NATS MANITOBA CHAPTER
Dorothy Howard first suggested starting a local NATS chapter in the early 90s but it wasn't until 1998, at the annual convention in Toronto, that Dr. Karen Jensen and Margery Koop, discussed forming a chapter. In the fall of that year, Margery hosted a meeting at her home, inviting all the voice teachers that were interested in discussing this new venture. Seventeen teachers were present at that first meeting. In order to meet the minimum requirement of 20 members to form a chapter, we invited the Saskatchewan voice teachers to join us. On July 5, 2000, our charter was signed and we were officially the Manitoba/Saskatchewan NATS Chapter. Margery Koop became the first president and Dr. Karen Jensen took on the role of Governor. Shortly thereafter, Russell Braun, in town performing with the Manitoba Opera Company, was invited to present a master class for us and following that, Edith Wiens. Other clinicians in subsequent years included Emma Kirkby, Jeffrey Springer and Susie LeBlanc.
As the membership began to grow and with the reality that it was logistically impossible for the Saskatchewan and Manitoba teachers to have a successful joint local chapter, it was mutually agreed upon to drop Saskatchewan from our title and take full ownership of the chapter.
NATS has always been an inclusive professional organization, reaching out to teachers and students of all musical genres, ages and levels of proficiency. Our aim is to present workshops and master classes covering a diverse range of topics from contemporary commercial music to classical, foreign language diction sessions, collaborative piano/voice workshops, interpretation of 21st century music to name a few. The annual Contemporary Music and Musical Theatre Scholarship Competition has grown to include all age categories, from beginner to advanced, and provides a full afternoon and evening of performances for the public to enjoy
As the membership began to grow and with the reality that it was logistically impossible for the Saskatchewan and Manitoba teachers to have a successful joint local chapter, it was mutually agreed upon to drop Saskatchewan from our title and take full ownership of the chapter.
NATS has always been an inclusive professional organization, reaching out to teachers and students of all musical genres, ages and levels of proficiency. Our aim is to present workshops and master classes covering a diverse range of topics from contemporary commercial music to classical, foreign language diction sessions, collaborative piano/voice workshops, interpretation of 21st century music to name a few. The annual Contemporary Music and Musical Theatre Scholarship Competition has grown to include all age categories, from beginner to advanced, and provides a full afternoon and evening of performances for the public to enjoy
