Scotian musician through the Nova Scotia Talent Trust. The NSTT was started in 1944 to assist the career of Portia White and has continued in its support of talented Nova Scotian artists in their formative years. The Dalhousie University Humanities-HEALS Program is pleased to be able to make a yearly contribution to this worthy cause.

We would like to thank Dr. Wendy Stewart, Ana Bela Sardinha, David Elliott, Bryan Crocker, Jim Forde, Jennifer Farrell, and Lynette Wahlstrom, the choir members, and the many volunteers that will make the concert yet another memorable event.

During the intermission you will be able to treat yourself again to Bill Chaddock's fine fudge in support of the NSTT's Programs. Portia White's family has donated 100 CDs of 'Portia White - First You Dream' to the NSTT. The CD is a compilation of three concerts featuring contralto Portia White. They can be purchased for $20 with all proceeds going towards the Portia White Award. Thank you Bill Chaddock, Chris White and the whole White family for your generous support.

Reeny Smith at the Jazz Festival on July 9

The Halifax Jazz Festival's Nova Scotia Super Soul Review features six of Nova Scotia’s rising star vocalists and a supporting band made up of some of the region's finest emerging talent in R&B and soul.

Reeny Smith (first row on the right)

Reeny Smith was born and raised in North Preston, Nova Scotia. She has been singing and playing piano since the age of five at St. Thomas Baptist Church. She studied piano for three years at the Conservatory Of Music, after which she studied privately with Halifax based pianist Paul Simons. Reeny is currently studying music at St Francis Xavier University.

2011 was a whirlwind year for Reeny. She received the Up and Coming Award at the African Nova Scotian Music Awards, participated as a young artist in the 2011 Canada Winter Games National Artist Program. She also received the 2011 Black Cultural Centre President’s Award. In November, she performed at the 10th annual Portia White Award Gala Concert. She won the Nova Scotia Talent Trust’s Portia White Award in 2010. Reeny received the Rising Star Award at the 2012 African Nova Scotian Music Awards, and the Galaxie Rising Star Award at the 2013 Halifax Jazz Festival. Reeny continues to “wow” her audiences with impeccable vocals, and has been referred to as the Canadian Alicia Keys.

http://halifaxjazzfestival.ca/artist/nova-scotia-super-soul-review

Jana Miller, soprano performing in Halifax

The Music Room on 
June 19th at 7:30pm
The Paths of Love: Join soprano Jana Miller and harpist Kristan Toczko for a beautiful evening of songs for harp and voice. This magical program of well-loved songs and arias will take you on a tour through the British Isles, France, Austria, Israel and Italy, exploring and enjoying different expressions of love in each culture. The event takes place at 

Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for students. 
Call (902) 802-1526 for reservations.