The Ensembles
The ensembles are formed in September every year, at the beginning of the season, but new members are welcome at any time. Each ensemble plays in at least one concert per year. Anyone may join any ensemble simply by signing up for it. For more information about the levels, see description of levels. If you are unsure about your choice of ensemble, join us for a free trial.
The ensembles practice approximately every two weeks, from September to June. Since the schedule depends on the schedules of the musical directors, there can be irregularities in the practice frequency. It is therefore very important to look at the details in the calendar.
The ensembles of the Montreal Recorder Society are:
Beginner: Discover the Recorder
Intermediate I: Recorder for Fun
Intermediate II: Harmonia
Advanced: La Follia
Musical Director
RECORDER FOR FUN
Level: Intermediate I
Recorder for Fun is a group for learning to play ensemble music by starting with easy pieces.
A typical session of Recorder for Fun starts with the playing of long, sustained notes throughout the entire register of the recorder, making sure to keep hands and face muscles relaxed and to breathe correctly. This is followed by soprano and alto exercises: technique plays an important role in these sessions. These exercises aim at mastering fingering and acquiring ease of execution, which increases the enjoyment of playing the pieces themselves.
The next part of each lesson is where all the exercises start to pay off: work on music with several different parts. Some will take the soprano part, others the alto or tenor recorders and voila, it's music! Pieces are chosen from a wide repertoire ranging from the Renaissance through folk music to blues. Recorders are indeed versatile!
After much intensive work on the music itself, and much laughing and joking, everyone goes home with music to practice for the next session.
MUSICAL DIRECTOR
HARMONIA
Level: Intermediate II
This group, founded in 2016, is for those who are already familiar with the fingerings of the soprano and the alto and who have had some experience with ensemble playing. Its objective is to deepen those abilities by providing an experience with a third instrument and an understanding of musical phrasing as well as a mastery of faster and more complex rhythms.
MUSICAL DIRECTOR
LA FOLLIA
Level: Advanced
The ensemble "La Follia" is a group at the advanced intermediate level. There
are over a dozen members of this group. They are able to take turns playing at
least the four principal instruments, from the soprano to the bass, and some of
them also play the sopranino and the great bass. The group is directed by
Francis Colpron, an expert recorder player of the Baroque repertoire, a
professor at the Univerity of Montreal and the founder and director of the
professional ensemble "Les Boréades". Under his direction, the members improve
their recorder technique and their mastery of the art of ensemble playing as
well as deepening their understanding of the musical literature by exploring a
varied repertoire of works from the Renaissance and the Baroque to the
contemporary era.
