Master Class with Prominent Soprano Soloist Lesley Bouza

10/24/2018

Ben Wright, Music Teacher

Last week, Greenwood’s vocal class had the opportunity to work with soloist Lesley Bouza for two days. Lesley is an accomplished soprano who has performed with ensembles including the Toronto Symphony, Les Violon du Roy and the Calgary Philharmonic.

Our singers were working on Robert Schumann’s Leiderkreis Op. 39, a multimovement song cycle from the Romantic period. Each singer received a focussed one-on-one lesson with Lesley and her accompanist Xiao Yi. Lesley and Xiao Yi tailored their feedback to each singer, giving them some useful advice on how to improve their singing.

On the second day, the singers were able to perform the work in its entirety, applying the lessons from Lesley to their performance. After the student performances, Lesley and Xiao Yi gave a performance of Schubert’s “Gretchen am Spinnrade,” and then gave a very thoughtful Q & A about life as a professional musician.

Greenwood is thrilled to have had Xiao Yi and Lesley Bouza work with our vocalists. In November, Xiao Yi is auditioning for an accompanist role at Lincoln Center, and next week Lesley will sing at Carnegie Hall with Les Violon Du Roy. Meanwhile, our Vocal students are gearing up for their December 11 Concert here at Greenwood.

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Greenwood College School

443 Mount Pleasant Road
Toronto, ON M4S 2L8
Tel: 416 482 9811

We acknowledge with gratitude the Ancestral lands upon which our main campus is situated. These lands are the Ancestral territories of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, Anishinabek and the Wendake. The shared responsibility of this land is honoured in the Dish with One Spoon Treaty and we strive to care for the land, the waters, and all creatures in the spirit of peace. We are responsible for respecting and supporting the enduring presence of all First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples. When away from this campus we vow to be respectful to the land by protecting and honouring it. We will create relationships with the people and the land we may visit by understanding the territories we enter and the nations who inhabit them.