Musicians
Violinist Rezan Onen-Lapointe is in demand as a freelance specialist in historical violin performance, and is becoming known as an ensemble leader and soloist. Rezan is the founder and artistic director of Rezonance Baroque Ensemble, which has been performing 3-concert seasons since 2012. Rezonance is released their debut album, “James Oswald: Airs for the Seasons,” in May 2023 with the label Leaf Music. Rezan performed regularly with Aradia Ensemble, and has recorded two albums with Aradia for Naxos, including the JUNO-nominated “Vivaldi’s Sacred Music, vol. 4.” She has performed with many of the early music groups in Southern Ontario, including the Windermere String Quartet, Musicians on the Edge, Scaramella, Talisker Players, Musicians in Ordinary, Elixir Baroque Ensemble, the Nota Bene Baroque Players (Kitchener-Waterloo), Cor Unum Ensemble, and the Ottawa Baroque Consort. Among other projects Rezan has performed numerous times with the Canadian Arabic Orchestra, including on their recording of SinBach, by Suad Bushnaq, and also plays with The Canadian Golha Orchestra, playing music inspired by the iconic Golha Radio Orchestra of 1950s-1970s in Iran.
Rezan holds a Masters degree in Baroque violin from McGill University where she studied with Hélène Plouffe, and completed further studies at the Royal Conservatoire of the Hague (Netherlands) with Ryo Terakado. Always interested in expanding her knowledge and perspectives, in 2019 she traveled to the Netherlands for a workshop in historical acting techniques led by renowned flautist and researcher Jed Wentz at Leiden University. She is exploring how these historical ways of expressing emotion on stage relate to musical expression of the time.
Harpsichordist David Podgorski began his music training on the piano, at the age of five, and studied music in elementary and high school at St. Michael’s Choir School in downtown Toronto. After completing a Bachelor’s degree at McGill University under the pianist Tom Plaunt, he studied harpsichord with Hank Knox, obtaining a Master’s degree in 2005. As a harpsichordist in Montreal, David had the opportunity to work with many exceptional musicians, including Hélène Plouffe, David Greenberg, Matthias Maute, and Luc Beauséjour. In the Netherlands, David studied harpsichord at the Royal Conservatoire of the Hague, working with Jacques Ogg and Patrick Ayrton, among others. David continues to perform regularly both as a soloist and collaborator, and has performed in concerts in Boston, Montreal, Toronto, and San Francisco as well as in Italy, France and the Netherlands. He is particularly known for his innovative “salon” style concerts, incorporating both musical performances and historical discussions. David is an accomplished soloist, giving recitals in Toronto and Montreal. David was the Early Music columnist for Whole Note magazine, and currently writes early music articles and reviews for Ludwig Van Toronto. Check out David’s Soundcloud for more recordings.
Doctor Kailey Richards is an active performer and teacher in Toronto who specializes in historical performance practice. She holds a Doctorate in violin performance from the University of Toronto where she was a SSHRC Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship recipient and studied under the tutelage of Julia Wedman and Jeanne Lamon. She is a graduate of the Master of Historical Performance Program at the University of Toronto and of the Bachelor of Music Program at Indiana University where she studied with Stanley Ritchie, was the recipient of a Premier Young Artist Award, and was named an Indiana University Founders Scholar.
Kailey is extremely passionate about education and outreach. During her studies at Indiana University, she worked with Dr. Brenda Brenner and Mimi Zweig in the Indiana University String Academy. She has combined what she has learned working in the string academy with the teaching philosophies of the Suzuki Institute and the El Sistema programs into her own teaching approach.
Cellist Erika Nielsen enjoys a dynamic, multi-faceted career as a collaborative artist, chamber musician, orchestral player, and educator, spanning Baroque and Classical to New Music and contemporary genres. She has had the privilege of performing with Kanye West and Johnny Reid, and is a 2018 Dora Award nominee for her 2017 performance in Onegin produced by The Musical Stage Company in Toronto and at the National Arts Centre, Ottawa. As a Baroque cellist Erika has performed frequently with Rezonance Baroque Ensemble and Musicians on the Edge. She has twice been a fellow of the Tafelmusik Baroque Institute with
Christina Mahler, and studied with Elinor Frey in Lunenburg, NS. Erika was Principal Cellist of the Sudbury Symphony Orchestra from 2011-13, and performs with orchestras across Ontario, as well as with Classic Albums Live, Motown band THE BIG SOUND, and throughout the USA with ELO tribute Strange Magic. She has appeared on albums by artists such as Jennifer Castle, The Weather Station, The Trews, and JUNO-nominated album by Splash ’n Boots. Erika completed her studies at Queen’s University, and at the Glenn Gould School with David Hetherington, as well as festivals such as the Banff Centre and Toronto Summer Music Festival. Erika is on faculty at National Music Camp of Canada and is also a visual artist and author. Her first book Sound Mind was published in 2019.
Doctor Benjamin Stein is a singer, composer, music director, writer and multi-instrumentalist based in Toronto. Benjamin has played or sung for ensembles such as Tafelmusik Baroque Chamber Choir, Rezonance Baroque Ensemble, Unsettled Scores, Opera Atelier, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, Elora Festival Singers, Toronto Masque Theatre and Soundstreams Canada. He has recently completed a Ph.D at York University in historical and contemporary approaches to improvisation training in music education.
