​TO WINKLER FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS

Soprano, Judith Oatway, has a passion for singing displayed in her commitment to performance and instruction. Her performances have been described as 'polished and dramatic' Opera Composer Blog. 

Recent highlights include a Manitoba tour of the music of John Greer and La Ciesca (Gianni Schicchi), and Zwei Dame (Die Zauberflöte. Previous roles include Magda Sorel (The Consul), Witch (Hansel & Gretel), Anne Maurrant(Street Scene) and Donna Elvira(Don Giovanni). She has performed with MB Underground Opera, UWOpera, The Little Opera Company, Opera NUOVA, Kitchener Opera, Halifax Summer Opera, and Millennium Library Skywalk Series and Classical Guitar Society.

Judith holds a Masters in Literature and Music Performance from the University of Western Ontario.  She is proud to serve as a sessional instructor at the University of Manitoba, Canadian Mennonite University as well as an active guest clinician and adjudicator.  Judith co-founded the Summer Music Academy at the Community School of Music & the Arts at CMU, a summer program for young singers in Winnipeg.  As a co-founder and Artistic Director of Flipside Opera & Art Song Collective, an independent vocal music organization, Judith believes the future of vocal arts is alive and well in Manitoba.

Acclaimed Canadian pianist Jon Kimura Parker describes Madeline Hildebrand as “an extraordinary young artist whose communicative skills convey the essence of all that she plays. Her pianism is of the highest level, and she has an instinctive understanding of beautiful sound.”

Madeline is a versatile pianist, quickly becoming a top-pick as a soloist and collaborator across Canada and the US. She has appeared recently in concert with Philip Glass (Winnipeg New Music Festival), the Kronos Quartet (Mass MoCA), with Yarn/Wire (DiMenna Center, New York), and as a soloist for Music Toronto’s COSE series. Of her recent performance of Joan Tower’s Petroushskates at the Bang on a Can LOUD Weekend, Tower states, “I was really impressed with how Madeline navigated that part with such ease and power at the same time…IT was one of the BEST performances of that piece I have heard.”

Whether cooperating with a singer or a sine wave, Madeline’s collaborative virtuosity leads much of her work. Her first prize win in the Women’s Musical Club’s McLellan Competition included a concerto debut with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. She has appeared in chamber collaborations with many of Manitoba’s top musicians. An Eckhardt-Gramatté National Music Competition prize winner, her passion for creating unique musical experiences has led to numerous collaborations with living composers. She can be heard on T. Patrick Carrabré’s Western Canadian Music Award winning album 100,000 Lakes, and was spotlighted in Banff Centre’s 2022 Evolution: Classical series. She has been presented as a soloist and collaborator by the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra Soundbytes Series, GroundSwell, Virtuosi Concerts, Cluster Festival, the Women’s Musical Club of Winnipeg, Winnipeg’s Millennium Centre’s summer chamber concerts, Agassiz Chamber Music Festival, Augustfest, and the Brandon Chamber Players. She is a vigorous advocate for bringing classical music to rural communities and homes as evidenced by her solo tours with Home Routes, GroupMuse (NYC), and Living Room Live.

Madeline Hildebrand recently completed her Doctorate of Musical Arts in Piano Performance at Stony Brook University, NY, where she won the prestigious position as an IDEA (inclusivity, diversity, equity, accessibility) grad, crafting pathways through curriculums for new interdisciplinary degree programs, and devising service-learning projects for the music department. Her formative teachers include Gilbert Kalish, Christina Dahl, Jane Coop, and Judy Kehler Siebert. Her playing has taken her coast to coast in Canada and the USA, Italy, Romania and most recently to Armenia, Georgia upon the invitation of composer David Braid. 

Madeline founded the Young Artists Program for Winnipeg’s Virtuosi Concert Series, where she served on the board for seven years. As an educator, Madeline has held summer teaching posts in Port Milford, Ontario (Music at Port Milford). As an adjudicator and master class clinician, she has appeared at numerous festivals throughout Canada, and enjoys her present post as interim instructor at Brandon University, and Canadian Mennonite University.

Madelinehildebrandpiano.com

Loren Hiebert has been teaching piano in the Altona area since 1980. Over the years his studio has grown to as many as 75-80 students at times. He currently teaches in Altona, Gretna, Morden, Winkler, and Silverwinds Hutterite Colony. In addition to teaching beginners through ARCT students, Loren has taught improvisation and keyboard harmony to many of his students. A particular highlight was receiving the RCM Teacher of Distinction award in 2018. Over the years, teaching piano brought opportunities to adjudicate many festivals in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Ontario, as well as provincial festivals and other competitions in Brandon and Winnipeg. In addition to teaching and adjudicating, Loren has been active as a performer, recording artist, and accompanist for many choirs and individuals.