“This season is an exciting one for me. It is rapidly developing into a year of musical and professional development. I feel so blessed by these opportunities – opportunities that were largely facilitated by TWU’s School of the Arts, Media + Culture.”
— Rob Workman, M.Mus., TWU alumnus
Throughout this year, societies around the world have been in need of comfort and encouragement – the kind of consoling and uplifting that music can bring. Choral singers in BC are ready to create beautiful experiences for listeners that both ease and revive the soul.
Rob Workman, Trinity Western University alumnus, is a tenor who was recently selected to join the Vancouver Chamber Choir (VCC), one of Canada’s top professional choral ensembles. Workman completed his Bachelor of Arts in Music (Voice) at Trinity Western in 2016, before going on to do his Master of Music in Choral Conducting at the University of Manitoba in 2020.
As the VCC opens its 50th anniversary season this fall, Workman will be among the voices singing in the first program of the season, entitled, “Summer is Gone!”.
“This season is an exciting one for me.” Workman says, “It is rapidly developing into a year of musical and professional development. I feel so blessed by these opportunities – opportunities that were largely facilitated by TWU’s School of the Arts, Media + Culture.”
Completing a master's program during COVID-19
Workman’s year of musical development hasn’t been without its challenges. Back in March, his final recital, which was the summation of his master’s program, was abruptly canceled due to COVID-19 shutdowns.
“My final semester came to a strange conclusion,” Workman recalls. “My final recital, ‘Why the Caged Bird Sings,’ was set to be performed on March 23. I had poured my heart and passion into the project.”
In the spring, as COVID-19 cases escalated worldwide, Workman was unable to meet with his singers for a final rehearsal or to arrange a revised recital performance.
Despite this uncompleted concert, Workman has pressed on in his professional journey. “My plan upon graduation was to invest as fully into high-level musicianship as possible, and on that front, things are really starting to come together.”
Finding new musical inspiration
Workman has started a new choral collaboration with TWU faculty and alumni, called Inspiro.
Workman remarks, “As a conductor and collaborator, I am very excited to be a part of a collaboration between five brilliant musicians that I believe is going to greatly strengthen the choral scene in BC, and the Lower Mainland especially.”
In addition to Workman, Inspiro’s artistic team includes Carmen Hollett (’07), Anna-Marie Ryan (’18), Dr. Joel Tranquilla who is TWU’s Director of Choral Activities, and Cathrie Yuen (’15) who is a SAMC instructor and the conductor of the TWU Chamber Choir during Tranquilla’s sabbatical leave this year.
As part of the Inspiro initiative, Workman and Tranquilla will be co-conductors of a new choir, Ensemble 2021, which will focus on choral works from the 20th and 21st centuries.
In addition to his involvement with VCC and Inspiro, Workman is the tenor section lead for the Vancouver Bach Choir. He also sings with the Schooner Cove Singers from Vancouver Island and Belle Voci, an cappella ensemble from Chilliwack.
Read about this story in the Langley Advance Times.
About Trinity Western University
Founded in 1962, Trinity Western University is Canada’s premier Christian liberal arts university dedicated to equipping students to establish meaningful connections between career, life, and the needs of the world. It is a fully accredited research institution offering liberal arts and sciences, as well as professional schools in business, nursing, education, human kinetics, graduate studies, and arts, media, and culture. It has five campuses: Langley, Richmond-Lansdowne, Richmond-Minoru, Ottawa, and Bellingham, WA. TWU emphasizes academic excellence, research, and student engagement in a vital faith community committed to forming leaders to have a transformational impact on culture. Learn more at www.twu.ca or follow us on Twitter @TrinityWestern, on Facebook and LinkedIn.
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