The Hnatyshyn Foundation Announces $85,000 in Awards to Exceptional Emerging Performing Artists
November 17, 2022
Eight young performing arts students have received grants this year from The Hnatyshyn Foundation, supporting their studies for the 2022–23 academic year. This brings the amount invested in post-secondary grants for performing artists to over $1.3 Million since the Foundation began programming in 2005.
The awards include seven $10,000 grants for Developing Artists, and one $15,000 fellowship for a Young Conductor, presented in partnership with the Schulich School of Music at McGill University in Montreal.
Through these programs, The Hnatyshyn Foundation continues to extend its support to exceptionally talented young Canadian students in the performing arts. “Our partnership with the Hnatyshyn Foundation has enabled us to support some of Canada’s most promising young conductors through their graduate studies at the Schulich School of Music. We are truly grateful to the Foundation for its visionary leadership in creating the Christa and Franz-Paul Decker Fellowship for Young Conductors,” said Professor Stéphane Lemelin, Chair of the Department of Performance at the Schulich School of Music.
The Winners
Classical music performance (orchestral instrument): Tiffany Tsai
Classical music (piano): Joshua Wong
Jazz Performance: Steven Noronha
Classical Vocal Performance: Thomas Viñals
Contemporary Dance: Clara Isgro
Acting (English theatre): Sam Cooper
Acting (French theatre): Flavie Bourgeois
The Christa and Franz-Paul Decker Fellowship for Young Conductors: Frédéric-Alexandre Michaud
“The Hnatyshyn Foundation is pleased to celebrate the accomplishments and promise of these extraordinary young performers. By providing this financial support we are, at the most fundamental level, investing in the development of the world-class artists of tomorrow. We are also proud of our association with the Schulich School of Music and the Decker family towards helping remarkable young talents pursue their studies at one of the world’s finest educational institutions.”
Gerda Hnatyshyn, C.C.
All of the winners were selected by expert juries from across Canada. The Hnatyshyn Foundation sincerely thanks the jurors listed below for their generous assistance:
Developing Artist Grants
Nora Shulman, Principal Flute, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and Professor, The Glenn Gould School, Toronto
Richard Burdick, Principal Horn, Regina Symphony Orchestra, and Composer, Regina
Calvin Dyck, Concertmaster, Vancouver Island Symphony, and Director of the Abbotsford Youth Orchestra, Abbotsford
Silvie Cheng, celebrated concert pianist and member of the Cheng Duo, New York City
Dr. Ireneus Zuk, Professor, Piano, Queen’s University School of Drama & Music, Kingston
Dr. Corey Hamm, Professor, Piano, University of British Columbia, Vancouver
Dr. Caroline Schiller, Professor of Voice and Opera, Memorial University, St. John’s
Stéphanie Lavoie, 2009 Recipient of the Hnatyshyn Foundation’s Developing Artist Grant in Classical Music – Vocal Performance, and Professional Soprano and Choirmaster, Opéra de Québec and Brigade Lyrique, Québec
Dr. Lisette Canton, Founder of the Ottawa Bach Choir, Choral/Orchestral conductor, Vocal Coach, and Associate Professor at York University, Toronto
Allison Au, Juno-award winning Jazz Saxophonist, Composer and Arranger, Toronto
John Geggie, Performance Instructor: Jazz/Classical Bassist (double bass), Carleton University, Ottawa
Tilden Webb, Jazz pianist, recording artist
Jarett Siddall, 2010 Recipient of The Hnatyshyn Foundation’s Developing Artist Grant for Contemporary Dance, Dancer and Actor, Toronto
Brenda Gorlick, Independent Choreographer, Performer and Educator, Winnipeg.
