Interview: Music Director Jonathan Quick on the Vancouver Welsh Men's Choir's Return to In-Person and Online Performance this Season!

After a 2-year concert hiatus, the Vancouver Welsh Men's Choir (VWMC) returned to the stage this month for multiple in-person performances. Their Christmas concert series, Sing We Now of Christmas, featured the amazing talent of the choir led by musical director, Jonathan Quick. Although the in-person performances have passed, the VWMC professionally recorded an online concert for audiences to enjoy at home over the holidays. The recording will be available for purchase up until January 1st, 2022 and will allow multiple viewings once purchased. With the online recording, VWMC hopes to spread Christmas cheer to people near and far! This month, we had the pleasure of interviewing musical director, Jonathan Quick, about the choir's return and the in-person and online concerts. Jonathan is a composer and UBC graduate in Voice Composition and Conducting. He has been with the VWMC since 2004 and is also a soloist for various other groups including the Vancouver Chamber Choir and Musica Intima. Check out the full interview below!

With the return of live performance for the Vancouver Welsh Men's Choir, what were you and the choir most excited about for your performances this holiday season?

Jonathan: Firstly, we were excited to rehearse together in the same room and to see each other's faces in person again! It was unbelievably challenging to make music together on Zoom, but during that time we used the thought of our live performances to motivate us!

New for this season, the VWMC will be having an online digital concert available for stream from December 18 to January 1st. What was the recording process like?

Jonathan: It took a lot of pre-planning to put this project together but once we arrived at the day, it was pretty much like a regular sound recording session, except we were wearing tuxedos! I think wearing our uniforms helped the guys feel that it really was a live concert with that "live concert energy". It also didn't hurt that if we began a piece and it just didn't feel "right", we could simply stop and begin again. We sang everything in one take, so there was very little editing after the fact.

The choir was supporting young musicians by collaborating with 3 high school choral ensembles for performances this season. What is it like preparing and performing with these groups?

Jonathan: Unfortunately, due to Covid restrictions, we were only able to sing on stage together with one school choir this year for our online recording. The other choirs sang their own solo set of pieces for our audience, but did not get to perform on stage with us. It is always a great experience to share the stage with these fantastic young choirs and we missed being able to do that this Christmas.

As the music director for the VMWC since 2004, how has the choir changed since then? What are the future plans for the choir?

Jonathan: I have seen many members come and go over the years and we have celebrated the lives of many who have passed. Despite this change, we have always kept the spirit of the joy of singing! We try to plan short weekend tours every season and longer international tours every three years or so. All of these tours really take the camaraderie between our members to new levels. The shared experiences of singing to enthusiastic audiences throughout BC and around the world cannot be beat!

What can people expect when they tune in for the online performance?

Jonathan: You can expect to see a choir full of enthusiastic singers, and some wonderful soloists, all giving you a joyful experience to add to your celebration of Christmas!

For more information about the Vancouver Welsh Men's Choir and the purchase tickets for their online concert, please visit https://vancouverchoir.ca/tickets-events/.

Photo Credit: Contributed by the VWMC 2021