Past, Present, Future Program

ABOUT THE COMPOSER Marie-Claire Saindon

Marie-Claire Saindon is an award-winning Franco-Ontarian composer, based in Montreal. With a focus in choral writing, Saindon has a great affinity for setting text and is currently the composer-in-residence of the Montreal upper-voice ensemble Choeur Adleisia. She is a recipient of multiple composition prizes, and her work has been published with Boosey & Hawkes, Cypress Choral Music and Alliance Music Publishers. In addition to her work as a professional composer, Saindon scores films, teaches the fiddle and sings as professional chorister.

Saindon’s interest in music composition began in high school, where she wrote and produced her first musical, Jeanne (Joan of Arc) . After realizing her passion, she went on to obtain a bachelor of music in composition from the Schulich School of Music at McGill University and a master’s of music in composition, specializing in film and multimedia music from Université de Montréal. After graduating, Saindon participated in many collaborations, from choral pieces to scoring films, fiddling in a team of folk musicians and singing in the award-winning female vocal ensemble Concerto Della Donna. Many of Saindon’s choral pieces have garnered recognition within the industry. At the 2013 SOCAN awards—a foundation which celebrates Canada’s top music creators and publishers— she won the SOCAN Young Composer’s Award for the vocal category. In 2018, her piece Light won the Ruth Watson Henderson Choral Composition Competition and Mer calme won the Canadian Music Centre Barbara Pentland Award for an Outstanding Composition. For Saindon, working on Havergal’s original composition for the 125 event was an honour, as it celebrates the value of girl’s education—a topic for which she is passionate. As both a creator and performer, she enjoyed working with a variety of students from Havergal’s music, French and Writer’s Craft classes, highlighting the various roles and skill sets required to create a memorable performance.

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