STAIRWELL CAROLLERS: LAUDEMUS CUM ARMONIA

https://www.stairwellcarollers.com/en/hear-us/

The Stairwell Carollers

A unique a cappella gem shining in the Ottawa choral landscape

· The Stairwell Carollers are one of the very few Ottawa choirs dedicated to the unmatchable beauty and technical challenges of singing an entirely

A cappella repertoire.

· Choir Director, Pierre Massie, has instilled in the choir musical excellence of the highest degree, recognized when they placed First in the 2010 Ontario Music Festivals Association choral competition and Second in the National Finals.

· Their unique chamber music style has enchanted audiences since 1977. “Director Massie doesn't exactly conduct. Rather he leads from the tenor section, much like the first violinist in a string quartet. His tools are a few cues, a bit of body language and a warm smile.” Richard Todd, Ottawa Citizen.

· Pierre Massie is an award-winning composer, creating choral compositions and unique arrangements for the group. He has twice placed First (1999 and 2007) and received an Hon. Mention (2009) for his work in the Amadeus Choir's International Christmas Song Competition in Toronto.

· One of the most recorded choirs in Ottawa, they began with a vinyl release in 1986 (produced by Gord Atkinson of CFRA), an audio cassette in 1995, and now have eight professionally recorded CDs of Christmas carols, Renaissance Sacred music and Madrigals. For the choir’s 40th year a LIVE CD of concert recordings was offered and immediately sold out. A second LIVE CD is planned for Xmas 2022.

· A taste of their music is on Spotify, Apple etc for streaming, but most of their best Christmas repertoire is only on CD. CDs or MP3 versions are available on their website.

· The Carollers have performed all over Ottawa and gone far afield, singing in towns across the Ottawa Valley and in the Gatineau region.

· As a registered charity, the choir is a ground-breaker with community outreach. Gifting $126,319 to local charities via concert and CD revenues as well as $18,500 in Scholarships.

· Featured on TV shows as diverse as Holly Larocque’s Christmas Special, CTV’s Regional Contact and other local news shows, they were a favourite of the late Max Keeping.

· Testimonials:

· John Rutter “Thank you so much for sending me your new CD – lovely! I am delighted you included some of my music on it, especially "There is A Flower". The performances are all delightful, and I wish you every success with sales.”

· Richard Todd, Ottawa Citizen “Most listeners will treasure this collection for the out-of-the-way offerings like Quem pastores laudavere and L'annoncation de l'ange Gabriel. There is also a piece called Mourning Dove by Pierre Massie, the Carollers' conductor. It has a rarefied loveliness quite different from anything else on the CD.”

· " Sir David Willcocks, who wrote a Christmas carol arrangement exclusively for The Stairwell Carollers."I know of the great success that the Stairwell Carollers have enjoyed under [Pierre Massie’s] direction, so I hope you will be able to associate his name with my very warm greetings to all members of the Stairwell Carollers for this Christmas, and for many future years.