Come Sing with Us!

We are an  SATB choir with approximately 30 members. We will meet every Tuesday afternoons from 2:00-4:00 from September to May (with a month or so off in January or February), at the MacKay Centre for Seniors (10 Nelson St. E., Goderich) For more information, visit the Contact Page

Membership fee to be paid at the beginning of each season. The amount is under review.

The 2022-23 Chorister Schedule will run Tuesday afternoons, Sept. – May. Following our winter break, we are back in action as of: Tuesday, February 28, 2023

The MacKay Choristers suggest the following protocols:

  • Vaccination
  • Masking when moving around indoors
  • Distanced while singing
  • Stay home, if unwell

We generally have 2-3 formal concerts per year, and assorted performances at various seniors’ residences and other community venues. Please check out Events Page for details

Events

Watch this space for upcoming performances!

Choir Leadership

Linda Street – Music Director                

Linda Street was raised in a musical family in Clinton, Ontario and studied French and music at the University of Waterloo.

Linda began directing with the choir at the Holmesville United Church and then at Wesley-Willis United Church. She took on the MacKay Chorister in 2008 and the Joyful Voices Choir in Listowel in 2019.
Linda loves directing the MacKay Choristers, having them sing old favourites and as well as broadening their horizons with new music. She has had the Choristers participate in a workshop with Victoria Meredith, (Western Ontario University) and also Rachel Renksink-Hoff (Brock University) and looks forward to planning other choral events for the active choir members.
In addition to choral conducting, Linda has been a recent member of the Stratford Community Choir, the online Resound Choir, the A Cappella Chorus and thatotherchoir.
Linda is the Sales & Marketing Manager at the Benmiller Inn & Spa.

Deborah Bailey – Accompanist         

Deborah has been accompanying Choristers for about 5 years. She is the Director of the community chorus ‘HuronSong Chorus’ based in Seaforth, and is a former accompanist for the Blyth Festival Singers. Deborah did her Associates and piano pedagogy through the Western Conservatory of Music and has taught piano for several years in the Exeter area and has been the Director of Music at various churches in Hensall, Exeter and Seaforth

Continue reading “Choir Leadership”

About the Choir

Over the years, the choir has benefited under the inspired direction of Irla Stewart, Mary Hearn, Kathleen King Martin and currently, Linda Street. The Choristers have had, as well, the good fortune to be accompanied by many fine musicians, including our current accompanist, Deborah Bailey.

The MacKay Choristers began in 1983 with 16 members under the inspirational leadership of Janet Kalbfleisch. In 2008, it had a membership of about 60. The choir sings locally in two annual concerts, one in May, the other in December, along with the Goderich Harbouraires, the Goderich Laketown Band. As well, the Choristers have enjoyed singing in Bayfield, Clinton, St. Mary’s, Toronto, Welland and Zurich. In 1989 and again in 1990, the Choristers performed at Toronto’s Roy Thomson Hall in the Seniors Jubilee Concert series. Choristers have also participated in four-day workshop/holiday sessions in Muskoka in 1989, 1991 and 1993 and in Stratford in 1996.

In 1993 and again in 1998, Choristers were privileged to have composer-arranger Don Besig conduct two choral workshops in Goderich. Following his first visit, Don, assisted by Nancy Price, composed and dedicated a song for the Choristers – “Say It With A Song” – which has since become the Choristers’ signature piece. Both Nancy Price and the Robert Wood Choir from Welland attended the 1998 workshop.

In 2010, the Choristers hosted a choral workshop with Prof. Victoria Meredith of Western University, and another, more recently, with Prof. Rachel Rensink-Hoff.  Members from at least 12 other local choirs attended these workshops.

 

Contact

For more information about the choir, please use the address below to contact a choir member

singer@themackaychoristers.ca