Wayne Strongman, Managing Artistic Director

One of Canada’s most distinguished music directors, Wayne Strongman is a champion of Canadian writers and composers. As founding Managing Artistic Director of Tapestry new opera works, now celebrating 30 seasons of innovative creation for the stage, he has commissioned and premiered over 30 new Canadian operas including the Cantonese-English Iron Road in 2001 (Brownell/Chan), Facing South (Hannah/Smith), The Shadow (Poch-Goldin/Daniel) and Nigredo Hotel (MacDonald/Gotham) which is the most frequently produced opera in Canadian history.  In 2006 he premiered Elijah’s Kite (Chai/Rolfe) in New York City in collaboration with the Manhattan School of Music.

Music Director/Dramaturge of Tapestry’s Composer-Librettist Laboratory, Mr. Strongman has created a truly collaborative environment for an international roster of composers and writers. Of the 96 creative artists who have been nurtured through this programme, over 40 have successfully brought original operas to stages across Canada and the USA, including at Tapestry. His commitment to a contemporary practice within the operatic art form has made Strongman a mentor to many Canadian singers. In 2007 he established the Tapestry New Work Studio Company as a performing resource for the new work creation process which has become Tapestry’s unique calling.  Mr. Strongman has brokered partnerships with several international companies to bring Canadian artists to a wider public, notably English National Opera (London) Scottish Opera (Glasgow), and American Opera Projects (New York).

In 2008, in addition to the 7 new short operas for Opera to Go as part of Harbourfront Centre’s World Stage he conducted the premiere of Sanctuary Song (Chan/Richardson) for Toronto’s Luminato Festival at Canadian Stage Berkley Street which won the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Opera/Musical. The following spring in the same venue, he conducted the nationally acclaimed world premiere of The Shadow (Poch-Goldin/Daniel). In 2010 he will premiere the third work Tapestry has commissioned from composer Andrew Staniland, (Professor of Composition at Memorial University, St. John’s, Nfld.). Dark Star Requiem (to text by poet Jill Battson) will combine an all-star cast of 4 Tapestry alumnae, the Elmer Iseler Singers, the Gryphon Trio and percussionists Ryan Scott and Mark Duggan.

For fourteen seasons, Mr. Strongman was the celebrated Artistic Director of the Bach Elgar Choir, performing an annual concert series at Hamilton Place in addition to feature events like the unveiling of the Bombardier Global Express Jet (with the Toronto Symphony) and the Canada Day celebrations on Parliament Hill in the presence of HM Queen Elizabeth II. A noted choral specialist, he has also conducted and commissioned numerous Canadian premieres for the CBC: Harry Somers’ Chura-Churum, Maryan Mozetich’s Death and the Morningstar, Harry Freedman’s Fanfares, and Christos Hatzis’ Kyrie and In memoriam Elmer Iseler.

Mr. Strongman volunteers as the choral conductor for the Regent Park School of Music and has presided over the choir’s remarkable rise to fame, performing for the Governor General’s Arts Awards at the NAC, Prime Minister Jean Chretien’s farewell at the Air Canada Centre and the opening of the Blue Jays Season at the Rogers Centre.  They have performed with many outstanding Canadian artists including Jackie Richardson and the Barenaked Ladies. Under his tutelage, the school now boasts its first graduate to pursue university education in operatic studies with full academic scholarship.

Mr. Strongman has led a number of festivals across the province as Artistic Director, including the Quinte Summer Music Festival and the Algoma Fall Festival.

Mr. Strongman has served on both the Ontario Region and National Council of the Canadian Music Centre and was honoured in 2009 as one of 50 CMC Ambassadors for his dedication to the performance of music by Canadian composers.

On December 30, 2009 Her Excellency The Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada, appointed Mr. Strongman as a Member of the Order of Canada.

For Tapestry’s 30th Anniversary 2009-10 season he conducts an Opera to Go revival of past short works, and premieres Dark Star Requiem.