Unison Choruses Canada is presenting a one-day national symposium for chorus leaders and singers on Saturday, October 22, 2022. This online event is open to both members and non-members. The event will be held on Zoom.

Topics

Registration

Registration fee:

  • $20 regular rate
  • $10 student & low-income rate

Register

Schedule

Times are listed in Pacific Daylight Time (PDT)

8:40 am PDT Zoom room opens
8:50 am PDT Welcoming remarks
9:00 am PDT Presentation: Singing in the Key of T
11:00 am PDT 15-minute break
11:15 am PDT Presentation: Fundraising 101
1:15 pm PDT 15-minute break
1:30 pm PDT Unison Festival 2023 sites preview
2:00 pm PDT LGBT Purge commission pieces preview
2:25 pm PDT Closing remarks
2:30 pm PDT Event ends

 

Mountain Daylight Time (MDT)
Central Standard Time (CST)		 Central Daylight Time (CDT) Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) Atlantic Daylight Time (ADT) Newfoundland Daylight Time (NDT)
 PDT + 1 hr  PDT + 2 hrs  PDT + 3 hrs  PDT + 4 hrs  PDT + 4 hrs 30 min
 

Trans Voices Presentation

Singing in the Key of T: External Testosterone and the Transgender Singing Voice
Presenter: Ari Agha, Ph.D.

Ari Agha (Ph.D., they/them) is a genderqueer singer, creator, researcher, and writer. At 39 years old, they began taking testosterone but were uncertain about how it would affect their singing voice. This uncertainty inspired Key of T, a SSHRC-funded research-creation project combining rigorous documentation of Ari’s voice change and its emotional impact (see Journal of Singing article for details) with an interdisciplinary music/theater performance. This participatory online workshop shares learnings about Ari’s voice change and excerpts from the interdisciplinary performance. Please have a phone or other means of recording your voice available, to fully participate.

Since 2014, Ari has made their home in Treaty 7 territory of Southern Alberta, also known as Calgary. Since January 2022, Ari has split their time between Calgary and Tempe, Arizona, as they began a Master of Music in voice performance/pedagogy at Arizona State University. They advocate feminism, anti-racism, decolonization, and trans rights. If you’re interested in bringing the Key of T performance to your area, email Ari at ari.agha.arc@gmail.com.

Fundraising Presentation

Fundraising 101: How Fundraising Is An Integral Facet of Creating Community
Presenter: Scott Blythe, Senior Partner, AdvanceU 1st Consultants

Now more than ever, small non-profit and charitable organizations need to increase their revenues to continue the important work happening within communities across Canada. The effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic are still evolving and organizations that have relied heavily on event attendance have been some of the most negatively impacted. After almost two years without the ability to host in-person events, many organizations find themselves in the red, or at worst, unable to continue. So, how do we recover, and what are some practical ways in which small and mostly volunteer organizations such as community choruses can turn the revenue dial up?

Simply put, fundraising is about creating the future. Fundraising is about cause alignment. Fundraising can significantly increase your organization’s ability to positively impact your cause and demonstrate the change that occurs because of the work your organization does. This session will provide participants with a foundation for building practical fundraising activities and will offer some tips and tools to get you started.

Scott Blythe is a talented community engagement and fundraising professional with 20 years of experience in post-secondary education, non-profit business development, and governance. Scott’s keen ability to identify and establish shared goals within diverse working groups helps individuals and organizations establish benchmarks to better realize their full potential. He is known for guiding organizations to reach their community and business objectives by creating tailor-made engagement and fundraising strategies to ensure the right people and partners are at the table.

LGBT Purge Commission Pieces

Unison has commissioned three new pieces to help raise awareness around the LGBT Purge in Canada, with funding from the LGBT Purge Fund. The three pieces will be premiered at Unison Festival 2023 in Halifax. The festival choruses will perform the pieces at the closing concert.

We will present a special preview of the three pieces at the Unison Symposium. Get a taste of the pieces, then sign up for one of the festival choruses to be part of making history in Halifax!

Read more: New commissions announcement