Board Member Category: President | 2

I’m hap­py and excit­ed to play a part as CNMN board-mem­ber, as it is a valu­able cross-cana­di­an net­work builder. Gath­er­ing a wide vari­ety of artists: musi­cians, per­form­ers, impro­vis­ers, com­posers, inter­preters, cul­tur­al work­ers, bridge builders and beyond, is a moti­vat­ing mis­sion. The meet­ing of these var­i­ous prac­tices, through­out diverse cul­tur­al prac­tices and tra­di­tions, can and will most always hum­ble, enrich and lib­er­ate our indi­vid­ual expe­ri­ences. I’m look­ing for­ward to par­take in the work of the CNMN, aim­ing to exem­pli­fy and bol­ster the rich cul­tur­al diver­si­ty that makes up the Cana­di­an land­scape, and cater to the well-being of these inter­con­nect­ed communities. 

Lib­erté-Anne Lym­be­ri­ou is a com­pos­er, pianist and band­leader from Mon­tre­al. Her artis­tic process focus­es on a holis­tic vision of music, con­sid­er­ing the tra­di­tions, the envi­ron­ment, the physics, the move­ment, and the spir­i­tu­al­i­ty of the sounds with which she is engag­ing in the moment. Her work being prin­ci­pal­ly informed by jazz music, Lib­erté Anne pos­es a par­tic­u­lar atten­tion to impro­vi­sa­tion and rhyth­mic struc­tures from the African dias­po­ra, along with the con­cepts and philoso­phies that sur­round these practises. 

Lib­erté-Anne began her career in 2013 in New York City, found­ing her orches­tra the “Lib­erté Big Band”, per­form­ing her orig­i­nal works. She received men­tor­ship from com­pos­er and pianist Arturo O’Farrill who first encour­aged her to pur­sue a com­pos­ing and band­lead­ing path. It is through her stud­ies with per­cus­sion­ist Chief Baba Neil Clarke that she begins engag­ing more seri­ous­ly with pan-african per­cus­sion ensem­ble con­cepts and a holis­tic vision of art. 

In 2017, she rebuilt the Lib­erté Big Band in Mon­tre­al and pur­sued var­i­ous self-pro­duced per­for­mances and col­lab­o­ra­tions across styles and for­ma­tions. Between 2017 and 2019, she trav­elled exten­sive­ly to Cuba to research and study under Iri­an Lopez, focus­ing on Batà drumming.

Lymberiou’s most recent works span across tra­di­tions and gen­res, and include a 50-minute opus for 20-piece jazz orches­tra, as well as reper­toire for sax­o­phone duos, choir, and mul­ti-dis­ci­pli­nary projects involv­ing dance, tex­tile art and film.

I am hon­oured and excit­ed to be part of the CNMN Board.  This is a strong and vital orga­ni­za­tion that brings togeth­er our new music com­mu­ni­ty across Cana­da.  Such a vast land, so many projects and oppor­tu­ni­ties:  CNMN offers a way to con­nect, to share, to col­lab­o­rate and to enjoy the depth and breadth of music and sound pos­si­bil­i­ties in our coun­try.  Lais­sez les bons temps — et la belle musique — rouler!

Helen Prid­more is a singer and sound artist, with a focus on con­tem­po­rary scored music, exper­i­men­tal music and impro­vi­sa­tion.  She has per­formed across Cana­da and the US, includ­ing a solo appear­ance at Carnegie Hall; Helen has also per­formed in Europe, Mex­i­co and Japan.  She has three CDs to her name, includ­ing …between the shore and the ships…, which won the 2013 East Coast Music Award for Best Clas­si­cal Recording.

Helen’s cur­rent focus is on the tech­nol­o­gy of the voice and the body, with explo­rations into the con­cepts of aur­al beau­ty, space and silence.  She is writ­ing and per­form­ing new works for voice that employ both struc­ture and impro­vi­sa­tion.  One of her cur­rent projects is her solo voice work Sor Jua­na and the Silences, which will be tour­ing Cana­da in the 2020–21 sea­son.  Helen also shares her ideas with stu­dents and com­mu­ni­ty mem­bers via work­shops and impro­vi­sa­tion ses­sions:  see http://www.beingastonished.com/voice-lab/ for cur­rent work and projects.

With degrees from the Uni­ver­si­ties of Saskatchewan and Toron­to, and the East­man School of Music, Helen is cur­rent­ly a fac­ul­ty mem­ber in Music and Cre­ative Tech­nolo­gies at the Uni­ver­si­ty of Regi­na.  www.helenpridmore.ca