Karen Jamieson, Founder, Karen Jamieson Dance Company, Vancouver
Anne-Marie Olivier, Actress and Playwright, Québec
Lise Roy, Actress and Professor in Theatre at UQAM, Montreal
Frédéric Dubois, Actor and Artistic director of the French section of The National Theatre School of Canada, Montreal
Brian Quirt, Artistic Director, Nightswimming, Toronto
Penelope Farfan, Professor, School of Creative and Performing Arts, University of Calgary
Steven Hill, Artistic Director at Leaky Heaven Performance Society and Professor at Simon Fraser University, Barnaby
The Christa and Franz-Paul Decker Fellowship for Young Conductors
Dr. Stéphane Lemelin, Professor of Piano and Department Chair of Performance, McGill University, Montreal
Alexis Hauser, Associate Professor, Ensembles and Conducting, McGill University, and Conductor, McGill Symphony Orchestra, Montreal
Guillaume Bourgogne, conductor and artistic director, McGill Contemporary Music Ensemble, Montreal
Jean-Sébastien Vallée, Artistic Director of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and Associate Professor of Music, Director of Choral Studies, and Coordinator of the Ensembles & Conducting Area at the Schulich School of Music of McGill University, Montreal and Toronto
About the Winners
Tiffany Tsai
Developing musician Tiffany Tsai's goal is to pursue a career as a violinist. Currently entering her fourth year in The Glenn Gould School of Music’s Bachelor's in Violin Performance, she has been fortunate to have lessons and masterclasses from Jonathan Crow, Timothy Ying, and Almita Vamos, in addition to her current teachers Barry Shiffman and Paul Kantor. Some of her highlights in pursuing her career so far include winning awards in the Canadian Music Competition, as well as performing as a soloist with the Toronto Taiwanese Chamber Orchestra. More recently, she had the unique opportunity of performing as part of the orchestra for Tapestry Opera’s premiere of Gould’s Wall in the summer of 2022.
“I’m extremely grateful and honored to be the recipient of this year’s Hnatyshyn Developing Artist Grant-it is truly inspiring to receive this support for my pursuit of a career in music! Music has always been my passion-something that I see in the Hnatyshyn Foundation’s commitment to helping young developing artists such as myself, and admire for their continued dedication. This opportunity will allow me to not only further hone my technique, but also develop as musician, through my studies at The Glenn Gould School of Music. Just as this award inspires me in pursuing my career, I look forward to giving back and inspiring through my playing and performances.”
Joshua Wong
19-year-old pianist Joshua Wong is a third-year student at McGill University under the tutelage of Dr. Ilya Poletaev. During his studies at McGill University, he received the Schulich Scholarship and has recently, with his trio, won the McGill Chamber Music Competition. Prior to his university studies, Joshua studied with Marilyn Engle and was a student at the Mount Royal Advanced Performance Program. He was the winner of the Steinway Piano Competition (2018) and the Canadian Music Competition (2019). As a soloist, Joshua has performed with the Calgary Civic Symphony and the Concordia Symphony Orchestra.
“It is an honour to be awarded the Hnatyshyn Developing Artist Grant. This award will allow me to further my studies and development as an artist. I am excited to contribute to Canada’s music scene and I am so grateful that the Hnatyshyn Foundation is supporting young artists across Canada.”
Steven Noronha
Since Steven Noronha started playing piano at a young age, he has been passionate about music of different genres, styles and conventions. Now in his fourth year at the University of Toronto, he feels fortunate to get to study with incredible professional musicians at the faculty and in the city, as well as get to learn from established players and thinkers in the community. He is very excited to continue his musical journey alongside his peers and to further explore improvised music.
“I am incredibly honoured to have received this award from the Hnatyshyn foundation. Not only does it provide me with significant financial support going into my fourth year of studies but also motivates me further to continue my musical explorations with a great devotion to the art.”
Thomas Viñals
Born in Quebec City, tenor Thomas Viñals began his vocal studies with mezzo-soprano Sonia Racine. He then continued his studies at the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal in Donna Brown's class where he obtained a Bachelor's degree with great distinction in 2021. He particularly stands out for his lyrical and warm tone as well as his great musicality in roles such as Ferrando (Cosi Fan Tutte, Mozart), Tamino (Zauberflote, Mozart), Alfred (Die Fledermaus, Strauss), Le Prince Charmant (Cendrillon, Massenet) as well as Nemorino (L’elesir d’amore, Donizetti). In 2021, he was a laureate of the Jeunes Ambassadeurs Lyriques and wins a place the Orfeo Foundation, based in Amsterdam. During his academic career, Thomas had the opportunity to study with Olivier Godin, Martin Dubé, Liz Upchurch, Marie Ève Scarfone, Francois Leroux, Wolfgang Holzmair, Lena Hellström Färnlöf, Nicola Beller Carbone, Jacques Lacombe and Alain Trudel.
“I am really honoured to be the recipient of this generous grant in the vocal performance category. I would like to thank all my professors and the jury members of the Hnatyshyn Foundation for this great vote of confidence. This grant will not only help me complete my last year of study at the Conservatoire de Montréal, but it will especially facilitate my transition to the professional world.”
Clara Isgro
Clara Isgro is a dancer, performer, creator, and artist based in Toronto. Her most notable places of training include For the Love ff It School of Dance, Etobicoke School of the Arts, and The Creative School at Toronto Metropolitan University where she has trained in multiple styles including ballet, contemporary, Cuban contemporary, acro dance, modern dance, contemporary ballet, concert jazz, vernacular jazz, pointe, street styles, and hip hop. She is currently entering her 4th and final year in the Performance Dance Program at the Creative School of Toronto Metropolitan University. She is also an assistant teacher and choreographer at For the Love of It School of Dance where she assists with multiple classes of varying styles and choreographs contemporary pieces.
Isgro has an increasing interest in both acting and film but has a specific fascination with dance and film as a fusion of disciplines. Last year she had the opportunity to choreograph and create her own dance film that was featured at Toronto Metropolitan University's Choreographic Film Festival.
This past year, Clara has been exploring the art of dance theatre and clowning. She recently had the incredible opportunity of working with dance theatre companies Rock Bottom Movement and Frog In Hand Productions where she discovered her newfound passion for storytelling through movement and theatre. Her most recent performance was titled War of the Worlds: Reimagined choreographed by Colleen Snell of Frog in Hand Productions. She has also been involved in many virtual/film and live performances including works created by well-known professional choreographers, most notably Louis Laberge-Côte, Alyssa Martin, Ryan Lee, Kelly Shaw, Bonnie Kim, Jeff Dimitrou, and Colleen Snell.
Clara will be receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree when she graduates in 2023 and is excited to see what her performance career has in store for her.
“I am incredibly grateful and honored to be awarded the Hnatyshyn Foundation's Developing Artist Grant in the category of contemporary dance. I could not have achieved what I have so far without the help of many. It has been an incredible journey and I would like to take this opportunity to specifically thank my educators, family, and friends. My passion for this art form grows each and every day as I discover new and exciting ways to physicalize and create the stories I want to tell. I would like to personally thank the Hnatyshyn Foundation for helping me continue on this path of discovery and creativity as I complete my degree to pursue my dance/performance career. I look forward to my growth as an artist as I share the many things I learn and create along the way.”
Sam Cooper
Sam Cooper is an actor and artist currently based in K’jipuktuk (Halifax, Nova Scotia). He is entering his final year of a B.A. with Honours in Acting at Dalhousie University’s Fountain School of Performing Arts, where he was the recipient of The Andrew and David Stitt Memorial Prize.
Following his degree, Sam hopes to perform and create theatre that explores the countless different forms of human connection. Collaboration has always been at the heart of the joy that Sam takes in performing and he is deeply thankful for the opportunity to work with his professors, mentors, and peers at Dalhousie University. He is constantly inspired by their artistic excellence and dedication. The valuable lessons they have taught Sam about art, life, and the perfection of one’s craft will be present in his work for the entirety of his professional career.
“I am beyond honoured to have received the Hnatyshyn Foundation’s prestigious Developing Artist Grant. This award has allowed me to prepare for my final year of study without financial burden. This is a privilege that cannot be overstated as I can now fully devote myself to art for at least one full year without concern for financial implications amidst the turbulent world currently surrounding all of us. I have been given the opportunity to commit fully to my dream of acting professionally and I intend to take full advantage of said opportunity.”
Flavie Bourgeois
Flavie Bourgeois holds a college diploma in Arts, Literature and Communication – Acting and Theatrical Creation profile from the Collège Lionel-Groulx. It was during this pre-university program’s comprehensive assessment that she realized what drew her to theatre: the solidarity within a troupe. Creating a 50-minute play proved to her that she was captivated by collective creation through writing, staging and acting. At the age of 18, she did a one-month internship at Tomorrow Spring, a school in Belarus. Working with students and professionals from Morocco, France, Russia, Algeria and Tunisia fuelled this desire to explore the international theatre culture.
Since she began attending Collège Lionel-Groulx’s professional theatre school in 2020, Bourgeois has been seeking to discover herself as a performer. She claims to be an artist who is especially interested in the fight for women’s rights. She advocates for parity on the stage either through her socially conscious writing dealing with issues such as domestic violence or by supporting improv leagues that wish to reach parity within their organizations. At the end of her training, she hopes to act, stage plays, write, teach theatre acting, do some dubbing and become a creator who reinvents herself, takes part in the community, and provides a voice for the voiceless.
“In my opinion, theatre is the art of questioning oneself, analyzing, taking interest, sharing and thinking – it is because of this curiosity for humanity that I want to make this my career. I am honoured to be supported by the Hnatyshyn Foundation as the recipient of the 2022 Developing Artist Grant for Acting (French Theatre). I wish to express my gratitude for their confidence in my work and their extreme generosity toward emerging creators in Canada. I want to also thank the teaching staff at Collège Lionel-Groulx’s professional theatre school for their support, Anthony L’Heureux, my friend and acting partner, Luc Bourgeois, for his sound advice and Louise Cardinal for her undying encouragement. Everyone’s support at such a decisive moment in my studies and personal growth is leading me to dive deeper with each of my learnings.”
Frédéric-Alexandre Michaud
Praised for his welcoming personality, trustworthiness, and attention to detail, Frédéric-Alexandre Michaud (Maestro FAM) is a versatile artist nationally recognized as a hardworking and talented conductor, violinist, and radio cultural commentator.
In September 2021, Michaud began doctoral studies in orchestral conducting at McGill University studying with Jean Lesage and Maestros Guillaume Bourgogne, David Itkin and Jonathan Dagenais. At the same institution, he also completed two Master’s degrees, one in 2021 in orchestral conducting and one in 2019 in violin performance. As a conducting student, he greatly impressed with the quality and audacity of his recitals, conducting some of the most challenging repertoire for conductors such as The Rite of Spring by Stravinsky, the Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune and La mer by Debussy. He had the privilege of participating in two inspiring conducting masterclasses organized by the Schulich School of Music, one with Alexander Shelley in 2021, through a partnership with the National Arts Centre Orchestra, and one in 2019 with internationally acclaimed French maestro François-Xavier Roth, through a partnership with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra.
During the summer of 2022, he had the opportunity to be the assistant conductor of Maestro Alain Trudel at the National Academy Orchestra of Canada and, in July 2021, he studied conducting at Domaine Forget with Maestros Bramwell Tovey and Yannick Nézet-Séguin. In April 2022, he received the Scarlet Key Award given to students who have demonstrated exceptional leadership and extracurricular achievements at McGill University. In November 2021, he received the first award by the new Program to Support Graduate Conducting Students in the Study and Performance of Music by Composers from Underrepresented Groups which allowed him to perform the Symphony No. 1 “Afro-American” by William Grant-Still with the McGill Symphony Orchestra. In addition to his academic path, he is the artistic director of his own ensemble the Brownies Concerto Orchestra and, since July 2020, of the Orchestre symphonique des jeunes de Joliette (OSJJ).
“I am honoured to receive the Christa and Franz-Paul Decker Fellowship in Conducting from the Hnatyshyn Foundation at the Schulich School of Music of McGill University. I would like to share with you my sincere gratitude for the financial assistance that you granted me and which will allow me to improve myself further in the mastery of my art. Since my early days as a student from Gaspésie studying at the Conservatoire de musique de Rimouski and then in Montreal at the Schulich School of Music, I always took great pride in the dedication to my education and my social involvement in the community. It is very heartwarming to be recognized for the numerous years that I invested to work on my craft and in my volunteer work. As a conductor, the pandemic has been a source of stress, doubt and limitation in my musical ambitions. I must say that this award inspires me enormously and has given me renewed vigor and encouragement in the next steps for my future in the musical world. I conclude by thanking you once again for this wonderful gift which acts as a real springboard for my learning and ambitions.”
